Comparative Film (2)

THE LAST SEDUCTION – 1994, Dir. John Dahl

Using your class notes to the SEQUENCES and the booklet, write a 1000
word response to the following essay question:

What have you found interesting in the

representation of gender in ‘The Last Seduction’?
You may want to consider addressing some of the following points: (this
list is in no way a comprehensive checklist – add your own points)

• Gender representations – femme fatale, doomed male

protagonist, the weak husband, the male as sex object
• Sexuality – much more explicit now; erotic thriller
conventions – Bridget’s sexuality is a weapon but
unlike Ind
• Murder, violence and death
• 1990s context – emergence of the power woman;
rejecting the male gaze
• Getting away with it – unconventional ending; femme
fatale is not punished but celebrated
• Small town America; the attempt to feminise Bridget –
Mike wants her as his wife; she rejects traditional
female roles at the start by leaving Clay
• Fatalistic mood
• Noir conventions – key iconography; Venetian blinds,
low key lighting, shadows, silhouettes, etc.
• Imprisonment and loneliness
• Representations of crime
• The past returning to haunt key characters and
determine their fate
• Money – materialistic society

Key sequences:

1. The opening
2. Bridget & Mike – first meeting
3. Bridget as Deadly Female – Harlan, the black detective
4. Final sequences; the perfect crime and getting away
with it

Remember to include an INTRODUCTION and CONCLUSION. You must be

accurate with names of ACTORS/CHARACTERS, DIRECTOR, ANY DATES etc.
It is essential to integrate film terminology into your response.
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