Lady Beware

A young woman trying to prove herself in the world of window dressing. Her very erotic imagination leads to great success and recognition in her career. Unfortunately, one of those observing her windows is an obsessed stalker. Through twists and turns this psychological thriller will keep one on the edge of his seat and possibly even aroused.

This has something of the feel of being a TV movie and I see that is where most of this lady directors work is shown, though this was a straight to video feature. The big difference is that this has moments of sex and violence and particularly language that would not have endeared it to TV in the 80s. Set I believe in Pittsburg, we see a fair amount of the city and if the story surrounding a window dresser and the stalking it attracts is not particularly original this certainly has a decent edge to it with SM inspired arrangements of the mannequins. We are led to believe that it is this element that prompts Woods' character to become so obsessed but as a gay seeming married with daughter guy, this is never properly dealt with or exploited. Diane Lane acts her socks off and sheds everything else as well, several times while Michael Woods poses about the place rather moodily and never until the end with much conviction. Revenge is sweet, but it takes a long, long time here, though it has to be admitted there is some decent suspense and thrills along the way, again particularly towards the end. If I'm making this sound rather dull, I'm afraid that's because largely it is, despite the potential offered by the visuals and the frightening situation we are presented with. (80s music doesn't help!)

The only reason to watch this movie is to see Diane Lane naked. There are 4 or 5 scenes where you, along with the stalker and her lover, get to see Diane's breasts and beautiful body. Basically the movie sucks! Diane's character is a sexually frustrated working woman who gets stalked by an admirer who is very disturbed. She has an erotic dreams about her work and bathes in her studio apt. with no shades. She gets bothered by the stalking and can't really have sex with anyone she's seeing. She almost does after stripping down for her lover, but can't quite do it. Oh, well. You still got to see this outstanding actress shed her clothes. That's the only reason to watch this one.

Diane Lane finally gets a solid part in a pretty good picture; so often, Lane is stuck in unsuitable parts in rather lousy movies ("The Cotton Club", "Streets Of Fire"), so much so that her career nearly evaporated after a promising start. She's first-rate here playing big-city career girl dressing windows for a department store, intriguing a married man who becomes obsessed with her. Surprisingly subtle B-movie overcomes the minimal budget with smart writing and direction, good performances by all in the cast. Lane's converted warehouse digs uncomfortably reminds one of "Flashdance", but the revenge-angle in the second-half is clever and well-done; nicely attuned climax too, making its point without going over-the-top. **1/2 from ****

Despite some plot implausibilities and a mildly excessive running time, this is an interesting erotic thriller that will maintain your attention with its solid acting and its straightforward directing. The villain here is a married man and a doctor, which only makes the contrast between his "normal" life and his perverse side much more sharp. If you're looking for a thriller centered on sexual fixation, this may not be your only choice, but it is among the good ones. (**1/2)