An erotic thriller that brings new meaning to the word "steamy," The Last Seduction stars Linda Fiorentino as a femme fatale who spends the entire length of the movie attempting to outwit everyone else after she steals a hefty sum and hits the road. The first thing to note about The Last Seduction is that it was released to critical acclaim but failed at the box office, with most pointing out the brilliant nature of Fiorentino's performance. Indeed, she drives the picture and manages to be both strong and sexy in equal measure, whilst Bill Pullman offers up an underrated turn as her husband. The Last Seduction plays with genre tropes but it also manages to stand up on its own terms, too; it's somewhat surprising that such a well-crafted and confident film has fallen into obscurity, but it survives as a brilliant underrated gem and an erotic thriller that proves that there is integrity to be found in a genre that is usually thought to be exploitive and trashy.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.