• Directed by Lawrence Kasdan, 1981

Watching this, I couldn’t help but think about Double Indemnity, to which this film owes its life. But as the trap closed around hapless Ned, I started to think about another female-driven heist movie; Tarantino’s Jackie Brown. And I thought about how the two most base human needs- love and survival- are so often at odds. One will close you off to the other.

The film begins in a haze of soft lights (Kasdan said he was aiming for a dreamlike effect, which he certainly achieves) and ends in cold, brutal clarity as Ned realizes what he has gotten himself into. More terrifying is the knowledge that she anticipated him every step of the way; that he knew her not at all, and she knew him completely.

Does Matty really love Ned? Maybe. Does it matter? Not really. Survival comes first, as it must for women like Matty, and Jackie, and Phyllis.