Body Heat (1981)

 

In the midst of a searing Florida heat wave, a woman persuades her lover, a small-town lawyer, to murder her rich husband.

From memory: Steamy neo-noir thriller is heavily indebted and is probably meant as homage to Double Indemnity, so the plot itself is quite conventional, but it does convince with some highly energized erotic scenes and a spectacular debut by Kathleen Turner as the femme fatale.

Halliwell**: "Oversexed and superfluous, not to mention uncredited, revamp of Double Indemnity. Some evidence of flair does not relieve that 'I have been here before' feeling."

Maltin***: "Over-derivative of 1940s melodramas at first, then goes off on its own path and scores." 

 

Creepshow (1982)

An anthology which tells five terrifying tales based on the E.C. horror comic books of the 1950s.

Nicely reimagined homage to 50s horror comics balances humor with some nasty bits and is generally enjoyable, although the quality of the episodes vary considerably.

Halliwell (no star): "Supposedly funny, but mainly rather nasty recreation of a famous 'comic' style; far too extended for its own good."

Maltin**: "Romero nicely captures the look of a comic book..., but Stephen King's five "fantastic tales"...are transparent and heavy-handed..."