Review of The Last Seduction (1994) by Gregory G — 28 Jan 2014

There is a perverse pleasure to be had watching Linda Fiorentino as the femme fatale, Bridget Gregory, who lures men in with sex, then turns them into patsies and gets away with it, in John Dahl's neo-noir thriller.

"Anyone check you for a heartbeat recently?" asks her lawyer (J.T. Walsh). After fleeing New York City with $700,000 in cash, stolen from her husband (Bill Pullman), acquired via a drug deal, Bridget heads for upstate New York where she ensnares a yokel (Peter Berg) to commit murder for her.

Fiorentino wears black mini-skirts that reveal her long legs, speaks coarsely with a cigarette and a drink in her hand, then spins her web to trap her prey like a spider. Bridget is an immoral, cold-blooded villain that makes Barbara Stanwyck in "Double Indemnity" look lightweight by comparison.

Fiorentino is seductive yet impervious; these men are fatally outmaneuvered by Bridget's duplicitous nature. Production values are minimal and the pacing is at times sluggish. There is a curious lack of atmosphere or mood for a noir.

Along with "Red Rock West," this helped establish Dahl as the modern noir master. Written by Steve Barancik. With Bill Nunn.