Tempted

Bill Bennett is one of those directors, like Stanley Kubrick, who insists on trying out different genres just to see if he can do it; hence his Australian road movie `Kiss or Kill', his period anthropological drama `In a Savage Land' (set in the Trobriand Islands), his broad ocker comedy `The Nugget' and this one, an example of film noir set in New Orleans (Melbourne would be a bit more of a challenge). He also apparently saved on the script by getting the actors to improvise, a risk of course that Kubrick never took. His actors are fortunately professional and experienced, if not big names, (Burt Reynolds is the most prominent) and rise to the occasion, more or less, though some of the sex scenes required unusual agility to avoid injury.

Charlie Le Blanc, a successful builder (Burt Reynolds), has been told he hasn't long to live (something nasty in his brain), and has become obsessed with the idea that his beautiful ex-model wife Lilly (Saffron Burrows), 30 years younger, may not be faithful to him and therefore not be worthy of the fortune she will inherit. So he engages Jimmy (Peter Facinelli), one of his carpenters (who also happens to be working his way through law school) to test her out for a $50,000 fee. Jimmy, with an indeterminate accent but helped by Tom Cruise-ish good looks, has little trouble cracking the case, so to speak, but things start to go wrong after Jimmy tells his gay friend Ted (Eric Mabius) about the deal. Naturally, Charlie has engaged a private eye to videotape everything and we soon have lots of incriminating evidence on tape – the American obsession with recording everything strikes again. The police never had it so easy.

Although the plot's twists and turns lose the viewer occasionally, it's a reasonably absorbing thriller with the appropriately noir atmosphere. Filming in N'orlands as the locals call it, makes this easy of course, though as an ex-resident I think the place's sleaziness is much over-emphasised. Despite the majority black population I think there is only one black speaking part in the movie, another handsome building worker approached to do Charlie's job who is dismissed as being a bit uppity – another great Southern cliche. I would recommend avoiding the famous above-ground cemeteries at night, though. It's not the Vampires you have to worry about, just local hoodlums, who are invariably armed. La Fayette number one is a particularly bad spot and sure enough our characters march right into it.

Burt Reynolds is fine as Charlie, whose ruthlessness is not quite offset by his charm (Burt, being born in Georgia, has no trouble with the southern accent.) Saffron Burrows – stick insect as sexpot – is mostly convincing and Peter Facinelli may lack Tom Cruise's intensity, but he handles his role OK. The acting honours I think go to Mike Starr who plays a supporting character, Charlie's sidekick, the mountainous Dot Collins, a fine example of a family man who will do terrible things in the name of loyalty – John Goodman as Oddjob.

"Tempted" tries to be one of those sweaty New Orleans noir crime flicks about infidelity, jealousy, deceit, temptation, treachery, and murder. Unfortunately the film plays out like a B-flick in all respects from shallow characters whom were not given a reason to care if they live or die to a convoluted and minimally interesting story with soporific side effects. A marginal small screen watch at best for crime junkies only. (D+)

I have to say i quite enjoyed this movie, i am the worlds biggest "Burt Reynolds" fan, although I was a bit confused with his part in the film, I dident know if he was the good guy or the bad guy, I still scratching my head over that one. I also thought "Saffron Burrows" did a great job in her part, although I was very surprized to see her do nudity in the film, you don't see that too often.

8/10

If I had put two and two together that this is the same director, Bill Bennett, that had done "The Nugget", which I thought was an abominable supposed comedy, I probably never would have watched "Tempted". Unfortunately I would have missed a very intriguing neo-noir, so I'm not ashamed to give credit where credits due. Burt Reynolds hires a carpenter, Peter Facinelli, who works for him, to severely test his beautiful wife's fidelity. The script has many twists and turns, a few of which seem to slightly stretch credibility, but overall this is a fine, entertaining film. The erotic moments work, and the story fills the 91 minute running time nicely. Recommended. - MERK

"Tempted" sounds like a great idea. It's about a wealthy man who hires a young law student to "tempt" his wife, in order for the wealthy man to see if she's loyal to him. Naturally, the wealthy man is crazy jealous, and eventually there are a lot of dead bodies.

Burt Reynolds is by far the best actor on this film. For whatever reason Burt has gone through his own marriage troubles and he brings that out in staggering fashion. The movie was worth it because of Burt.

However everything ELSE about the film - the other actors, the script, photography, etc. etc. is very average.

If there's anything a lower budget film should excel in, it's the script - because that's where you make up for lack of money for the rest of the project. But it was clumsy, overworked, cliched, .. a draft that's been through too many Hollywood "story seminars" - there are too many clunky plot elements in a bland effort to liven things up, when it should have been fixed by sticking to the main story and improving the ACTING, and little details that add to the overall mood.

There's a subplot regarding a murder conspiracy that's majorly half-baked - it seems like the start of ANOTHER script by the same writer, but simply not out of the oven yet.

Most of the actor's emotions don't track well through the film - except for Burt. The supposed "feelings" between the law student and the wife always come off as hollow. Even when she's supposedly trying to kill him, they have one last sheepish meeting at a bar with awkward dialog - it doesn't make sense. Her motivation for sleeping with him turned out to be interesting though..

The movie seems to share a lot in common with "Body Heat" - an 80's film script touted as a winner by the king of script hacks, Syd Field. There's the wealthy husband, the beautiful but dangerous wife, and the morally ambiguous lawyer. The difference? Body Heat kept things simple - and William Hurt played the young lawyer.

In summary, watch it for BURT, man that guy can act. I found the whole idea of him creating a "self fulfilling prophecy" fascinating - it's almost like he relentlessly (and fatally) stabs himself emotionally and doesn't know why.