Reviews (38)

Linda Fiorentino is the ultimate b***h goddess!
Linda Fiorentino gives the performance of her career in "The Last Seduction" playing Bridget Gregory, who is the most ruthless, callous, mean, greedy and fascinating woman possibly ever seen on screen. In the beginning of the film, Bridget gets her doctor husband (Bill Pullman) to make a pharmaceautical drug deal for almost a million dollars, after which she takes off with the cash leaving her husband pennilness. Then she temporarily locates to a small town, where she begins to manipulate a pathetic smalltown buffoon (Peter Berg, who she also treats as a human vibrator) into killing her husband. Linda Fiorentino is just such a blast playing Bridget that instead of hating her, you root for her. As rotten to the core as she is, you cheer as she constantly manipulates and destroys the hapless men around her, and emerges victorious. This movie is great to watch whenever you're in a bad mood ... it always cheers me up.

I am not a fan of the man-killer genre.
The whole business of the smart woman who knows how to use sex to make men stupid just doesn't really wash for me. BODY HEAT, BASIC INSTINCT, ROMEO IS BLEEDING, and this one. Each plays in its own way on the idea that estrogen makes women smart while testosterone makes men stupid enough to override their survival instinct.

I dunno...maybe this is true for a lot of guys, but it ain't true for me. I don't find myself huffing and puffing at the sultry sexuality that these women bring to the screen.

That said, this was one of the better examples of that genre that I've seen--an incredible performance from Linda Fiorentino (whom I've had an eye on since VISION QUEST--why isn't this woman a star?), a cutting script, appropriately moody direction, editing and cinematography...this should have been a perfect movie. Maybe it's a perfect specimen of this sort of movie and my own dislike for the genre is what keeps me from seeing that.

All I know is that when the story came to its shock ending...nothing. No resolution for me...no sense of justice...no horror at the turn of events. It just didn't play true for me because, while I've seen (and experienced) many of the stupid things that men have done for sex, I really don't believe that an erection could make a man--even a slow-witted one--THAT stupid.

Dark thriller, best of it's kind
this is one of the darkest erotic movies i've ever seen, a clever one too, sex scenes are a bit too fake, the plot is stong and achieved it's key and star cast Linda, Bill Pullman and Peter Berg are amazing. 8/10.

Not Impressed
Linda Fiorentino's portrayal of a cold, calculating sexual predator was lackluster, and unconvincing at best....as was the plot. Peter Berg carried off his role and was the only reason I continued to watch. Though mentioned on an episode of Sex & the City, for a hot sex scene, I found it dull. This movie was a disappointment.

FemmeFatale to end them all....
This movie could be harmful to your health if you are fascinated by bad women, there have been other femme-fatales,Davis, , Stanwyck,Turner, Stone, Theresa Russell, Barrymore, but Fiorentino defeats them all as ruthlessly as Kroy defeats her opponents in 'last seduction': it wasnt termed a filme-noir legend for nothing, Fiorentino is ably supported by Berg, Pullman and others, but no taking credit from her, they couldnt have done it without her....but for the HBO telemovie release,Fiorentino would have gotten Oscar or Golden globe and be a household-name top-rung star.....tantalisingly, some of Bridgets attitudes in certain areas are shared by Fiorentino, apparently.... ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Don't miss this one too.....
I hadn't heard much about this film, nothing in fact, when I stumbled across it in the video store. I was pleased to discover a taut little noir picture about a down-and-out ex-marine (Nicolas Cage) looking for employment in the wrong town. What ensues is a winding story involving murder for hire and a femme fatale. Cage and Boyle put in solid performances and Hopper is vaguely creepy as usual. I liked the pacing of this movie; it kept up the tension without overdoing it. With crazy twists and some laughs it kept me interested the whole time despite being occasionally formulaic. Too bad this movie was overlooked by the public, I advise you not to make the same mistake.

Film Noir, yes, but with a new dimension
Yes, this is Film Noir, but it's a new step in Film Noir evolution....and not just because it's funny! Cage's character does get into hot water because of one tiny slide into temptation. When he's mistaken for a hired killer, his desperation for money gets the better of him. But he's just too nice to do the job. As he goes deeper into the muck, he has three choices: give in & be corrupted...or walk away & leave these nut-cases to their own dysfunctional devices. Even that wouldn't be enough, though: he's determined to go with the third choice: stay in the game & Make The World a Better Place.

