(As if Miami wasn‘t hot enough, they have to pull this crap…)
CAST: Sylvester Stallone, Sharon Stone, James Woods, Eric Roberts, Rod Steiger, .
DIRECTOR: Luis Llosa
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and one overly-stylized shower sex scene straight ahead…
Ah, the Femme Fatale. Has there been a more intriguing and maligned figure in movies? I mean, besides Uwe Boll, that is? Methinks not. For those of you unaware of who the Femme Fatale is (and I congratulate you for finally leaving the tight confines of the rock you’ve been stuck under), she is a film character who is: (1) potentially or blatantly evil, (2) hot as fuck, and (3) is like catnip to our hero. In other words, the brain is saying “Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!” But the dick is saying: “Put me in her! Put me in her! And I don’t care what orifice you use! Just do it! A lot!”
You get the idea. Anyhow, some examples of Femme Fatales throughout the years include: (1) Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck in DOUBLE INDEMNITY), (2) Kathie Moffat (Jane Greer in OUT OF THE PAST), (3) Francie Stevens (Grace Kelly in TO CATCH A THIEF), (4) Evelyn Mulwray (Faye Dunaway in CHINATOWN), (5) Helen Cruger (Ellen Barkin in SEA OF LOVE), (6) Catherine Trammell (Sharon Stone in BASIC INSTINCT), and (7) pretty much every other Bond Girl in the James Bond Flicks. Basically, the Femme Fatale is possibly very bad juju - but your penis doesn’t give a shit, and therefore, you don’t. If there was ever proof that a man has only enough blood in his body to make one, uh, head function at a time, it’s the Femme Fatale.
One actress who appears several times on the Femme Fatale Hall of Sorta Fame is Sharon Stone. Her breakthrough role as uber-FF Catherine Trammell in the deliciously overheated BASIC INSTINCT pretty much guaranteed she’d be playing sexually-carnivorous chicks until she’s 85 - which, frankly, is a terrifying prospect. Fortunately, in our next review, THE SPECIALIST, Stone is still in top form and is basically one of the reasons this flick doesn’t rate any lower than it easily could have. She’s a fucking hottie - and she knows it.
Stone plays May Munro, a Miami chick who’s really pissed off at a bunch of Cuban gangsters led by Tomas Leon (Eric Roberts) for offing her parents - right in front of her - when she was just a little girl. To say she’s held a grudge against them for over twenty years is tantamount to saying Elin got a little rough with Tiger when she found out about… well, you know. Anyhow, May has apparently tried everything to forget the past: therapy, yoga, sniffing a lot of glue, scaring herself silly by looking at a picture of Billy Crystal nekkid.
Unfortunately, none of these methods work. So our lovely May decides to pursue the simple avenue of, you know, blood-thirsty revenge and shit. She does this by somehow tracking some dude named Ray Quick (Sly Stallone), who’s some sort of explosives expert. Wow, who knew how fun the Yellow Pages could be. I can’t even find a decent pizza joint with them, and May finds a goddamn Bomberman in no time flat. Bitch.
Anyhow, Ray and May (were these goddamned name choices intentional?) communicate exclusively via phone. Ray basically continues to say he won’t take the job, yet keeps calling May back, anyway. If that’s not a sign that Ray has contracted Femme Fatale Fever, I don’t know what is. Yup, our Ray is pretty much a casualty of FFF by the time the first act is almost over. But, being the strong and silent type, he has to act all disinterested and shit. Tired of his game-playing, May pretty much gives him the finger and says she’ll go after them gangstas herself.
Of course, being thoroughly pussy-whipped by now, Ray essentially starts shadowing May as she embarks on what is basically a suicide mission. Still, you gotta give the girl props for trying to get stuff done on her own. She basically assumes the alias of “Adrian Hastings” and cozies up to the aforementioned Tomas, waiting for the perfect time to, I guess, bitch-slap him to death. Fortunately, before we can get a soap opera-style hissy fit, Ray finally tells May he’ll help her wipe out the gangstas using his explosive skills. And I don’t just mean his ability to come several times in one hour.
But are Tomas and his goons as dumb as they look? Or do they have some sort of secret plan? What happens when Tomas’ dad Joe (Rod Steiger) hires Ray’s old nemesis Ned Trent (James Woods) to not only protect Tomas, but also to try to flush out Ray? Will any of these men realize that their dicks are being yanked by the very clever May? Or are they all hopeless cases of FFF?
My opinion? They’re all goners. Because that May knows exactly what she’s doing. She was probably Summa Cum Loudly, er, Laude of her Femme Fatale Graduating Class…
BUT, SERIOUSLY: The Femme Fatale is a staple of the Film Noir Genre. Some classic examples are DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944), THE MALTESE FALCON (1941), and OUT OF THE PAST (1947). In addition to the presence of an ambiguous, predatory female, these movies also shared a dark, cynical atmosphere and morally compromised heroes who often fell under the woman‘s spell. Downbeat endings were very common, as well.
Latter-day examples of this genre include CHINATOWN, AFTER DARK MY SWEET, KILL ME AGAIN, BLOOD SIMPLE, AGAINST ALL ODDS (a loose remake of OUT OF THE PAST), SEA OF LOVE, and THE SPECIALIST. Indeed, it’s THE SPECIALIST’s dark, moody, noirish look and feel that keeps it from being just your average Miami-set action thriller. Director Luis Llosa creates a surprisingly sinister and shadowy world amidst all that sunshine, creating an environment where no one is who they seem to be. This is entirely appropriate for a modern Film Noir. Had Llosa decided to shoot THE SPECIALIST in a more straightforward action-movie way, it would not have been as atmospheric, distinctive, and entertaining as it is.
Another reason THE SPECIALIST rates higher than average is because of its cast. Sylvester Stallone wisely play Ray Quick in a straightforward, brooding way - without the cocky, smart-alecky attitude so common in action heroes from the same time. Ray is likable because of his low-key attitude, and Stallone has strong screen presence even when he’s not saying anything and just thinking - which is most of the time with this character. Nevertheless, Stallone also manages to show the lethal side to Ray when necessary.
Meanwhile, Sharon Stone does some solid work as May Munro, the revenge-obsessed woman who is, in the end, more vulnerable than she is tough - and it works well for the character. If May was a one-dimensional tough gal, I don’t think she would’ve come across as interesting as she does. Stone also has a nice way of silently projecting hidden feeling with small facial gestures. She’s a gifted actress who is often underrated because of her bombshell status. What a shame, since her character here feels like it paved the way for the similar character of Camille Montes (Olga Kurylenko) in QUANTUM OF SOLACE (review # 37).
Then there’s James Woods as Ned Trent, who wisely realizes that his character is meant to be the comic counterpoint to the much more serious and somber Ray and May. Woods basically milks all the laughs he can from his character without sacrificing any of the underlying menace. There are some very amusing scenes between Ned and Tomas where they basically bicker like an old married couple. Woods and Eric Roberts have an interesting comic chemistry that deserves to be explored in another movie.
In the end, THE SPECIALIST is a potentially-average film that is elevated somewhat by Llosa’s interestingly noirish atmosphere and the strong work of its stars. Special mention should also go to the late John Barry's ominous, sensual score which goes further in raising this film above the norm. Sometimes, a little atmosphere goes a long way…
