If Looks Could Kill: The Best Modern Femme Fatale Movies

By Brianne Hogan · July 31, 2023

The Best Modern Femme Fatale Movies_feature

The femme fatale is a notable character archetype in cinema history. From Phyllis Dietrichson in Double Indemnity to Kitty Collins in The Killers, a femme fatale is as captivating as she’s conniving — as desirable as she is deadly. However, femme fatale movies have changed quite a bit from their heyday in the 1940s.

No longer are dapper detectives and besmitten beaus finding themselves caught in the trap of a beautiful dame who’s out for money, power, and revenge. These days, femme fatales take on an expanded role in cinema and are driven by different motivations than their predecessors. Not only that, modern femme fatale movies range in genre, from thrillers to comedy to horror films, not just film noirs (or, I guess, neo-noirs).

We put together a few of the best modern femme fatale movies to download for this week’s script collection, but before we get to the scripts, let’s go over the definition of a femme fatale and how the character archetype has changed in the modern cinematic era.

Scripts from this Article

Basic Instinct

Jennifer’s Body

Gone Girl

Promising Young Woman

Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

What is a Femme Fatale?

Otherwise known as a “seductress,” “man-eater,” or “vamp,” the femme fatale is French for “fatal woman.” She’s usually depicted as a seductive woman who woos the male protagonist into a dangerous trap for her own benefit. In movies, she’s typically used as a nemesis, trickster, or attractor – a woman both often revered and feared for her physical strength and captivating beauty and charm.

The modern femme fatale has changed from the archetype’s early depiction in the 1940s and 1950s when she was often labeled as “no good” for weaponizing her beauty and sexuality. Today, the fate and messaging of a modern femme fatale is less puritanical. Audiences can’t help but root for her to win. We might even admire the femme fatale for going after what she wants with as much confidence and conviction that’s usually saved for male characters. We might despise the femme fatale, but we also respect her.

Basic Instinct (1992)

Sharon Stone’s Catherine Trammell basically set the stage for the modern femme fatale. In this taut mystery/thriller, Catherine is a successful crime novelist who becomes a suspect in the murder of a rock star. Sooner than you can say “white dress” she becomes romantically involved with the homicide detective (Michael Douglas) who’s leading the investigation, which may or may not be another ploy of hers.

Is she after him to steer him in the wrong direction – or get rid of him altogether? Or does she really love him? These are questions not even Douglas’ character can answer. By the end of the movie, he’s completely entangled in her web of lies and seduction, and even when she’s revealed to be the killer, he’s still not over her. Now that’s power.

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Jennifer’s Body (2009)

Like many female-driven movies of yesteryear, it seems like Diablo Cody’s Jennifer’s Body is finally receiving the recognition it deserves, having developed a cult following over the last decade. The horror-comedy stars Megan Fox as Jennifer, a high school cheerleader who becomes possessed by a demon and begins enticing and then eating her male classmates. This causes a rift between her and her best friend, Needy, played by Amanda Seyfried, especially when Jennifer sets her sights on Needy’s boyfriend.

What’s different and refreshing about Jennifer’s Body is it’s a female re-appropriation of the femme fatale archetype, which largely has to do with Cody’s screenplay and the film’s director, Karyn Kusama. This movie is less about a femme fatale being evil and killing for her own selfish needs and desires and more about her taking a stand for all womankind.

What’s also different about this movie is its lack of a male protagonist – Jennifer is the antihero of this story and drives the plot forward. While she’s killed by the film’s end (by Needy) we’re left understanding Jennifer’s motives and her character is seen as less of a sexy monster and more of a fed-up overly-sexualized cheerleader who just had enough of the patriarchy.

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Gone Girl (2014)

Sharon Stone’s Catherine Trammell ran so Rosamund Pike’s Amy Dunne could fly.

Amy Dunne is arguably the most sophisticated and poised modern femme fatale while simultaneously being scary as hell. In the psychological thriller, based on the book by Gillian Flynn, Amy goes missing, only for her husband, Nick, played by Ben Affleck, to be blamed for her disappearance.

It turns out Amy is the mastermind behind the whole thing, including the false records and diaries of his abuse, which makes it difficult for Nick to avoid any suspicion from the FBI. Even when Nick discovers his wife’s ruse, he is stuck and forced to stay with her and keep up the appearance of their happy marriage for the public.

What makes Amy Dunne such an intriguing character is her vitriol for what it means to be a woman in the world and pop culture, which is so succinctly demonstrated in her Cool Girl monologue. She’s tired of the facade she must uphold to be a good wife and a desirable woman. She’s tired of keeping it together and being cool, and still feeling unsatisfied and punished by her husband’s wandering eye. Similar to Jennifer in Jennifer’s Body, Amy’s revenge isn’t strictly towards her philandering husband but towards society and men in general. Sure, she goes after one man but her rage goes beyond him.

By the end of the film, you don’t want to be Amy Dunne, but you also can’t help but root for her – or at least empathize with her anger.

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Promising Young Woman (2020)

In this black comedy thriller, Carey Mulligan stars as Cassie, a young woman whose life was uprooted by the sexual assault of her best friend from college, who later commits suicide. Cassie seeks revenge by turning the tables on men who try to sleep with her while she’s drunk, among other crafty and chilling maneuvers she enforces in order to challenge others, including both men and women, as to whether they’re good people or not.

Cassie is something of a vigilante but uses her feminine charms and intelligence, including wit, to get closer to what she wants, which makes her a great candidate for a modern femme fatale. It’s important to note that Cassie doesn’t seek her revenge with violence, but as the movie progresses, so does Cassie’s rage. Like Amy Dunne in Gone Girl, and even Jennifer in Jennifer’s Body, Cassie’s anger is fueled by the sordid history of women being routinely dismissed and not heard or respected, and in her case, specifically when it comes to rape culture.

Although Cassie is killed by the film’s end, what she stood for and ultimately was killed for, continues to live on and stays with the viewer past the closing credits. You don’t wish for her to die but her sacrifice delivers some justice, which is somewhat satisfying, and begs the question: is the modern femme fatale so bad after all?

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Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)

Mike Myer’s titular playboy might be the star of this action comedy/spoof who introduced us to such trademark phrases as “Yeah baby!” and “Oh, behave!” but let’s not forget the impact of Vanessa Kensington, played by Elizabeth Hurley.

At first we’re led to believe the beautiful Vanessa is nothing but a top spy working for British intelligence, the inevitable straight man to Austin’s flashy antics. She eventually falls for his hairy chest and charms and marries Austin. However, in the second film, Vanessa reveals her true nature – she’s actually a Fembot programmed to kill Austin. Her love and passion for him were all a ruse to get her closer to Austin to get what she wanted. This is one instance in which “shagging and bragging” isn’t funny!

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Read More: The Top 10 Film Noirs