The Last Seduction II

The Last Seduction was one of those marvellous indie thrillers that pops up all too rarely, it had wonderful direction, a script as snappy as suspenders and a cast that chewed the scenery in all the right places.

This lame sequel has none of that.

Everything about this film reminded me of a cheap porno without the sex; the acting, the sets, the script, it's all just too wooden. You can see how hard they're trying, it's written all over the actors' faces, but there's just nothing I would recommend about this film. If you liked the original the temptation might be there to watch this as a curiosity, but trust me, it's just not worth it, there's nothing here. This isn't 'cult' bad it's just bad bad.

This is a hugely disappointing sequel and doesn't do justice to the original. One would think that whomever decided to make a sequel, they would at least start with half decent script. I've rarely heard such appallingly bad dialogue. It is also, as others have pointed out, insulting to the British. The only good thing about the film is Joan Severance, despite her constant smoking. She may not be a great actress but anyone who thinks that Joan Severance is totally devoid of sex appeal is devoid of a pulse in my opinion. Though not in Linda Fiorentino's class - certainly as far as this role is concerned - she is still a stunning and sexy woman.

Whereas I thought the original 'Last Seduction' didn't quite make the mark, I found that this sequel just barely does. This is the opposite reaction of many people to the two films, so take it with however many grains of salt you wish.

'LS II' is mostly set in Barcelona, which provides some nice location shots, something the film could have used more of. Joan Severance steps into the role of con woman Bridget Gregory this time around. With her hair dyed jet-black, she successfully takes on the character's persona, which basically means looking ultra-cool and acting as if the world is giving her a bad case of ennui when she's not pulling a scam on someone. Beth Goddard plays the capable English bounty hunter who is hired to find her and bring her back to answer to the people she wronged in the first film. These women both seem to live by the same golden rule: Do unto to others before they get their chance.

These two women are the most interesting characters, but neither one is very likeable. The men in this flick are such sleazeballs that you won't mind anything that happens to them. If I had to make a choice, I'd give the film a "thumbs up," but not an enthusiastic one.

One other note: If you are trying to stop smoking, maybe this isn't the best movie for you right now. Severance's character lights a cigarette about every three minutes.

The original Last Seduction with Linda Fiorantino was a delight.

This sequel watching Linda Severance smoking in every scene and trying to look tough made me think of her health status. After about 20 minutes I gave up and went for a walk with me dog.

Yes, it is chewing gum for the eyes but Joan manages to keep a minimum level of suspense to make it worth watching. Chain smoking prevents her from blowing lines but yet she keeps an air of mystery about the plot. The movie also helps show the new trend of the "smart" female that makes things work in the stereotype male world.The glass ceiling also exits in crime and she wants to break this. Her scam is acceptable but not too believable, especially the bank scene. The best scene is the seduction one where she performs safe sex with the villain who runs a phone- sex 900 service. She manages to reprogram the computer(with C++ no less) and skim profits to her bank account. Yes, it is a B movie but Joan can play more demanding roles in better written film noires and should bear watching. Enjoy this if the ball game is rained out.