Cage can pull it off. His essential goodness seems very real, and the befuddled expression on his face, when confronted by the greed of the other characters, is hilarious. The movie has enough action, but it's really a well-crafted balance of thriller and fable.

A Nice Dose of Murderous Double Crossing
A basically decent drifter (Nicolas Cage) lands in the tiny town of Red Rock, Wyoming, looking for work. When he stops in the bar, the bar owner (J. T. Walsh) asks why he took so long and asks him to step in the back office so they can discuss the job. Cage plays along, then discovers the work is to kill the bar owner's wife. He takes the money, drives out to the ranch to warn the wife (Laura Flynn Boyle), and starts to leave town. Problems arise and he returns to town in time to witness the real hit man (Dennis Hopper) arrive. Things go downhill for the Cage character after that.

This is an excellent, convoluted, well-acted and offbeat mystery. Funny, too. Cage never knows what's happening, but everybody else assumes he does. Dennis Hopper again plays a charming semi-psycho but he hadn't patented the style yet so it seems fresh. J. T. Walsh was a great character actor who died young. He's outstanding as the bar owner...who also happens to be the sheriff. He has one or two other secrets as well. And if Boyle doesn't rev your engine, you may need a tune up. She's more ruthless than the lot of them.

The DVD transfer is clean and clear.

Twists, twists, and more twists.
Nicolas Cage stars as Michael,an unemployed Texas roughneck desperate enough to drive all the way to Wyoming for a potential job. He is honest to a fault but always seems to be on the dark side of fate.
After failing to obtain gainful employment he stumbles into the Red Rock Bar, where the owner Wayne (J.T.Walsh), mistakes him for a heretofor unseen contract killer he hired to do in his lovely, but lethal wife Suzanne (Lara Flynn Boyle).
Wayne gives Michael the necessary details and a down payment for the hit on the adulterous Suzie. With no intent on killing, Michael takes the money and warns Suzanne about her impending demise. He also writes a letter to the local sheriff exposing the plot and splits town.
As fate would dictate, Michael is involved in an accident in which he runs down Suzannes lover during a heavy rainstorm. He takes him to the hospital where it's discovered that he's also been shot. The sheriff is summoned and of course to Michaels misfortune, Wayne is also the local law. Michael escapes while being taken on that last ride and is subsequently picked up by the real killer,"Lyle From Dallas" (Dennis Hopper) who plays the role with murderous glee.
After discovering that both he and Michael are former marines, Lyle insists on buying him a drink at, where else, The Red Rock Bar. It is there that Wayne realizes his mistake and soon he and Lyle are in hot pursuit of Michael who willingly falls into Suzannes waiting arms.
The duo are now both on the run and as the plot develops we learn that Wayne and Suzanne are actually also on the lam with 1.9 million stolen dollars which now becomes the central focus of the film.
The casting in this movie is excellent, with the actors blending well with their assigned roles, especially Dennis Hopper.
Marc Reshovsky's photography was superb, utilizing many unique angles which added to the suspense and plot development. The fim's also enhanced by director John Dahl's tight style and Scott Chestnuts rapidfire editing.

Just GO, man!
I've watched this marvelous noir movie, oh, maybe 4 times, and my response is always the same. Nicholas Cage has yet another opportunity to just get the hell our of Red Rock, and you can see the conflict and indecision and inevitability play across his face, and you just want to shout at him, 'GO, man, just GO!'
But of course, if he did, there wouldn't be a movie, and it's such a good one that it would really be a shame to have it not exist.
Cage plays a down and out ex-Marine who literally stumbles into Red Rock West, Wyoming. For his sake, you wish it could have been maybe Red Rock East, or Laramie, or Cheyenne - anyplace other than Red Rock West...but no. It's in Red Rock West that he finds himself caught in a web of betrayal that begins with a case of mistaken identity and goes from silly to confusing to scary to terrifying in the space of about 20 minutes. There's a femme fatale, a psychopath (spectacularly played by Dennis Hooper), money, power, treachery, and ruthlessness at play here. Cage is trapped but good, and no matter how hard he tried, he just can't seem to leave town.
Bravo, bravo. ... Read more

Amazon.com

A little drunk on its own arcane exotica as a gambling movie, Rounders is a film that takes us inside a world of high-stakes card players but falls short on such essentials as character development, relationships, that sort of thing. Still, it is a real curiosity, written by a couple of guys (David Levien and Brian Koppelman) who appear to know something about the dark underbelly of card hustling for fun and profit. Matt Damon stars as a reluctant law student who can't put aside his subterranean career of playing poker and blackjack for big money. After he loses his post-grad nest egg to a weird Russian kingpin (John Malkovich)--and also loses his disgusted girlfriend (Gretchen Mol) in the process--Damon's character turns to an unreliable old buddy (Edward Norton) for a dangerous game of sharking wherever there happens to be a game underway: frat boys, cops, bad dudes, you name it. Norton appears to be living out every young actor's fantasy of re-creating Robert De Niro's prototypical head case in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets, and while his performance is burdened by obvious quotation marks, his estimable talent still shines through. Damon's charm and intelligence bring some oomph to the curiously flat proceedings, and while his hushed, soul-bearing scenes with Martin Landau (as a law professor who takes a shine to the kid) seem gratuitous, they're still nice to watch. Behind all this is director John Dahl (Red Rock West), who is not exactly at the top of his game here but who brings his distinctive toughness to the crime-noir tone. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (121)

Interesting look at the world of gambling...
"Rounders" is an intelligent movie, being more subtle than gratuitous or violent. It follows the trials and travails of a young law student, Michael McDermott, who 'rounds', gambles, for a living and to pay for law school. He loses his whole payroll one night, and decides to quit rounding. Nine months later he is sucked back into the world of rounding when his mischievous and altogether slimy friend Lester 'Worm' Murphy gets out of prison.
The story is very much about finding one's place in the world, as Michael must decide between rounding and the law for his career, and must wrestle with his own fear and doubts about his chosen profession. It also provides a very fun look at the world of gambling and a sort of quirky philosophy that Michael follows. And I learned a couple new ways to play poker!
The movie boasts a well-written script and well-executed directing, as well as solid performances from Matt Damon and Edward Norton, a superb performance by John Malkovich and a heartfelt performance by Martin Landau.
Highly recommended.

makes you want to play poker
Entertaining, believable, if slightly repetitive, behind the scenes look at the high-stakes game of New York underground poker through the eyes of one fresh-faced kid with a dream (surprise, it's Matt Damon!), and his brother-like friend, Worm, whose integrity for the game is essentially non-existent. This movie was never boring for me, was filmed in just the right amount of time, and did maintain an extreme air of authenticity throughout. Then again, I'm no card shark, so I would have no idea if even half the jargon used in the film was real anyway
the film did manage to show us everything you ever wanted to know about the game of poker and more (I don't remember seeing a better poker movie in my life, but then again, I don't remember seeing many poker movies in my life.), and a greater insight into the mind of an addict (Any type of addict, if you really think about it.) and the price one could pay for extreme loyalty. I would recommend this film to all those who love the game of poker, and are interested in exploring the life themes of addiction and loyalty. Other than that, the film offers little else in the romance and/or suspense factors,

This is the movie that will make you want to play poker
Ive been playing for about 5 years now and love the game. Ive read many poker books and found this one to be very good. So I would suggest you buy this book and maybe a couple others and get to playing. There's really no excuse anymore - since anyone can access the internet.

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Rounders One of my all time favorite poker movies
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This will make you want to play
This is the movie that will make you want to play poker

Ive been playing for about 5 years now and love the game. Ive read many poker books and found this one to be very good. So I would suggest you buy this book and maybe a couple others and get to playing. There's really no excuse anymore - since anyone can access the internet.

If you are a new poker player and would like to start playing poker online at www.partypoker.com - make sure you use the bonus code: "AMAZON25" and you will receive $25 free on your first purchase at www.PartyPoker.com. You can also use the Bonus Code "AMAZON100" and you will receive a 20% bonus up to $100! If you already play at PartyPoker, you can also play at www.Pokerroom.com. Use the promotion code "100BONUS" and you will receive 20% up to $100 ... Read more

Reviews (216)

ROAD KILL
Directed by John Dahl, previously best known for Red Rock West and The Last Seduction (the movie that launched Linda Fiorentino's career), the ironically titled Joy ride is very much a homage to the seventies Spielberg movie Duel but rather than being just a cheap rip-off Joy Ride is in fact a very entertaining, genuinely scary edge of the seat ride, which proves that you don't need a big budget to make great movies.

THE PLOT: The film's instantly likeable hero, Lewis, played by Paul Walker (The Fast and The Furious) a scholarship student at Berkeley, buys a battered 1971 car so he can pick up Venna (Leelee Sobieski), who he has a major crush for, from the University of Colorado and drive her to the East Coast for summer vacation. However, on the way he unexpectedly has to pick up his irresponsible older brother Fuller (the always excellent Steve Zahn) who's in a Salt Lake City jail on a drunk-and-disorderly charge. During the journey Fuller buys a cheap CB radio and involves Lewis in an unpleasant practical joke at the expense of a truck driver with the CB handle 'Rusty Nail' but they find themselves in fear for their lives when old Rusty turns out to be a psychopath who takes a violent dislike to them. From then on, they themselves become the objects of the unseen Rusty Nail's revenge. After several hair-raising encounters, they resolve not to tell Venna of their adventures when they pick her up at the clean, well-lit Colorado campus.

It would be easy to criticise Joy Ride (known as Road kill in the UK). Its premise is hardly original and its reliance on a CB radio as a plot device harks back to the seventies, rather than the present day when everybody (except in this movie) has a cell phone. However, Joy Ride is actually a stunning success due to its faultless direction, which creates Hitchcock like suspense and provides many heart stopping moments. The script is excellent too combining and balancing humour and horror in equal measures, often hinting at violence that is not actually seen and providing nervous moments of humour whilst avoiding corniness. As for the three leads they are perfectly cast with Paul Walker, minus the blonde beach boy locks he sported in The Fast and the Furious, making a good fist of the part of the boy from the wrong side of the tracks in love with the girl from the right side of the tracks played by the equally impressive Leelee Sobieski (Deep Impact). Steve Zahn (Out of Sight) as the misfit brother Fuller is also excellent and he steals many of the scenes with witty one-liners but ultimately this is a movie whose strength lies in the sum of all its parts. Cheaply made it shows that its not big budgets that make great movies its talent and imagination. Here's hoping there's a sequel! Four stars, well merited. ****

Develop a Phobia for Big, Black Trucks and Roadside Motels..
This is a brilliantly directed and scripted, 5-star thriller. The casting of the 3 leads - Steve Zahn, Paul Walker and Leelee Sobieski is perfect as they deliver wonderful performances and share great screen chemistry.

I can't remember the last time I had so much "fun" at the cinema. The suspense in "Joy Ride" is taut and heart-pounding while the laugh moments are also plentiful. The movie's about the danger that 2 brothers, Fuller (Zahn) and Lewis (Walker) get themselves into after their "seemingly" harmless prank on their car's CB radio goes horribly wrong when their "victim", a truck driver (who calls himself "Rusty Nail"), decides to get even with them. Watching this movie was great fun! Loud LAUGHS from the cinema audience during the funny scenes and SCREAMS from the female (mainly) audience during the "scary" moments testify to how effective the movie is. To me, one of the most hilarious scenes is the one where Fuller goes to the rescue of Venna (played by Sobieski) who is being harassed by a bunch of men in a motel bar.

The villain, "Rusty Nail" has the scariest voice! Listening to him talk on the CB radio ("Candy Cane... I'm looking for Candy Cane...") is enough to send a chill down your spine. You'll have to watch the movie to know whether he does show his face or not in the end.

This movie ends with a "delicious" twist.... to pave the way for a "Joy Ride 2", maybe?

I don't know if this type of movie is termed "black comedy" but trust me, the laughs and thrills are first-rate all the way. Just fasten your seatbelts and enjoy the Joy Ride!

Just ok
Since Paul Walker was in it(and I hate his annoying voice and wooden acting) I was expecting this to be a total disaster. To my surprise it wasn't as terrible as I anticipated. Although if you ask me whether it was a good movie, the answer would be no. Paul(and his baby blue eyes) goes on the road trip along with his dimwitted jailbird of a brother and hot(in producer's opinion) chick that he wants desperately. On the way, they decide to play a joke on some trucker who gets pissed off and starts stalking them. Somehow this trucker(whose face we never see) knows everything about them and he appears at the most unexpected moments. Instead of going to the cops, like any normal people, the characters spend the movie trying to run away and outwit this fathom. I thought it was supposed to be suspense thriller but this is definitely "Friday 13th" kind of movie(and I'm not found of those). Paul Walker didn't stink as badly as he did in the "Fast and the Furious", but this LeeLee Sobievski who was playing the "hot" chick is one bad actress(and skanky looking one at that. I suspect the producers had the beer goggles on when she was selected for this role). However, if you compare this film with some of the other crap I've been watching lately, this can almost be called a masterpiece

bad ending
This movie is pretty suspenseful, but the last thirty seconds might just be the worst ending in cinima history, or maybe rusty nail has a clone.

I'm not your Candycane!
This was one suspenseful movie! Two of my friends sat me down to watch this one, and I was very happy with it.

The plot has been summarized before, so I will avoid that. This movie is very much a tale of suspense that you will keep thinking about for days. Paul Walker and Steve Zahn do really well in this film, but I'm not crazy about Leelee Sobieski. I've seen her in other films, and her acting is the same in all of them, lukewarm.

The first half of the movie is really good and you can really get into it, then Leelee's character is introduced and it starts to drag. This is a good movie to watch with a bunch of friends sitting there yelling at the screen.

The alternate endings are also very fabulous. Check them out if you haven't seen them yet. ... Read more

Amazon.com

John Dahl, the director behind Red Rock West and The Last Seduction, is the director and cowriter of Kill Me Again, and it shows. Dahl's love of modern noir, ruthless women, Western landscapes, and double-crosses shines through. Joanne Whalley-Kilmer plays Fay, a spitfire who has somehow gotten herself mixed up with a psychotic thug (Michael Madsen, of course) named Vince. Fay runs off with a whole lot of Vince's stolen money and hires loser private eye Jack Andrews (Val Kilmer) to help her fake her own death. To say any more would spoil a terrific, intricate plot that keeps heating up as interested parties close in onJack, Fay, and the money. The then-married Kilmer and Whalley-Kilmer clearlyhave a great time playing off each other, and Madsen adds another brilliantlyplayed lunatic to his oeuvre. Enjoy it, and don't trust anybody. --AliDavis ... Read more

Amazon.com

A string of insurmountable gaps in logic keeps this science fiction/thriller hybrid from director John Dahl (Joy Ride, The Last Seduction) from fully developing its intriguing premise. Ray Liotta stars as a medical examiner who is obsessed with finding his wife's killer. A possible solution is found in neurobiologist Linda Fiorentino's experimental serum, which transfers memories from one person to another--even from the deceased. Liotta injects himself with the serum, which allows him harrowing glimpses into other people's minds. But while each dose brings him closer to identifying the killer, it also puts him one step nearer to death. Dahl keeps the film moving briskly and wraps it in noirish photography, but he's let down by Bill Geddie's script, which asks viewers to swallow some implausible notions (the instantaneous success of the experimental serum, for one). --Paul Gaita ... Read more

Reviews (6)

MEMORABLE
Once you get past the implausibility of the plot (mainly that the drug culled from Cerebral spinal fluid could do what occurs in this movie), you have a nervewrackingly good thriller. Ray Liotta, one of our most underappreciated actors, stars as a medical examiner who was cleared of murdering his wife by a technicality. In investigating a horrifying killing spree at a pharmacy, Ray thinks the killer is the same one who murdered his wife. He goes out on a date and meets Linda Fiorentino (quite good in a laconic way), who has developed a serum which allows memory transfer between rats. But, it is dangerous, and has not been tried on humans. Liotta is so empassioned with finding his wife's murderer, he steals the drug and uses it, and it does work, but without damage to his heart. From heron, Liotta finds out that Kim Coates (as a seedy drug dealer) is the one who did the pharmacy killing, and in flashbacks, he sees Coates attacking his wife. But, is he the true culprit? Many surprising plot twists evolve, and it is a great film. Featured are Peter Coyote, as Liotta's friend, a police detective; "Sex and the City's" Kim Cattrall has a small role as Liotta's sister in law who has custody of his girls; David Paymer plays Liotta's friend and partner; and Christopher McDonald is a seedy, sleazy cop who thinks Liotta did kill the wife.
John Dahl directs with assuredness and the rainy Seattle setting is perfect.
An unknown gem.

FIRST RATE THRILLER
John Dahl should smash the box-office one of these days because he truely deserves it. Unforgettable is his best work effort, a gripping suspensefiul script supported by an excellent cast and a director who knows how to keep you on the edge of your sofa. The Dolby Digital track is very dynamic and does justice to Christopher Young's remarkable score. This widescreen edition is not anamorphic, as marked on the back cover, but the image is sharp.

It's finally on DVD!
I've been waiting for this movie to come out on DVD since I first got a DVD player about three years ago. Ray Liotta gives an excellent performance as a man falsely accused of murder trying to find his wife's killer. The plot is very interesting and original and presented so that it is believable and intense. Definitely a must-have.

effectively moody
surprisingly well executed and acting was expecte

Malton is a disgrace!
A more inntense thriller/suspense movie is hard to find ... Read more