THE FILM ON THELMA JORDON is a very good example of Film Noir and it's extremely reminiscent of Barbara Stanwyck's earlier success in DOUBLE INDEMNITY. In both films, she plays a lying and conniving femme fatale that is able to wrap a man around her finger in order to get what she wants and by the end of the film, both are ruined. However, instead of her target being an insurance investigator, in THELMA JORDON, she pursues an assistant district attorney (Wendell Corey).
The film begins with Corey having an argument with his wife and he's getting drunk and feeling very sorry for himself. Soon Barbara Stanwyck's character appears and before long they're having a sleazy romance--as both are married. It's very hard to care about either one of them at this point and it's not hard to guess that Stanwyck is just plain bad! Where exactly the film goes from there, I'd rather not say--after all, it would spoil the film's many nice twists and turns. At the end, there is a nice little twist in particular that probably will satisfy many, though to me it just didn't ring true. After all, a REAL femme fatale would NEVER have a pang of conscience!
Overall, it's a very interesting and well acted film. I really have no severe complaints, though at times the film was a tad predictable--so much so that you just have to assume that Corey's character is an idiot!! Still, a decent representation of the genre.
The film begins with Corey having an argument with his wife and he's getting drunk and feeling very sorry for himself. Soon Barbara Stanwyck's character appears and before long they're having a sleazy romance--as both are married. It's very hard to care about either one of them at this point and it's not hard to guess that Stanwyck is just plain bad! Where exactly the film goes from there, I'd rather not say--after all, it would spoil the film's many nice twists and turns. At the end, there is a nice little twist in particular that probably will satisfy many, though to me it just didn't ring true. After all, a REAL femme fatale would NEVER have a pang of conscience!
Overall, it's a very interesting and well acted film. I really have no severe complaints, though at times the film was a tad predictable--so much so that you just have to assume that Corey's character is an idiot!! Still, a decent representation of the genre.