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Theme: Femme Fatales


The femme fatale (French for ‘fatal woman’) is an impossibly beautiful and desirable woman whose allure proves deadly for any male who befalls her temptations. The archetype began on the screen in the silent era and gained a popularity in 1940s Film Noir.

There have been a number of genre variants from the immortal queens of various versions of She (1887) and L’Atlantide (1919) to various sirens and supernatural creatures. In the 1990s, a whole body of erotic thrillers derived from Basic Instinct (1992) were awash with sizzling and deadly femme fatales.


Alraune (1928)

2 February 201331 July 2019

Rating: ★★

Evil Artificially-Birthed Woman

Director: Henrik Galeen
Actors: Brigitte Helm, Paul Wegener, Wolfgang Zilzer, Louis Ralph, …
Category: Science Fiction

Amnesiac (2014)

12 November 201924 September 2020

Rating: ★★★

Imprisonment Thriller

Director: Michael Polish
Actors: Wes Bentley, Kate Bosworth, Shashawnee Hall, Richard Riehl, …
Category: Horror

An Angel for Satan (1966)

12 May 201624 August 2019

Rating: ★★★½

Italian Gothic

Director: Camillo Mastrocinque
Actors: Barbara Steele, Anthony Steffen, Claudio Gora, Ursula Davis, …
Category: Horror

The Astounding She-Monster (1958)

9 June 200324 September 2019

Rating: ★

Female Alien Invader

Director: Ronnie Ashcroft
Actors: Robert Clarke, Shirley Kilpatrick, Marilyn Harvey, Kenne Duncan, …
Category: Science Fiction

Basic Instinct (1992)

14 August 200029 October 2019

Rating: ★★★

Psycho-Sexual Thriller

Director: Paul Verhoeven
Actors: Sharon Stone, Michael Douglas, Jeanne Tripplehorn, George Dzundza, …
Category: Horror

Basic Instinct 2 (2006)

2 April 200629 October 2019

Rating: ★★

Psycho-Sexual Thriller

Director: Michael Caton-Jones
Actors: Sharon Stone, David Morrissey, David Thewlis, Charlotte Rampling, …
Category: Horror

The Black Widow (1947)

5 September 199928 December 2019

Rating: ★½

Serial/Deadly Female Spy

Director: Spencer G. Bennett, Fred C. Brannon
Actors: Bruce Edwards, Virginia Lindley, Carol Forman
Category: Science Fiction

Black Widow (1987)

7 August 199928 December 2019

Rating: ★★★½

Femme Fatale Psycho-Thriller

Director: Bob Rafelson
Actors: Theresa Russell, Debra Winger, Terry O'Quinn, Nicol Williamson, …
Category: Horror

The Conduit (2016)

16 November 20179 May 2020

Rating: ★★

Deadly Mystery Woman

Director: Sixto Melendez
Actors: Wes Martinez, Monica Engesser, Chris Cox, Carrie Fee, …
Category: Horror

Embryo (1976)

7 April 20016 October 2020

Rating: ★

Evil Artificially-Birthed Woman

Director: Ralph Nelson
Actors: Rock Hudson, Barbara Carrera, Diane Ladd, Anne Schedeen, …
Category: Science Fiction

Eye of the Beholder (1999)

29 July 201130 August 2018

Rating: ★

Psycho-Sexual Thriller

Director: Stephan Elliott
Actors: Ewan MacGregor, Ashley Judd, Patrick Bergin, Genevieve Bujold, …
Category: Horror

The Fourth Man (1983)

31 July 200017 December 2020

Rating: ★★★

Precognitive Dreams/Deadly Seductress

Director: Paul Verhoeven
Actors: Jeroen Krabbe, Renee Soutendijk
Category: Fantasy

Frat House Massacre (2008)

22 December 201130 August 2018

Rating: ★★

Fraternity House Slasher

Director: Alex Pucci
Actors: Rane Jameson, Jon Fleming, Niki Notarile, Lisa DiCicco, …
Category: Horror

Genuine (1920)

12 April 201630 August 2018

Rating: ★★

German Expressionism/Femme Fatale

Director: Robert Wiene
Actors: Fern Andra, Hans Heinrich von Twardowski, Ernst Gronau, Harald Paulsen, …
Category: Horror

Girl on the Third Floor (2019)

7 June 20207 June 2020

Rating: ★★½

Malevolent House

Director: Travis Stevens
Actors: C.M. Punk, Trieste Kelly Dunn, Sarah Brooks, Karen Woditsch, …
Category: Horror

Grim Prairie Tales (1990)

10 March 200111 February 2020

Rating: ★★★

Anthology of Wild West Horror Tales

Director: Wayne Coe
Actors: Brad Doruif, James Earl Jones, Marc McClure, Michelle Joyner, …
Category: Horror

Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS (1974)

