Femme Fatale: Till the end of the line
She takes the car down into the dark night
of celestial terrors and sordid delights
An unspoken intent
The loser has fallen under her spell
a web of intrigue and too-late regret
Broken and under control she has her surrogate
a dismal avatar
Terrible purpose for promises of bliss
keep him focused
the cold hard steels burns his shaking hand
No way out
all the way
till the end of the line
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beautiful
Thanks k.
Yep, the Femme Fatale is a mistress of death, and agent for the Grim Reaper, whose unspoken intent will always dupe the unsuspecting male, who always sees a happy resolve. It’s always the same ending, with no manner to undo the evil plot.
Again you have used words to convey far more than visual sequences.
Great poem, Tony– Just a heads up that my new book Dark Borders: Film Noir and American Citizenship is to be published shortly by Duke University Press; speaking of the Femme Fatale, in the book I offer an unusual (quirky?) long reading of Double Indemnity arguing that Phyllis is not the problem, and in fact that she is the only one in the movie who understands what is going on.
JA
Thanks for your comment and for the heads up Jonathon – and congratulations. A fascinating take on Phyllis! I certainly look forward to reading your book. Let me know when it is available so I can post the news with a link to Amazon. Tony