The Last Seduction

John Dahl, 1993 (8.5*)
Excellent crime story, a modern noir in which a wife from hell steals a lot of drug money from her husband and leaves him a cryptic note (she can write backwards and upside-down both!) that basically says 'adios' and she leaves town. When she stops driving, she immediately hooks up with a new lover who's just hanging out in a bar she visits, and sweeps him into her web of deceit and intrigue. Meanwhile, the husband is not only angry, but is not giving up easily, hiring detectives and joining the chase for his money.

Linda Fiorintino became an overnight sensation for her sly, subtle, seductive performance as the wife, in a performance that pre-dates Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct. In spite of her lack of ethics, you have to admire her gutsy, sophisticated manner. In many ways she's reminiscent of young Lauren Becall in To Have and Have Not. Definitely R rated for some pretty adventurous sex scenes, especially one outside on a chain-link fence. This film is a throwback to the great film noir of the 40's.