The Most Chilling Psychological Thriller Of The ’90s, Stream Right Now

Single White Female is the story of Allie Jones (Bridget Fonda), a software designer who recently kicked her boyfriend Sam (Steven Weber) out of their New York City apartment after she busted him for cheating. A budding software designer, Allie has designed a breakthrough program but has her first client, Mitchell Myerson (Steven Tobolowsky), manipulate her to sell it to him at an obscenely low price.

Allie’s frustrations continue as she searches for a new roommate but seems to subside when her ad finally yields Hedy Carlson (Jennifer Jason Leigh), whom she immediately bonds with.

Single White Female shows Allie navigating the life of a single woman in New York, all while having her life complicated by her temptation for reconciliation with Sam and Mitchell’s creepy sexual advances toward her. As the film progresses, Hedy shows signs of jealousy, particularly when Allie and Sam finally reunite and announce plans to move into a new apartment together.

Hedy doesn’t take this news well. Single White Female takes a turn when Hedy’s obsession with her roommate becomes the focal point of the film. Hedy begins erasing phone messages meant for Allie, threatens one of her business associates, and finally walks onto the screen donning a new haircut and outfit that make her a dead ringer for Allie.

Hedy’s obsession escalates out of control and drives her to murder. When Allie discovers what Hedy has done, she is trapped when she realizes that Hedy is attempting to frame her. This segues into the film’s final act, in which audiences will finally see the extent of Hedy’s capabilities.

Single White Female combines commonly used thriller film tropes throughout its story arc that gives audiences an enjoyable, if not semi-predictable, production. Movie psychopaths often work to alienate those that surround the object of their obsession, a trait that the movie’s Hedy Carlson scores high marks in.

The film gave Jennifer Jason Leigh an opportunity to showcase her wide range of acting skills, and she didn’t disappoint. Single White Female almost instantly portrays Leigh’s character as a bit emotionally disturbed before seemingly fitting together puzzle pieces that show her to be psychotic. But Leigh deserves praise for also luring audiences in with feelings of sympathy, helping to fully define Hedy in such a way that she’s pitied even after all that she’s done.

Single White Female also gets a stellar performance from Bridget Fonda. Fonda is able to play Allie in such a way that audiences will seethe with rage when she is accosted by Mitchell and root for her when she has her final showdown with Hedy.

Single White Female is Fonda’s best film vehicle to be the “everywoman” in the 1990s. In many ways, her character represents so many levels of frustration and strife suffered by women of that era trying to make their place in the professional world, all while being distracted by a philandering boyfriend and a roommate who is becoming increasingly obsessive.

REVIEW SCORE

The film’s acting certainly elevates it, though its predictability and overused film tropes do leave a bit to be desired. Single White Female is certainly worth the watch but does lack the twists and terror from other films with obsessive antagonists of its time like the Michael Douglas classic Fatal Attraction or the Sharon Stone thriller Sliver.

You can stream Single White Female for free on Pluto or rent it On Demand through Vudu, AppleTV, and Google Play.