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Body of Evidence (1993 film)
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Wikipedia article
'Body of Evidence' is a 1993 erotic thriller film directed by Uli Edel, written by Brad Mirman, and starring Madonna and Willem Dafoe, with Joe Mantegna, Anne Archer, Julianne Moore, and Jrgen Prochnow in supporting roles.
Madonna's performance in the film was universally derided by film critics and it marked her fourth film acting performance to be widely panned, following 'Shanghai Surprise', 'Who's That Girl,' and 'Bloodhounds of Broadway'.
In France and Japan, the film was released under the name 'Body'. In Japan, Madonna's other 1993 film 'Dangerous Game' was released there as 'Body II' even though the films have nothing in common nor are related to each other in narrative.
Plot
Elderly Andrew Marsh views a homemade pornographic tape in his lavish Portland, Oregon estate. It is later revealed that Marsh died from complications stemming from erotic asphyxiation. The main suspect is the woman who has sex with Marsh in the film, Rebecca Carlson, who after being charged with murder is represented by lawyer Frank Dulaney. As the trial begins, Carlson and Dulaney enter a sadomasochistic sexual relationship behind the back of Dulaney's unsuspecting wife, Sharon.
During their first sexual encounter, Dulaney, overcome by lust, notices too late that Carlson is tying his arms behind his back using his own belt. Carlson pushes him onto the bed, removes his underwear, and while he is restrained, humiliates him by pouring hot candle wax on his chest, stomach, and genitals, amused by Dulaney's frustration and increasingly desperate reactions. The two then have sex, with Carlson in complete control, an obvious counterpoint to their relationship in the courtroom, where Dulaney is the one in control.
Carlson proclaims her innocence to Dulaney in private and in court, but District Attorney Robert Garrett seeks to prove that Carlson deliberately killed Marsh in bed to receive the $8 million he left her in his will. The testimony of Marsh's private secretary, Joanne Braslow, reveals that he had a sexual relationship with Braslow that could have contributed to his death, casting a reasonable doubt as to Carlson's guilt.
Dulaney maligns Carlson with accusations of her withholding information from him, threatening to drop her as a client and end their affair. In response, Carlson contacts Sharon and discloses the affair. When Sharon confronts Dulaney about the affair, he initially plays it off as if she is paranoid, but is unable to deny telltale evidence. Dulaney goes to Carlson's home and confronts her, which ends with them having rough sex on the floor. When Carlson pulls out handcuffs, Dulaney cuffs her hands to her bedpost and roughly initiates sex with her.
Carlson is shown in court to be a gold digger, having had previous sexual relationships with a number of older rich men, including Jeffery Roston, in which her lovemaking was just as rough. Roston says that she abruptly ended their relationship when he got heart surgery and became healthier. Carlson's testimony convinces the jury, which acquits her. Before leaving court, she mockingly thanks Dulaney for getting a guilty client off, fully aware that he cannot repeat what she said and that she cannot be tried twice for the same crime.
That night, Dulaney visits Carlson's home, where he finds her with Marsh's doctor, Alan Paley, freely discussing the way they conspired to kill Marsh. She taunts Paley by telling him to lie low, as he could be convicted of perjury, and tells him to leave because she has already forgotten him. Carlson bluntly tells Dulaney that her sexual prowess is how she is able to make men do anything. An enraged Paley lashes out at Carlson physically and, after Dulaney pulls him off, Paley shoots her twice. She plunges from a window to her death and Paley is arrested for murdering her.
Before leaving the scene with his wife to repair their relationship, Dulaney then tells Garret he should've won the case with Garrett replying: "I did".
Cast
Production
'Body of Evidence' was filmed in Portland, Oregon, with the Pittock Mansion serving as a primary location. The cemetery scene featured in the beginning of the film was shot on location at Lone Fir Cemetery.
Julianne Moore said her nude scene in this movie was "just awful": "I was too young to know better. It was the first time I'd been asked to get naked and it turned out to be completely extraneous and gratuitous."
Release
Box office
'Body of Evidence' performed poorly at the box office. In its second week it experienced a 60% drop. It grossed $13 million in the United States and Canada and $25 million internationally for a worldwide total of $38 million.Censorship
The film originally received the rare NC-17 rating from the Motion Picture Association of America. The first theatrical release was censored for the purpose of obtaining an R rating, reducing the film's running time from 101 to 99 minutes. The video premiere, however, restored the deleted material.Critical response
'Body of Evidence' has an 8% rating at Rotten Tomatoes based on 38 reviews, with a rating average of 3.10/10. The critical consensus reads, "'Body of Evidence's sex scenes may be kinky, but the ludicrous concept is further undone by the ridiculous dialogue." Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 29 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "C" on scale of A+ to F. The film appeared on the 2005 list of Roger Ebert's most hated films. The screenplay and performances were especially disparaged. His colleague Gene Siskel called 'Body of Evidence' a "stupid and empty thriller" that is worse than her softcore coffee table book 'Sex'.Julianne Moore later regretted acting in the film and went on to call it "a big mistake".
Accolades
References
Sources
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