Sedução e Medo

I'm not really sure if this movie was originally made for TV; but I wouldn't be surprised if it was as it has all the hallmarks of a made for TV thriller, and unfortunately that isn't a good thing. The film is called The Seduction but there's nothing really seductive about it; admittedly 'The Tired, Cliché Ridden, Suspense-less Thriller' might not have been the wisest choice for a title; but at least it would have been a bit more apt! The movie takes the often used idea of a stalker taking his stalking of a famous person too far; in this case the famous person is pretty newswoman Jamie Douglas. Morgan Fairchild, who takes the lead role, is actually one of the best things about the film; she delivers a good performance and looks nice too, unfortunately it's wasted with such tired material. There's very little suspense in the film and director David Schmoeller (who previously directed the decent seventies horror Tourist Trap) seems more keen to focus on humdrum events. There's the odd sex scene and it's slightly steamy but nothing to get excited about. The ending is actually fairly well done but it's not worth an hour and a half of tedium getting there! Overall, I'm actually quite disappointed in this because I love a good throwaway thriller; but this is not a decent example and therefore not recommended.

This has always been one of my favorite "B-Movies" that was made with home video and cable in mind (Even though it was a theatrical release, back in the days B-Movies got theatrical runs) Jamie (Morgan Fairchild), a beautiful anchor-woman is the target of a stalker (Andrew Stevens) That's about it for the plot. The film has some truly decent moments. I like the scene where Stevens apologizes for his initial stalkings to a receptive Jamie (He even gives her flowers!). Of course, the signature scene is Stevens spying on Morgan Fairchild taking a bath. The scene works for the movie, and of course, the idea of a nude Morgan Fairchild walking about is one of the key reasons why this film was made. But for the most part, this film is dizzlingly hokey. There is a lot of unintentional humor here. My favorite bit is when Jamie reads the news off the teleprompter, and all of the sudden, the text in the teleprompter becomes a nasty note from Andrew Stevens. She accidently reads the first few lines of the nasty, naughty note in the same tone of voice she uses to read the news. She realizes what she has done, and comes close to giving a Homer Simpson "Dohhh!"

for anyone who might tend toward romantic obsession, here's your cure. do yourself (or a friend) a favor and (get him to) watch this film. fifteen minutes into the film, you just want to punch andrew stevens in the mouth. the problem is that the harasser never seems to know what a jerk and a fool he is being. here's the message, written in big red letters. too bad more men don't see themselves this way until it's too late. of course, derek (mr. stevens' character) becomes a very bad person by the time he gets his due. if only derek could see himself in this movie, maybe then he wouldn't have taken that first step. sure, not all crushes are actually stalkings. and there is the risk that the truly disturbed stalkers won't understand that this movie is supposed to help them not to do it. the movie may just make a lot of people paranoid. still, it as an effective counterpoint to the CINEMA PARADISO-style treatment of unrequited love, and too much of that sort of fantasy romance in cinema just exacerbates this social problem.

it's not so much a thriller as a public service announcement. amazingly, farrah fawcett is in BURNING BED just two years later. one has to think that blossom kahn had more to do with this film than the credits reveal.

it's obvious why morgan fairchild took the script. ms. fairchild was never the bimbo that people accused her of being. (i have a friend who was at a bio lab at harvard when she phoned to discuss primate genetics for several hours! no kidding!) the kind of power that julia roberts uses today to deliver ERIN BROCKOVITCH was enjoyed by ms. fairchild in 1982, and she seems to have used it here. ms. fairchild even gives up her body with shocking compliance (with dozens of nude scenes, and almost constant appearance on screen) in order to keep the drooling men in their seats until the lesson is complete. as easy as it is thus to applaud ms. fairchild, mr. stevens deserves greater praise. not many leading men would have taken such a role in 1982, and mr. stevens is the perfectly detestable pretty-boy delusional peter-pan smarm. the boys will watch this film for ms. fairchild, and they will learn to leave the girls alone because of mr. stevens.

After an erotic, sinuous credits-sequence with a shadowy woman gliding through the waters of a swimming pool, we get mired in straight-faced, B-movie hell. Morgan Fairchild, looking unsure and as stiff as her hairdo, plays a TV news anchorwoman who attracts a stalker. Truly mines the depths of drive-in cliches--and dispatches with one character in such a ridiculous fashion it may have invented a new cliche--"The Seduction" is just half-undressed tripe. Too bad, it had the possibilities of being a juicy, nasty little thriller with soft-core edges. There's nothing edgy about Fairchild's presence: she's as slick as lip gloss and about as permanent. * from ****

THE SEDUCTION (1982)

I am so happy they decided to restore this retro, schlocky gem that I might have never seen. It stars a fierce and gorgeous Morgan Fairchild as a tv news personality who finds herself stalked by a sexy, obsessive stalker played by a hunky Andrew Stevens. It's pretty by the numbers but it's a fun horroresque, erotic thriller that really delivers. Not to spoil anything but basically she just reaches the point where she refuses to be the victim and fights back. It's pretty damn satisfying.

Budget: $3m Box Office: $11.4m

7.5/10