Body Heat [Blu-ray]

Film Noir was a visual and thematic style first created in response to the dark times of the Depression and World War II. Posuers, losers, guys and dolls down on their luck, predators and those lost with their hearts and morals still somewhat intact drift hopelessly through a puzzling universe where fate undoes their attempts at escape be they good or evil. It is strong stuff and perennially green for our bewildering world, which explains why these films are not only classics, but gripping even when introduced to a new generation. Doomed (and stupid) passion drives a lot of these plots, at least in part, but the physical side of it had to be implied.Body Heat brings all of the despair, fatalism, appetite and doomed hope of the originals and makes the passion that drives the characters visible in Body Heat and it is heady stuff indeed. Body Heat is one of my all time favorite movies.Ned Racine is a low level lawyer in a small Florida city. He serves the down and out and petty criminals from his two room office during daylight hours and the prettier of the local women at night as his blonde good looks and lost boy charm are a draw, but he is never really engaged in any of his many affairs. Wandering one evening during a heat wave he meets Maddy Walker, the wife of a wealthy local businessman. Racine pursues her and they begin an affair of blistering lust - the body heat of the title. As with all lust, there is an unacknowledged emotional component. Maddy is unhappily married and her husband stands in the way, not only of their happiness, but of their being happy with money. As in Double Indemnity, Body Heat's most direct antecedent, they discuss a plan to murder the husband, at first as a fantasy, but as time goes on with more and more seriousness.I won't spoil the rest of the plot, but Body Heat is amazing in that it manages to keep the beloved elements of the genre and make them seem fresh and new, while adding a different visual style and of course putting the passion between the leads front and center in a way never before possible. The writing is amazing for both structure and dialogue, indeed, I think all of the Star Wars franchise would be classics if Kasdan had been kept on as the screenwriter. The man knows how to turn a phrase and build a puzzle. Turner and Hurt are in their early thirties and at the height of their considerable good looks. Ted Danson brings both lightness and a somber sadness to his role as the best friend and all of the supporting cast are amazing. If you haven't yet seen this movie, do yourself a favor and buy it or stream it as soon as possible. It really does belong on those lists of top movies for its brilliance and is entertaining besides.

This movie is worth seeing; showing the power of lust. Great acting, a very good story line. Shows how a person can use sexuality to make a person make wrong choices.

I bought this after seeing it on cable and being reminded of what a good film it was.On the off chance you are looking at this review and haven't seen it, William Hurt is a small town lawyer seduced by a local femme fatale, Kathleen Turner, and he gets in over his head in doing her bidding. His best friend, a assistant district attorney, played by Ted Danson, is in the unenviable position of having to investigate his friend. The drama and plot twists unwind from there...I have now watched it several times, and I actually think it gets better each time you watch it, because you start noticing small details about the scenes and plot that you might have originally missed...this film has aged beautifully. Amazing ambience and Hurt,Turner, Mickey Rourke (back when he was cool), Danson, and the other supporting actors are great.I bought this exact DVD off Amazon, so I can speak about the extras. This specific DVD includes some scenes that were cut--including one scene involving a first murder attempt on Richard Crenna that failed. The other extras included some interviews in Europe that took place in 1981 with Turner and Hurt. The next set of extras is discussions with the actors today about the making of the film--interesting to see how they have aged. Lawrence Kasdan, the director, is also interviewed. There's a LOT of interesting information about how it was filmed (it was cold, not hot when they shot the movie!), some artistic choices that were made, etc. I actually thought, for once, that the extras were valuable, because I had never seen film noir, and the extras really emphasize the point that Kasdan was going for a sexy recreation of old film noir like the Asphalt Jungle. Never seen those, but if they are as good as Body Heat, I will go rent...