Sizzling-hot Silverstone does this ‘Thing’ right
We’re so used to women playing the helpless victim in stalker movies that it borders on revelation to watch Alicia Silverstone’s powerful business exec punch back and inflict pain in the erotic thriller “Pretty Thing.” Oh, there will be blood! You can count on it!
There’s also a lot of fun to be had in Justin Kelly’s slight, but entertaining, throwback to the likes of “Body Heat” and “The Last Seduction,” films in which the femme fatale eats her naive dupe for lunch. And Silverstone’s Sophie has selected a doozy of an entree in Karl Glusman’s dumb waiter, Elliot. He has no idea what he’s in for after falling into Sophie’s orbit at a catered affair in which his services are required well after hours back in her swank hotel room.
The sex is great, the perks even better, like a free trip to Paris mere days after they first bump uglies. Two days ago, the very young and unsophisticated Elliot didn’t have a pot to pee in. Now, he’s strolling the Champs-Élysées with wads of cash. But being the dope that he is, Elliot is under the delusional assumption that he and Sophie are falling in love. Wrong-O!
In a matter of days, Sophie is seducing her next gullible mark. This doesn’t sit well with Elliot and his visions of happily ever after. Let the stalking begin. He’s a persistent bugger, too, much to Sophie’s chagrin. But two can play at this game. And the tit-for-tat continuously escalates until one, or both, are supine in a puddle of blood.
As written by actor-turned-scribe Jack Donnelly, the setup is intriguing, albeit well-worn, most recently in the Nicole Kidman bomb, “Babygirl.” But where that eerily similar flick devolved into preposterousness, “Pretty Thing” keeps things relatively believable, thus upping the fear factor considerably. I wouldn’t call it nail-biting, but there are some genuine thrills to be had, as your perception oscillates between who’s the true victim. Might one of them be a masochist craving a bit of bodily injury?
A smart, clever screenwriter could do a lot in exploring the psychology behind such martyrdom, but Donnelly is not that guy. He’s more into creating somewhat clichéd situations, like Elliot attempting to sabotage Sophie’s promotion to senior partner at her marketing firm. Or, Sophie preying on Elliot’s perky autoimmune mother, Peggy (Catherine Curtin), letting the boy know she can get to Mom whenever she wants.
It’s basically a class in thriller 101. But what “Pretty Thing” lacks in originality, it compensates for it through the fine performances by Glusman and Silverstone. The two are electric together, lending their characters just the right amount of mental instability to keep you wondering just how far each is capable of going in terms of depravity.
Silverstone hasn’t been this dynamic in years. She’s as tough as she is beautiful, with just a hint of nihilism behind her fetching smile. You fully believe her Sophie can bag any man she sets her sights on. But the best part of her portrayal is Sophie’s refusal to take crap off of anyone, even her stuffy, fretful boss. Sexy one minute, scary the next, Silverstone is a revelation.
She’s almost too good for material that at times shies from venturing even deeper into a female character this sexually liberated. But what’s here will do. Sophie knows what she wants, isn’t afraid to ask for it, and makes it clear that the sex for her is strictly for kicks. Even when the situation gets sticky with Elliot, the movie refuses to shame Sophie or suggest that she’s inviting trouble by sleeping with any number of men.
It’s a film that’s bold in its conviction to hammer a nail into antiquated double standards. Why shouldn’t Sophie have the right to do what any single, unattached man does? It’s that free thinking that sets “Pretty Things” apart. And it’s Silverman who sends it into orbit with a performance that’s as lethal as it is enthralling.
Movie review
Pretty Thing
Rated: Not rated
Cast: Alicia Silverstone, Karl Glusman, Catherine Curtin, Tammy Blanchard and Britne Oldford
Director: Justin Kelly
Writer: Jack Donnelly
Runtime: 98 minutes
Where: In theaters July 4 (limited) and on demand
Grade: B