29 November 20003 December 2020

Rating: ★

Sadistic Nazi Woman Commandant

Director: Don Edmonds
Actors: Dyanne Thorne, Wolfgang Roehm
Category: Horror

Knock Knock (2015)

26 October 201528 July 2020

Rating: ★★

Home Invasion by Two Malicious Girls

Director: Eli Roth
Actors: Keanu Reeves, Lorenza Izzo, Ana de Armas, Aaron Burns, …
Category: Horror

L’Atlantide (1992)

5 June 200025 September 2019

Rating: ★★

Lost City

Director: Bob Swaim
Actors: Tcheky Karyo, Victoria Mahoney, Christopher Thompson, Anna Galiena, …
Category: Fantasy

London Fields (2018)

6 July 20206 July 2020

Rating: ★★

Near Future/Femme Fatale/Precognitive Dream

Director: Mathew Cullen
Actors: Billy Bob Thornton, Amber Heard, Jim Sturgess, Theo James, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Love Witch (2016)

25 July 201612 March 2020

Rating: ★★★★

Modern Witch

Director: Anna Biller
Actors: Samantha Robinson, Gian Keys, Jeffrey Vincent Parise, Robert Seeley, …
Category: Fantasy

The Million Eyes of Sumuru (1967)

8 February 20178 January 2020

Rating: ★★

Female Super-Villain/All-Women World Domination Plot

Director: Lindsay Shonteff
Actors: George Nader, Shirley Eaton, Frankie Avalon, Wilfrid Hyde White, …
Category: Science Fiction

Mindscape (2013)

2 March 201511 April 2019

Rating: ★★

Therapist Journeys Inside People’s Memories

Director: Jorge Dorado
Actors: Mark Strong, Taissa Farmiga, Brian Cox, Indira Varma, …
Category: Science Fiction

Muse (2017)

18 May 20185 April 2019

Rating: ★★

Man Haunted by Supernatural Muses

Director: Jaume Balaguero
Actors: Elliot Cowan, Ana Ularu, Franka Potente, Christopher Lloyd, …
Category: Horror

Night Angel (1990)

9 September 200030 August 2018

Rating: ★½

Demonic Temptress

Director: Dominique Othenin-Girard
Actors: Linden Ashby, Isa Andersen, Debra Feuer, Karen Black, …
Category: Horror

Nurse 3-D (2013)

22 June 201412 June 2019

Rating: ★★★

Psycho Nurse

Director: Doug Aarniokoski
Actors: Paz de la Huerta, Katrina Bowden, Judd Nelson, Corbin Bleu, …
Category: Horror

Robo Geisha (2009)

21 March 201720 September 2019

Rating: ★★★

Cyborg Geisha/Gonzo Bio-Mechanical Transformations

Director: Noboru Iguchi
Actors: Aya Kiguchi, Hitomi Hasebe, Takumi Saito, Taro Shigaki, …
Category: Science Fiction

Serpent’s Lair (1995)

11 May 201530 August 2018

Rating: ★

Demonic Seductress

Director: Jeffrey Reiner
Actors: Jeff Fahey, Lisa B., Heather Medway, Patrick Bauchau, …
Category: Horror

Sex and Death 101 (2007)

1 January 201015 June 2019

Rating: ★★★

Man Receives a List of All the Women He Will Ever Have Sex With

Director: Daniel Waters
Actors: Simon Baker, Winona Ryder, Mindy Cohn, Leslie Bibb, …
Category: Fantasy

Shadow of Chikara (1977)

9 March 200011 February 2020

Rating: ★★★

Western Quest/Cursed Mountain

Director: Earl E. Smith
Actors: Joe Don Baker, Sondra Locke, Ted Neeley, Grady Wyatt, …
Category: Horror

She (1935)

29 October 200025 August 2020

Rating: ★★

Lost City/Immortal Queen

Director: Lansing C. Holden, Irving Pichel
Actors: Helen Gahagan, Randolph Scott, Nigel Bruce, Gustav von Seyffertitz, …
Category: Fantasy

She (1965)

31 July 200127 July 2019

Rating: ★★

Lost City/Immortal Queen/Hammer Film

Director: Robert Day
Actors: John Richardson, Ursula Andress, Peter Cushing, Bernard Cribbins, …
Category: Fantasy

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014)

23 August 201417 July 2019

Rating: ★★★½

Graphic Novel Adaptation/Ultra-Violent Film Noir Tales

Director: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez
Actors: Josh Brolin, Eva Green, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Mickey Rourke, …
Category: Horror

Siren (2016)

24 April 201730 August 2018

Rating: ★★★

Unearthly Woman Creature with a Mesmerising Song

Director: Gregg Bishop
Actors: Chase Williamson, Hannah Fierman, Justin Welborn, Michael Aaron Milligan, …
Category: Horror

Siren of Atlantis (1948)

