Black Widow (1987)

A federal investigator tracks down a gold digging woman who moves from husband to husband, kills them and collects the inheritance.

Director:

Bob Rafelson

Writer:

Ronald Bass

Stars:

Debra Winger, Theresa Russell, Sami Frey

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Debra Winger	...	Alexandra
Theresa Russell	...	Catharine
Sami Frey	...	Paul
Dennis Hopper	...	Ben
Nicol Williamson	...	William
Terry O'Quinn	...	Bruce
James Hong	...	Shin
Diane Ladd	...	Etta
D.W. Moffett	...	Michael
Lois Smith	...	Sara
Leo Rossi	...	Ricci
Danny Kamekona	...	Detective
Rutanya Alda	...	Irene
Mary Woronov	...	Shelley
Wayne Heffley	...	Etta's Husband

Storyline

Catherine is a black widow. "She mates and then she kills". Black Widow is the story of a lady (Catherine) who marries lonely millionaires, waits until they've changed their will to leave all to their beloved wives and then murders them to inherit the fortune. With each man Catherine marries, she changes her appearance to suit the mans personality. Only there's one problem. Alexandra is a smart cookie and has found a link between these unexplained mysterious deaths and the partners wives. But now her only problem is proving that a killer is on the loose and saving herself from the deadly Black Widow.

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Plot Keywords:

erotic thriller | widow | black widow | millionaire | inheritance | 

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Taglines:

She mates and she kills.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 February 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Borgia

Filming Locations:

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,426,831, 8 February 1987, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$25,205,460

Company Credits

Production Co:

Amercent Films,American Entertainment Partners L.P.,Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Cher turned down the role of Catherine.

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Goofs

When they're making love in front of the fireplace in the log cabin, in long-shot McCoy rolls over on top of Margaret. Jump-cut to close-up, and McCoy again rolls over on top of Margaret, hitting her in the mouth with his medic-alert.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Sara: When he didn't come to the office, 10:30, 11:00, I called the house. Catherine... he went in his sleep, peacefully. The doctor said if you'd been sleeping right next to him, you wouldn't have even known. You couldn't have done anything.

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Connections

Referenced in The Simpsons: Black Widower (1992)

User Reviews

Worth watching again and again.

I first saw this movie on cable, (HBO) and liked it instantly. The plot and characters were well written I thought and fine acting jobs by all. I was in high school when it came out and really liked the scuba scenes so I bought the movie on video. Since then I have watched it many times and have become a bigger fan. The biggest thing is how well I could identify with the characters. It draws you into watching just to see what's going to happen. I think if you like "Chinatown", you'll like this movie too. I think the ending works too, could be better but works well here. Best performance of Debra Winger except "An Officer and a Gentleman" And truly Thersa Russell's best performance I've ever seen her in. A good movie to watch when you're in the mood to stay home and watch a good well rounded, interesting movie. I still never tire of seeing it again.