The Last Seduction, 1994, Research Paper Example

Film Noir: Femme Fatales (The Last Seduction, 1994)

The Last Seduction (1994) is a thriller film directed by John Dahl and produced by ITC Entertainment. The distinctive features in the movie are the artistic creation that involves the manipulative way of Linda Fiorentino in distancing herself from the evil to live a life of her choice. The major subject of the film is pessimism, in which aspects of fatalism and menace are embedded within the plot (Grossman 7). For instance, Linda Fiorentino out blew the little town to by hiring Mike, and also out blown the New York City by murdering her husband. Bill Pullman acts like a nice person but fails to perceive the ruthless gestures of his wife.

The Last Seduction (1994), is a film noir, specifically femme fatales. The protagonists are Linda Fiorentino, Peter Berg, and Bill Pullman. The femme fatale is Bridget Gregory (Linda Fiorentino), who changes her name later in the movie. Bridget is married to Clay (Bill Pullman), and they obtain illegal money of $700,000 after selling cocaine. Clay slaps Bridget, and she departs to a small town with the money. Bridget meets Mike Swale (Peter Berg) and manipulates him to be a conspirator for murder. Clay attempts to find the whereabouts of Bridget by hiring Harlan. Harlan finds Bridget, but he is tricked in a car crash where he dies. Bridget hires Mike to kill a lawyer in New York, who happens to be Clay. Clay finds out that Mike is working for Bridget, and they decide to double-cross her, but it becomes too late since Bridget was following him at a close range. Bridget kills Clay and blames it on Mike who is arrested.

The audience received the movie in an artistic pretension, which made a 94% acceptance rate after more than 49 positive reviews. The film has sold out more than $5.8 million, with a budget of $2.5 million. Roger Ebert praised the character of Fiorentino since she expressed the ability of female protagonist in Hollywood film with humor. The executive directors of ITC Entertainment criticized some seduction scenes of Linda Fiorentino, which made the film lose its erotic role-play motif. Janet Maslin criticizes Mr. Dahl for being smart and adamant for producing “The Last Seduction” film, which outshines his previous productions that had a negative reputation (Maslin par 1). The title of the film is a formal presentation of the heroine expressing the power of “basic instinct” in the interpersonal relations of human beings in their daily activities. Maslin further examines the character of Bridget as wicked, narrating the incident she wows Mike into getting precisely what she wants (Maslin par 3).

The film glorifies the female characters, which goes beyond the bold rules of being devilish, cruel and infernal, which occurs during a period where female characters never took starring positions, being protagonist or antagonist of the main characters (Grossman 19). The film also makes it unusual of the manipulating male in an environment and culture where women were always the losers in the majority of the illegal deals. It was not possible during this period for female characters to get their way out after engaging in unscrupulous and risky deals, but Mr. Dahl authoritatively explores the feminist character with fascinating aggression that makes a female the heroine (Maslin par 7). The film creates a significant difference in modern art that seduction can be a manipulative tool that women can use to get their needs and wants from men. Moreover, the aspect of racial prejudice is evident considering a woman is involved in the scene. The film enlightens the government bodies not to get lured to women confessions after a crime. For instance, Mike could not be accused of rape and murder; some laws allowed extensive investigation on incidences involving women as the main culprit.

The film “The Last Seduction 1994” was considered a morally upright thematic film, but it anticipates worst things happenings that are predetermined and are likely to cause danger considering they revolve around an attractive, charming and seductive lady, Linda Fiorentino. The title of the film predicts a change in the character of a bad person. It turns out the moral aspects of the female characters in the society lead to the death of the men involved around her (Grossman 23). The worst things happening in this film is the death of men that have a mutual relationship with Fiorentino. The other female character in this film, Trish, Mike’s wife gets some threat calls from Fiorentino and has to agree to Fiorentino pleas. Fatalism is evident in the movie in that the fact that the character has a direct or indirect link with Fiorentino; there is a high likelihood of that character dying for resisting Fiorentino demands.

The threats Lance Collier received and also Trish made them agree to Fiorentino demands and instead their immediate counterparts died. The danger of death is real, and every character has a person to blame to evade the threat of death, but Fiorentino masterminded all the scenarios and became the heroine. The wicked heroine becomes the last seduction since she becomes irresistible to most men. Mr. Dahl, silently makes Fiorentino a heroine, although many had to die. The aspect of love is dominant in the film, and it spreads out from the beginning to the end of the plot. Firstly, the desire for money; Fiorentino and Clay were in dire need of cash. This love of money made they engage in the corrupt deal and made away with it. Fiorentino loves to be self-independent; she finds an excuse of fleeing with the cash after Clay slapping her. Peter Berg, on the other hand, fell in love with Fiorentino, and she had to use seductive means to ensure that Berg does not benefit from her money.

The film “The Last Seduction” has an impact on traditions and ways of glorifying the females in society. The film came in a time when the female characters have no significant roles in the film industry in Hollywood. The film was a sensation considering such a movie was filmed in 1940. The enthusiasm among the audience made the film receive positive criticism with a 94% acceptance rate. The glorification of the females in the movie broke the perception that females cannot do well in the film industry. Fiorentino controlled the play, and all the domineered among the male characters. The position of women according to the old traditions of the 1940’s film production has shifted, and Mr. Dahl explored the untapped aspects in the female that they habitually fail to use in their daily routine activities. The humor and suspense in the film result in building up of tension, which is released towards the end of the film where Fiorentino walks free from the arms of the police, even after committing murder.

Works Cited

Grossman, J. Rethinking the Femme Fatale in Film Noir. Palgrave Macmillan, 2009.

Maslin, Janet. “Film Review: The Last Seduction; a Femme Fatale Who Lives Up TO the Description.” NY Times. 26 Oct. 1994, https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/26/movies/film-review-the-last-seduction-a-femme-fatale-who-lives-up-to-the-description.html. Accessed 29 April 2019.

“The Last Seduction: everything you need to know.” Independent, 6 April 1996, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/the-last-seduction-everything-you-need-to-know-1303455.html. Accessed 29 April 2019.

“The Last Seduction,” YouTube, uploaded by George Jensen, 29 Dec 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfFfrzYFxsU