I like to rent movies, especially in the summer when the re-runs are in full swing on television. I have lousy cable with no movie channels, so I watch a lot of movies on DVD. Every month I get at least one free rental. Sometimes there are restrictions on which movies I can pick for the free selection. Many times I find my self wondering up and down the aisles of the older releases to find something to get before my free rental runs out. They have to be used by a certain time. Depending on how much time I have at the time, I may just grab something randomly and go. Since the movie will be free, it doesn’t bother me as much if it turns out to be horrible, which some of them have been. Other times I’ve managed to find some decent movies this way. The Right Temptation was one of the decent ones.

Derian McCall was a private detective. She worked for a small detective agency. She use to be a police officer. She was working under cover on her last case and something went very wrong. Derian seemed to still be dealing with what happened. She’d remember events that happened and even dreamed about what happened at times.

Anthea Farrow-Smith hired the detective agency Derian worked for. Anthea wanted her husband, Michael Farrow-Smith, followed because she thought he was having an affair. Anthea wanted a woman working on the case, so it was given to Derian.

Derian followed Michael around town for a while. She found no evidence that he was having an affair. When he told his wife he was going to business meetings he really was. Anthea seemed to be disappointed by the news that her husband wasn’t having an affair. Derian thought her work on the case was done, but Anthea wanted her to keep working. Anthea said she wanted to know if Michael would cheat if the temptation was right. She wanted Derian to try to seduce Michael.

Derian didn’t like the idea at all. Anthea kept trying to get her to agree and eventually Anthea agreed. Derian managed to set up an accidental meeting at a health club where she and Michael ended up playing racquet ball. He was friendly, but didn’t seem interested in Derian in a sexual way. Derian told Anthea that, hoping that she was finally done with the case. Anthea responded by telling Derian to try harder. The next time they met, Michael spent the night in Derian’s bed.

Derian shared what happened with Anthea, who acted like she was mad. She claimed that she hadn’t wanted Derian to actually have sex with Michael, just tempt him. Anthea started to ask for details about what had happened between Derian and Michael. Then Anthea came up with a new story about why she wanted Michael followed. She claimed that she was worried about him because of whom he was doing business with. She said she was worried that he was in danger. Anthea wanted Derian to continue working on the case to find out what Michael was up to.
Derian continued to watch Michael even though she had reservations about it. She continued to spend time with him. They talked and Michael said that his marriage was in bad shape. He wasn’t happy. He said he wanted a divorce. He also said some things about Anthea. Derian decided to follow Anthea to see what she was up to. Derian discovered some things, and even confronted Anthea about them. Derian wasn’t sure what to think or what to believe. She kept being pulled back into things with Anthea and Michael. Derian was drawn to Michael, but she didn’t really trust him. Someone broke into her apartment and attacked her. People started to turn up dead. Derian continued to remember the disastrous results the last time she got personally involved in a case she was working on.

CAST

Kiefer Sutherland - Michael Farrow-Smith
Rebecca DeMornay - Derian McCall
Dana Delany - Anthea Farrow-Smith
Adam Baldwin - Captain Wagner

Lyndon Chubbuck - Director

Written by Larry Brand

The Right Temptation was made in 2000 and rated R for some sexuality, language, and some violence. I don’t remember this movie being in the theaters, so I’m thinking it was a straight to video release, but I could be wrong. The movie is available on DVD and VHS. I rented the DVD. I didn’t get a chance to check out what extras there were on the DVD. The movie was 95 minutes long.

I did enjoy The Right Temptation. The movie wasn’t action packed, but there was enough action to keep my attention and keep it interesting. I didn’t think the movie was boring. It wasn’t fast paced, but it moved along fast enough to keep things from dragging. The movie was entertaining. I picked up the case for it and the back made it sound interesting, which it turned out to be. I didn’t really have any expectations when I started to watch the movie, so I wasn’t disappointed with the movie.

The Right Temptation was a suspense thriller. It turned out to be better than many others I have seen. There were many suspenseful scenes throughout the movie. I rarely knew what would happen next in the movie. I figured out a few things before they happened, but overall the movie was not predictable. There were a few plot twists that helped to keep me guessing and made the movie more interesting. Just when I thought I had figured out what was going on, something completly different would happen. I was kept guessing through most of the movie.

