'Today's Femme Fatales - Postmodern make-over' by Laura Schiff

On our visit to the BFI Library I came across a number of interesting books and articles, one of which being this article on the post-modern femme fatale by Laura Schiff.

• Cinematic femme fatales came around with the Weimar street films of the 20's and the Film Noirs of the 40's and 50's.
• The 40's crime thrillers of the WWII era = the Golden Age of the femme fatale
• These films led to the sexual revolution of the 70's breaking the conventional American family with women as subservient.
• Modern femme fatales are more calculation, less emotional and more apologetically successful --> Also more likely to succeed in her villainous schemes
• The common ground between classic femme fatales of the 40's and 90's:-

1. An Archetypal character
2. Beautiful
3. Hides corruption behind respectability
4. Motivated by an isatiable desire or greed
5. manipulates men into committing evil deeds
6. duplicitous/ Self-absorbed

• Representative use of mirrors - revealing the true nature of the femme fatale
• E.g. 'Out of the Past' - Mitchum sees th femme fatale in the reflection of the mirror framing him for murder on the phone - revealing her evil scheme.
• 'Basic Instinct' - Stone begins seduction by letting Douglas see a refelction of her naked body - successful
• 'Double Indemnity' - Stanwyck first meets MacMurray while wearing only a towel and primping herself in the mirror while he watches her reflection - This shows her self-absorption and vanity yet also the start of ehr seduction.
• Shared traits of 40's and 90's femme fatales

1. The rejection of the so-called 'normal' sexual roles placed upon her by society
2. She is neither a virgin/ mother/ loyal Gf
3. Uses her charms to advance her own personal interests

Differences

1. Classic fatale - entices her men through playing up her vulnerability
2. Post-modern fatales - emphasises her strength.

• Jans. B. Wager - Book 'Dangerous Dames - Women and representation in the Weimar Street film and Film Noir.'
• Identifies film noir between 1941-58
• Women during this time were not a strong presence in the workforce
• 33.9% in 1950 - United States Department of Commerce Statistics.
• [Back to Schiff article]
• Reflecting Society - femme fatales of the 40's and 50's usually depended on money from their husbands.
• Their motivation for financial freedom and autonomy were the factors by the classic femme fatales crooked scheme.

E.g.

1. 'Double Indemnity' - Stanwyck seduces MacMurray (playing an insurance salesman) after her sob stroy about her mean husband, macMurray sells him accident insuranceand plots the murder(wanting to be the great protector of the besautiful woman) = gets caught.
2. 'Out of the Past' - Jane Greer kills gambling B/f Kirk Douglas & runs to Mexico with his money - seduces detective Robert Mitchum & frames him for murder = He ends up dead aswell.
3. 'Maltese Falcon' - Private Eye Bogart falls for O'Shaughnessy (a client asking him to find her (non-existent) sister) - Story unravels - Elaborate plot of O'Shaughnessy to find relic Maltese Falcon but Bogart comes out on top.

• Post-Modern femme fatales - prouder & more independent from men (esp financially)
• Less desperate & more calculated than the classics.

E.g.

'Basic Instinct' - Sharon Stone, calm, aloof manneris impenetrable (fools a lie detector) - Picks her moment to turn on the tears ( when her lesbian lover dies in a car accident) unlike the classics, the post-modern fatales pick there moment carefully as not to look desperate & vulnerable. Stone can be seen as independent from men financially & sexually with her lesbain lover.

• The Murder
• the cassics are less physical than the modern fatales
• Classic femme fatales use handguns - creating distance between themself & the victim
• Post-modern fatales are alot more hands-on/ physical - Stone uses an Ice pick in the neck
• In 'Romeo is Bleeding' - attempt of strangulation with thighs

" Even deade the post-modern femme fatale gets the last laugh."