Single White Female (1992)

Roommate from Hell

An engaged designer (Bridget Fonda) living in an aging Gothic apartment in Manhattan dumps her boyfriend (Steven Weber) and advertises for a roommate. She ends up with a friendly identical twin that lost her sister when she was a girl (Jennifer Jason Leigh). A quality friendship develops until dubious things start happening.

"Single White Female" (1992) mixes elements of “Fatal Attraction” (1987) with the setting of “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968). It’s not great like the former, but it’s on par with the latter and arguably superior. The film possesses a haunting ambiance, which is assisted by the venue, but this same attribute eventually hinders the movie by making it one-dimensional. “Rosemary’s Baby” had the same problem.

The fact that the two stars regularly appear in various stages of undress is titillating, yet it can’t make up for the one-note tone and locale. Still, the movie’s entertaining enough and I would’ve given it a better grade, but the third act is overlong and curiously tedious despite the slasher thrills.

The film runs 1 hour, 47 minutes and was shot at Ansonia Hotel, Manhattan, and Raleigh Studios, Hollywood.

GRADE: B-