Single White Female

R

Released Aug 14, 1992

1 hr. 47 min.

Mystery & Thriller

List

53%

49 Reviews

Tomatometer

44%

25,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Having recently split from fiancé Sam Rawson (Steven Weber), Allison Jones (Bridget Fonda) welcomes new roommate Hedra Carlson (Jennifer Jason Leigh). The young women quickly form a bond, but as Allison starts to rethink her engagement, Hedra grows jealous and hostile. As Allison learns new details about her roommate's life, Hedra gets violent in her efforts to get Sam out of the picture. With Hedra turning more menacing by the minute, Allison finally understands what she's up against.

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Critics Consensus

Single White Female benefits from a pair of outstanding leads, neither of whom are well served by a storyline that wavers between thrillingly tense and utterly ridiculous.

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Alec B

The performances and the direction sustain the movie longer than you might think but at a certain point it inevitably just becomes too silly.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/24

Full Review

Matthew D

A fascinating portrayal of the perils of being a single woman. Franco-Swiss director Barbet Schroeder's psychological erotic thriller Single White Female (1992) is riveting! I miss erotic thrillers from the 90's. Single White Female is as intense and engrossing as Basic Instinct, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, or The Crush. Schroeder bears heavy hearted characters with emotional waves crashing over them with a flourish of stylish direction. Single White Female is brilliant. Author John Lutz' story is really intriguing with twins, roommates, cheating lovers, and an eerie voyeurism to the whole affair. The writing is smart about obsession and manipulation. Lutz and screenwriter Don Roos demonstrate how sleazy men cheat, harass, and lie to try to get women in bed, while women can manipulate in their own way like gaslighting. Schroeder displays an innocent heroine getting acquainted with a seemingly sweet new roommate, only to find out she is a dangerous, obsessive manipulator. Allison Jones' software failsafe to ensure payment from deadbeat employers is actually genius and I don't get how that is not used more by contractors in real life. Barbet Schroeder's direction is neat with tons of setups like Chekhov's Gun that get paid off later during the scary moments. From puppies to memories of twins or broken elevators, everything pays off in the end. Schroeder feels like he's referring to Ingmar Bergman's Persona, Roman Polanski's The Tenant and Rosemary's Baby, Alfred Hitchcock, and old film noir. You can even see In a Lonely Place playing on television at night. Gloria Graham is probably the reference to Allie's friend Graham and Hedy is likely named after Hedy Lamarr. I kept thinking of Leave Her to Heaven. You easily see how Single White Female could have influenced Gone Girl. Editor Lee Percy has a sleek cutting style that makes Single White Female a brisk 107 minutes. He brings a smooth style like cinematographer Luciano Tovoli's haunting lighting and eerie panning shots. The way he pairs the two women next to one another to show how similar they resemble each other is neat. I love seeing the colorful moody lighting in 90's movies. Tovoli uses shadows so strikingly with these seductive and tasteful nude and nighttime shots of the actresses. In the black silhouettes, Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh look identical. Casting director Howard Feuer really found two actresses who really look alike and can play both shy and seductive at a moment's notice. Bridget Fonda is wonderful as Single White Female's sympathetic heroine Allison "Allie" Jones. Fonda is gorgeous and sorrowful with a fantastic frightened performance. Allie feels real and kind-hearted with neat confidence as a beautiful working woman getting her life together. I was really rooting for her to survive this horrific event. Jennifer Jason Leigh is amazing as the unhinged Hedra "Hedy" Carlson. Leigh's disturbed and possessive Hedy is a fascinating character study. She's very cute and terrifying all at once. Leigh is one of the greatest actresses of Gen X and Single White Female is a superb display of her acting prowess. Her lovable, shy Hedy transforms into a vicious and violent psychopath. Jennifer Jason Leigh is one of cinema's best slasher villains and femme fatales in Single White Female. Steven Weber is a total creepy sleaze as Allie's cheating boyfriend Sam Rawson. Peter Friedman's pleasant actor friend to Allie named Graham Knox is a scream. I found Stephen Tobolowsky's fashion business owner Mitchell Myerson truly disgusting as the lecherous man in power with no morals and heinous expectations. The dog and cat look adorable. Production designer Milena Canonero creates a neat, rich New York apartment. Art direction from James F. Truesdale and P. Michael Johnston leans into shadowy lighting cascading into the apartment with soft blue lights. They emphasize the creepy atmosphere with shadows everywhere. At some point you can hardly tell which actress is which in the dark. Anne H. Ahrens' lavish set decoration makes the apartment very cozy and ornate. Composer Howard Shore's film score is haunting. He adds a leering gravitas and heavy darkness to the film. Shore's music is always magnificent and contributes to Hedy's judgment of Allie returning back to a man who cheated on her or the frightening attacks. His softer melodic score is wondrous with a sublime calmness to it. Sound designers Gary Rydstrom, Richard Beggs, Gloria S. Borders, Tom Johnson, Tim Holland, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Ethan van der Ryn, Robert Shoup, Ken Fischer, Marilyn McCoppen, Don Hall, and E. Jeane Putnam let phones echo in the distance and voices echo across apartments. Costume designers Milena Canonero and Eileen Kennedy create all these fashionable suits, sultry dresses, and expensive earrings. Make-up artists Matthew W. Mungle and Lizbeth Williamson do their best to match the pink lipstick and blush for Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh. Candace Neal's hairstyling is crucial to Single White Female being believable with that fun red bob wig or haircut. In short, Single White Female is enthralling with very empathetic lead acting from Bridget Fonda. I loved the eerie and entertaining performance from supporting actress Jennifer Jason Leigh.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/22/23

