Killing Me Softly

R

Released May 10, 2002

1 hr. 40 min.

Mystery & Thriller

List

0%

22 Reviews

Tomatometer

40%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

A woman (Heather Graham) grows suspicious of her controlling husband (Joseph Fiennes) after she discovers secrets about the women in his past.

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Critics Consensus

Respected director Chen Kaige's first English-language film is a spectacularly misguided erotic thriller, with ludicrous plot twists and cringe-worthy dialogue.

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Marc Z

This is an erotic thriller starring Heather Graham and Joseph Fiennes. It is seemingly low budget, despite the fact that it has a decent cast. It is sexually exciting and it does build from a romance to something more, in a way that is foreshadowed early on. The Direction is "B" at best. The script is the same. The eroticism is "A", despite it not being designed to be a soft core movie, per se. The strength, quite frankly, is the acting. Heather Graham is always watchable. Jospeh Fiennes, in any role, has gravitas and makes him very compelling to watch. I saw it on free tv, during a holiday weekend-so no complaints.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

09/04/23

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Steve D

Sexy but not much else.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

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Audience Member

Laughable dialogue and absurd plot. "Flows" just like an XXX rated movie edited for an "R" rating. Awful. Only the sex scenes are worth watching....just like an old, bad porn movie. I have never however, seen an old bad porn movie that wasn't better than this garbage in all respects. Embarrassing for all concerned. I wonder how this disaster escaped from the studio for public consumption. My wife hated it more than I did and she selected it. First time she has HATED a movie in a very long time. Unfortunately it is not so bad that it is funny. It just stinks. A time waster. Sorry if my opinion is somewhat vague.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

Full Review

Audience Member

very sex + no gae = nice time peen

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/29/23

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Audience Member

This movie is a guilty pleasure. I actually liked it much more than the critics and the general public. I've seen it numerous times.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

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Audience Member

Erotic, suspenseful, sophisticated and highly original, Killing Me Softly is what a thriller should be, as it succeeds on every front. Truly a cinematic landmark, it spawned dozens of rip offs that only highlights the greatness of this movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

Full Review

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Chen Kaige

Director

Heather Graham

Alice

Joseph Fiennes

Adam

Natascha McElhone

Deborah

Ulrich Thomsen

Klaus

Ian Hart

Senior Police Officer

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Nathan Rabin

AV Club

As Graham attempts to uncover the truth about his past, the film grows increasingly convoluted, leading to a twist ending that will come as a surprise only to those who've never seen a Shannon Tweed movie.

Aug 3, 2009

Full Review

David Rooney

Variety

A turgid erotic thriller that plays like Zalman King-meets-vintage Brian De Palma without the latter's wit or style.

May 21, 2008

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Empire Magazine

A hilariously bad movie that has to be seen to be believed.

Rated: 1/5

Dec 30, 2006

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

More outrageous, perverse, and trivial than plausible or nerve-wracking.

Rated: 3/10

Oct 9, 2020

Full Review

Total Film

The screenplay (based on Nicci French's novel) is cringeworthy, and Kaige's inability to spot when English-speaking thesps are reciting rather than acting produces scenes that vary from lifeless to laughable.

Rated: 1/5

Aug 3, 2009

Full Review

Robert Pardi

TV Guide

Why, you might ask, is master director Chen Kaige wasting his time on such trashy material?

Rated: 2/4

Aug 3, 2009

Full Review

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Synopsis

A woman (Heather Graham) grows suspicious of her controlling husband (Joseph Fiennes) after she discovers secrets about the women in his past.

Director: Chen Kaige
Executive Producer: Ivan Reitman, Tom Pollock, Daniel Goldberg
Screenwriter: Kara Lindstrom, Nicci French
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Noelle Entertainment Limited, Montecito Picture Company
Rating: R (Some Violence|Language|Strong Sexuality)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 10, 2002, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 16, 2008
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby A, SDDS, DTS, Surround, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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