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S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r

directed by Brian De Palma
France | Switzerland 201
2

 

A $10 million diamond ripoff, a stolen identity, a new life married to a diplomat. Laure Ash has risked big, won big. But then a tabloid shutterbug snaps her picture in Paris. Suddenly, enemies from Laure's secret past know who and where she is. And they all want their share of the diamond heist. Or her life. Or both.

Brian De Palma shows again why he's an erotic-thriller master with this edgy mind-blower that's both a gripping stunner and a twisty display of virtuoso filmmaking. Rebecca Romijn-Stamos plays Laure, a self-admitted "bad girl"... and about to get worse as she ensnares the photographer (Antonio Banderas) in her web of self-preservation. An irresistible mix of style and story, Femme Fatale will utterly seduce you.

***

Brian De Palma blends the emotional netherworld of film noir with a stylish portrayal of life among the wealthy and powerful in Paris in this glossy thriller. Laure Ash (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos) is a beautiful but mysterious woman who has aligned herself with a small ring of jewel thieves, led by a man known as Black Tie (Eriq Ebouaney), who has planned a major score during the Cannes Film Festival. Sexy model Veronica (Rie Rasmussen) is scheduled to make a spectacular entrance for the screening of director Regis Wargnier's picture, wearing a body-hugging piece of jewelry worth a cool ten million dollars. Laure approaches the sexually adventurous Veronica and is able to seduce her, while at the same time stealing her diamond-studded outfit and replacing it with a carefully constructed counterfeit. Veronica, however, also makes off the loot without giving her partners their cut, and must go into hiding in order to avoid the wrath of Black Tie and his cohorts. Fate allows Laure to make her way to the United States, where in time she marries a powerful politician. Photographer Nicolas Bardo (Antonio Banderas), however, had snapped a picture of Laure while she was on the lam years before, and when he takes an assignment to get a photo of the camera-shy woman, Laure realizes Nicolas is in a position to reveal her new identity to the world -- and put the bloodthirsty Black Tie back on her trail.

Poster

Theatrical Premiere: May 25th, 2002 (Cannes Film Festival)

 

Reviews                                                               More Reviews                                                       DVD Reviews

 

DVD Review: Warner Archive - Region 0 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

  

available in England and Germany:

  

Released on Blu-ray in May 2022:

 

Distribution

Warner Archive

Region 0 - NTSC

Runtime 1:54:24
Video

1.78:1 Original Aspect Ratio
Average Bitrate: 6.71 mb/s
NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s

NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.

Bitrate

Audio Dolby Digital 5.1 (English)
Subtitles English, French, Spanish, None
Features Release Information:
Studio: Warner

Aspect Ratio:
Original - 1.78:1

Edition Details:
• 'Visualizing Femme Fatale"  (11;22)
•"Femme Fatale: An Appreciation". (23:42)
•"Femme Fatale: Dressed to Kill." (1:47)
•"Behind the Scenes." (4:41)
•"Theatrical Trailers" (French and English)

DVD Release Date: May 12th, 2015
Keep Case

Chapters 12

 

 

 

Comments

Brian De Palma's Femme Fatale hasn't yet made it to BD but the DVD is worth a viewing. It has the Warner Archive banner but appears to be the same disc as their 2003 SD release.

It's dual-layered and interlaced in the original 1.78:1 aspect ratio and looks very good - pristinely clean, tight and bright colors. I expect the 1080P would improve the image but I was pleased with the consistency and vibrancy of the DVD visuals.

The 5.1 lossy Dolby sound is up to scratch too, with some well-separated effects and another interesting score by Ryûichi Sakamoto (Love is the Devil, Bernardo Bertolucci's The Sheltering Sky and The Last Emperor and Oshima Nagisa's Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence) that sounds very impacting at times. There are optional subtitles (see sample below) on the, Region FREE, NTSC DVD.

You gotta love at film that opens with a beautiful girl watching Double indemnity. Rebecca Romijn is the drawing card here, De Palma lets her abundant appeal carry the film and it's a bona-fide neo-noir, reminding me a bit of Eye of the Beholder. Anyway, neat little thriller and the title suits.... recommended!

  - Gary Tooze

 



 

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DVD Box Cover

CLICK to order from:

  

available in England and Germany:

  

Released on Blu-ray in May 2022:

 

Distribution

Warner Archive

Region 0 - NTSC

 




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S E A R C H    D V D B e a v e r


 

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