Full Review

Steve D

Jennifer Jason Leigh is one of the most underrated actresses alive. She makes this a blast. It works better than Fatal Attraction for me.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Nice 90s movie that could have been a lot better with a great director, still this film is solid and many movies in the future tried to copy it.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/08/22

Full Review

Audience Member

The suspense was on point the first half of the film but then the conflict resolution kind of plateaued early until the ending you totally expect happens. It wasn't a bad flick, but you more than likely won't be coming back for a second watch.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I Am Re-seeing...A Grade B Psycho Slasher Flick. I Was Entertained. Screen Play Could Have Been Stronger...Well Acted...

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

Full Review

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Barbet Schroeder

Director

Bridget Fonda

Allison 'Allie' Jones

Jennifer Jason Leigh

Hedra 'Hedy' Carlson

Steven Weber

Sam Rawson

Peter Friedman

Graham Knox

Stephen Tobolowsky

Mitchell 'Mitch' Myerson

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Single White Female: Official Clip - Don't Make Me Leave You

2:13

Single White Female: Official Clip - Hedy's Makeover

2:03

Single White Female: Official Clip - Death by Stiletto

2:11

Single White Female: Official Clip - Killer Heels

2:13

Single White Female: Official Clip - I'm Like You Now

2:13

Single White Female: Official Clip - I've Been Worried Sick

2:12

Single White Female: Official Clip - Don't Make Me Come Get You

2:11

Single White Female: Official Clip - Bad Timing

2:09

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David Ansen

Newsweek

The formula betrays the fine work of Leigh and Fonda, whose characters are much too interesting to find themselves stranded in a tony but ultimately tired slasher movie.

Feb 9, 2018

Full Review

Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: B

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Matt Mueller

Empire Magazine

What Schroeder lacks in character development, he more than makes up for in mood and atmosphere, honing the creepy grandeur of the ominous, shadowy Manhattan apartment building with all the pinpoint perfection.

Rated: 3/5

Apr 14, 2008

Full Review

Trace Thurman

Horror Queers Podcast

Doesn't hold up as well as you'd expect, and the strong performances from Leigh and Fonda can't overcome a weak screenplay.

Rated: 2.5/5

Dec 30, 2020

Full Review

Barbara Shulgasser

Common Sense Media

Intense, sexual, violent tale of worst roommate ever.

Rated: 2/5

Jan 9, 2020

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Ultimately goes easy on the psychological character studies and heavy on the slasher-film stylistics.

Rated: 2/4

Dec 21, 2018

Full Review

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Synopsis

Having recently split from fiancé Sam Rawson (Steven Weber), Allison Jones (Bridget Fonda) welcomes new roommate Hedra Carlson (Jennifer Jason Leigh). The young women quickly form a bond, but as Allison starts to rethink her engagement, Hedra grows jealous and hostile. As Allison learns new details about her roommate's life, Hedra gets violent in her efforts to get Sam out of the picture. With Hedra turning more menacing by the minute, Allison finally understands what she's up against.

Director: Barbet Schroeder
Executive Producer: Jack Baran
Screenwriter: Don Roos
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Columbia Pictures, Columbia Pictures Corporation
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 14, 1992, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $46.2M
Sound Mix: Stereo, Surround

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