There was some violence in The Right Temptation. Someone attacked Derian and she had to fight them off. Other people turned up dead. Some of the killings were shown, and other times only a body covered in blood was shown after the murder. There were a few shootings during the movie. Some scenes tied to Derian’s past were shared that also contained some violence. There were a few graphic scenes that could upset some people, but the movie wasn’t extremely violent over all. People who don’t like to see movies with violent scenes shouldn’t watch this movie.

Over the course of The Right Temptation, there were some flashbacks. Derian had been a cop. On her last case, she was undercover and she became involved personally. Things didn’t end well. At different times during the movie, Derian remembered things that had happened during that case. The situation she was in with Michael kept reminding her of how things had turned out the last time she got personally involved. The first time there was a flashback, I wasn’t sure what was going on. After that it was easy to tell when what was going on was another flashback. Derian had a very different hairstyle in the flashbacks. I was a little confused the first time a flashback turned up, but after that, I wasn’t confused by them since realized what was going on.

The relationship between Derian and Michael grew over the course of The Right Temptation. There really wasn’t any romance to their relationship. There were a few moments between them that seemed romantic, but their relationship was mainly just sex. They ended up in bed together when they barely knew each other. The relationship that Michael and Anthea had wasn’t really shown. They were rarely shown together in the same scene. Each of them talked with Derian about the marriage, but that was all there was shared about their relationship. The viewer, and Derian, had to take the word of Michael and Derian about the relationship. There were some sex scenes in the movie. There wasn’t any actual nudity shown, but there was some skin shown in the form of bare shoulders and backs. Kiefer looked very good in those scenes. The sex scenes weren’t very graphic, but they could offend some people.

Derian did some stupid things at different times in The Right Temptation. She was a good detective and was supposed to have been a good cop, so she should have known better at times. She allowed herself to get pulled into a situation that had the possibility to turn disastrous for her. After what happened on her last case, she should have known better about getting involved with someone she was investigating. She got herself in some dangerous situations a few times that she should have known to avoid. She did one thing that was very stupid for her to have done near the end of the movie. She even said later that she should have never done that. She was gullible at times and let herself be manipulated. It was a bit annoying at times for someone who was supposed to have smart to have done the things she did. It is possible that she just wasn’t thinking clearly because of how involved she got in the situation.

The acting in The Right Temptation was good. Rebecca DeMornay was very believable as Derian, especially when she was struggling with what to do at times. The first movie I ever saw her in was The Hand That Rocks the Cradle. Derian was a very different character from who she played in that movie. I have seen Kiefer Sutherland in many different roles in movies like The Lost Boys, Flatliners, and The Three Musketeers. Every character I’ve seen him play has been different from others he has played. I thought it was very good as Michael. He also looked really good. Anthea was a complex character and very different from the ones I’ve seen Dana Delany play in the past. I mainly remember her for the television show China Beach, but I have also seen her in a few movies like Housesitter. Anthea was cold and determined.

There were only a few main characters in The Right Temptation. Derian, Anthea, and Michael were the main characters. Derian was developed more than the other two though. Events from her past were shared through flashbacks. Anthea and Michael remained more of a mystery. There were some other characters who turned up a few times, but they were barely developed at all.

CHARACTERS

Derian McCall - She was a private detective. She quit the force after her last assignment went bad. She was smart most of the time, but she did do some stupid things once or twice. She was good at her job. She could be stubborn at times. She seemed to be caring and want to help people. She didn’t want to do what Anthea asked, but Derian let herself be talked into it. She could be manipulated at times.

Anthea Farrow-Smith - A rich woman who hired Derian to follow her husband Michael. Anthea kept changing her story about why she wanted her husband followed. She seemed to be cold at times. She was willing to do some extreme things to get what she wanted.

Michael Farrow-Smith - He was a rich business man. He was married to Anthea. He said his marriage was over and that he wanted a divorce. He seemed to be kind and caring, but he had some secrets. He may have been messed up in some dirty business deals.

I did enjoy The Right Temptation. I have seen better movies, but it turned out to be quite good. It is worth watching if you are in the mood for a suspense thriller or are fans of Kiefer Sutherland or Rebecca DeMornay.

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Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age