A group of seven former college friends gather for a week-end reunion at a South Carolina vacation home after the funeral of another of their college friends.
A mousy romance novelist sets off for Colombia to ransom her kidnapped sister, and soon finds herself in the middle of a dangerous adventure hunting for treasure with a mercenary rogue.
Director:
Robert Zemeckis
Stars:
Michael Douglas,
Kathleen Turner,
Danny DeVito
In a corrupt city, a small-time gangster and the estranged wife of a pot dealer find themselves thrown together in an escapade of love, money, drugs and danger.
Ned Racine is a seedy small town lawyer in Florida. During a searing heatwave he's picked up by married Matty Walker. A passionate affair commences but it isn't long before they realise the only thing standing in their way is Matty's rich husband Edmund. A plot hatches to kill him but will they pull it off?Written by
Col Needham <col@imdb.com>
Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider. See more »
Goofs
Characters at outdoor concert fan themselves (presumably to show how hot it is), even though there is obviously a heavy breeze that would make such activity superfluous. See more »
Quotes
Matty:
[to Ned]
You aren't too smart, are you? I like that in a man.
Ned:
What else do you like? Lazy? Ugly? Horny? I got 'em all.
Matty:
You don't look lazy.
See more »
Alternate Versions
CBS edited 5 minutes from this film for its 1984 network television premiere. See more »
Undoubtedly one of the great film noir thrillers in history. Derivative but superbly stylised by director Kasdan and wonderfully realised by Hurt and Turner.
Hurt is a very great actor. He had a string of well played roles in the '80s (Kiss of the Spider Woman, Children of a lesser god, Gorky Park) but his movie career lost momentum after that. Perhaps it's difficult for a cerebral actor like him to find challenging parts. Turner is super sexy, proving that a voluptuous figure or great facial features are not essentials to be a turn on. I hear that Body Heat was her first film. She plays her role with understated confidence.
The underrated theme music too is very good. Supporting cast is effective. Really no faults with this movie. Kasdan did an accomplished job. One can't help but be disappointed that he did not make many more good movies.
Some leading critics complain that the ending was over elaborate. I disagree. I think the ending touch works well with the atmosphere and momentum of the movie towards the end. This being a genre film noir movie, the plot is typical and familiar to almost anyone, but it still has great power and the movie irresistibly sucks the viewer in. You can't but help but admire the skills of the actors and Kasdan's sophisticated direction. The music is marvelously complimentary all the way through.
Great stuff.
56 of 68 people found this review helpful.
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Undoubtedly one of the great film noir thrillers in history. Derivative but superbly stylised by director Kasdan and wonderfully realised by Hurt and Turner.
Hurt is a very great actor. He had a string of well played roles in the '80s (Kiss of the Spider Woman, Children of a lesser god, Gorky Park) but his movie career lost momentum after that. Perhaps it's difficult for a cerebral actor like him to find challenging parts. Turner is super sexy, proving that a voluptuous figure or great facial features are not essentials to be a turn on. I hear that Body Heat was her first film. She plays her role with understated confidence.
The underrated theme music too is very good. Supporting cast is effective. Really no faults with this movie. Kasdan did an accomplished job. One can't help but be disappointed that he did not make many more good movies.
Some leading critics complain that the ending was over elaborate. I disagree. I think the ending touch works well with the atmosphere and momentum of the movie towards the end. This being a genre film noir movie, the plot is typical and familiar to almost anyone, but it still has great power and the movie irresistibly sucks the viewer in. You can't but help but admire the skills of the actors and Kasdan's sophisticated direction. The music is marvelously complimentary all the way through.
Great stuff.