Review of Body Heat (1981) by Conner R — 29 Mar 2010

By all means, Body Heat is a better movie than Double Indemnity. Itâ??s a challenge to remake a classic and even harder to re-imagine an entire genre, but somehow this manages to so flawlessly. Itâ??s almost tragic that Lawrence Kasdan made his masterpiece as a first time director. The film is so beautiful looking and dynamic, that you almost wonder how they got it that way. When I think of Neo-Noir, this is one of the first that comes to mind. Itâ??s a classic story of femme fatales, manipulation, money and death.

What really makes you fall in love with the story is the acting, even more so than the plot. William Hurt and Kathleen Turner play very archetypal roles, yet do it with such grace that you feel like itâ??s being delivered for the first time. They make extremely sleazy characters come off as sympathetic and relatable. The love story is so twisted, but so much fun at the same time. It truly warrants its title.

I love movies that take forgotten concepts and make them new again, most of the time making even more of an impact than their influences. I think next to Chinatown, it is the best homage to the Film Noir genre.