6 July 20165 April 2020

Rating: ★★½

Lost City/Impossibly Desirable Queen

Director: Gregg G. Tallas
Actors: Maria Montez, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Dennis O'Keefe, Henry Daniell, …
Category: Fantasy

Siren Song (2016)

24 March 201730 August 2018

Rating: ★★

Greek Sirens in the Present Day

Director: Benedict Mart
Actors: Matt Silver, C. Thomas Howell, Rikke Leigh, Eloise Oliver, …
Category: Horror

Species (1995)

28 May 201015 October 2019

Rating: ★★

Alien Sex Fiend

Director: Roger Donaldson
Actors: Natasha Henstridge, Ben Kingsley, Marg Helgenberger, Michael Madsen, …
Category: Science Fiction

Species III (2004)

24 June 200726 June 2019

Rating: ★★

Alien Sex Fiend

Director: Brad Turner
Actors: Sunny Mabrey, Robert Knepper, Robin Dunne, Amelia Cooke, …
Category: Science Fiction

Species: The Awakening (2007)

4 April 20097 January 2020

Rating: ★★

Alien Sex Fiend

Director: Nick Lyon
Actors: Ben Cross, Dominic Keating
Category: Science Fiction

Spellbinder (1988)

6 April 200118 September 2019

Rating: ★★★

Pursuit by Satanic Cult

Director: Janet Greek
Actors: Timothy Daly, Kelly Preston, Rick Rossovich, Audra Lindley, …
Category: Horror

Sweet Sixteen (1983)

20 August 202020 August 2020

Rating: ★★

Deadly Teenage Girl/Slasher Film

Director: Jim Sotos
Actors: Bo Hopkins, Aleisa Shirley, Patrick MacNee, Susan Strasberg, …
Category: Horror

Takut: Faces of Fear (2008)

5 November 20205 November 2020

Rating: ★★

Indonesian Horror Anthology

Director: Rako Prijnto, Riri Riza, Ray A.J. Nayoan, Robby Ertanto, …
Actors: Shareefa Daanish, Epy Kusnandar, Mike Muliadro
Category: Horror

Tam-Lin (1971)

27 April 201630 August 2018

Rating: ★★

Modern-Day Queen of the Fairies

Director: Roddy McDowall
Actors: Ava Gardner, Ian McShane, Stephanie Beacham, Richard Wattis, …
Category: Fantasy

The Temp (1993)

29 August 200110 September 2020

Rating: ★

Psycho Secretary

Director: Tom Holland
Actors: Timothy Hutton, Lara Flynn Boyle, Faye Dunaway, Steven Weber, …
Category: Horror

The Terror (1963)

18 December 20004 April 2020

Rating: ★★★

Haunting/Mysterious Woman

Director: Roger Corman
Actors: Boris Karloff, Jack Nicholson, Sandra Knight, Richard Miller, …
Category: Horror

Traces of Red (1992)

5 May 201030 August 2018

Rating: ★

Psycho-Sexual Thriller

Director: Andy Wolk
Actors: James Belushi, Tony Goldwyn, Lorraine Bracco, William Russ, …
Category: Horror

Twice-Told Tales (1963)

18 March 200527 October 2019

Rating: ★★

Horror Anthology

Director: Sidney Salkow
Actors: Vincent Price, Beverly Garland, Sebastian Cabot, Mari Blanchard, …
Category: Horror

The Woman in the Fifth (2011)

12 July 201213 July 2019

Rating: ★★

Mysterious Femme Fatale

Director: Pawel Pawlikowski
Actors: Ethan Hawke, Kristin Scott Thomas, Joanna Kulig, Samir Guesmi, …
Category: Fantasy

Zeta One (1969)

16 March 201610 November 2019

Rating: ★★

Softcore Spy Film/Invading Alien Women

Director: Michael Cort
Actors: Robin Hawdon, James Robertson Justice, Yutte Stensgaard, Charles Hawtrey, …
Category: Science Fiction

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Theme Essays

  • Disaster Movies
  • Steampunk Films
  • Documentaries
  • Films About Halloween
  • Films About Prophecy
  • Nazis
  • Magicians and Sorcerers
  • Secret Societies
  • Real-Life People in Fiction
  • Techno-Thrillers
  • Twins in Fantastic Cinema
  • Asylums
  • Possession Films
  • Sexual Fetishism in Fantastic Cinema
  • Films About Imaginary and Magical Lands
  • Religion in Fantastic Cinema
  • Romantic Comedies
  • Film Noir
  • Spy Films
  • Jekyll and Hyde Films
  • Films That Make Dubious Claims to Being Based on True Stories
  • Coming of Age Stories in Fantastic Cinema
  • Films About Cryogenics and Suspended Animation
  • Alternate History Films
  • Disturbed Psychology as Portrayed on Film
  • Law Enforcement in Fantastic Cinema
  • Weird Westerns

© Copyright Richard Scheib 1999-2020

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