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Here’s a little quiz; If you suspect your husband is cheating on you should you
- Try to get proof yourself and/or try to catch him in the act with his pants down (literally)?
- Rent a private investigator to get the proof for you?
- Rent a prostitute and give her the assignment to be a possible catch for your husband and let her report to you?
If your answer is C then Chloe is the movie demonstrating why you made the worst possible choice available.
It’s her task to know what clients want without them actually saying it Chloe informs us in a voice-over in the opening scene in which Amanda Seyfried, who plays Chloe, is dressing up to go to work. She’s a high-end prostitute and she is being gazed upon from a distance by Gynecologist Catherine Stewart (Julianne Moore) standing in her practice. Married to David (Liam Neeson) the spark seems to be out of their marriage. When he accidentally misses his flight on purpose home she starts to question his behavior; always flirting with attractive women, laughing at his Instant Messaging screen when he’s chatting with students and receiving a text from a female student that enjoyed his company while he should have been on a plane. To find out if her suspicions are true Catherine employs Chloe to play bait for David and has her report on if he bites.
Hook, line and sinker according to Chloe as he takes her out for a picnic in the park and to a botanical garden where the first bodily fluids are exchanged. In shock Catherine listens but also with some strange fascination. As Chloe’s reports become more explicit, Catherine becomes more engaged. These stories make her feel closer to him than he is now in reality. Eventually the sexual tension between Chloe and Catherine becomes unsustainable.
Chloe is an erotic thriller and has some of the faults that genre is usually plagued by. There’s a lot of the obligatory “steamy” sex scenes or random nudity and while I can look at Amanda Seyfried naked for hours, and Jullianne Moore also btw, it does give the movie a sense of cheap-ness. No matter how good the movie looks and is filmed. Especially the use of mirrors is a nice trick and justified due to the subtext.
The three lead players all put in solid performances though Neeson is sadly underused. The movie is mostly about the relationship between Chloe and Catherine, especially when the line between business and personal begins to fade. The movie incorporates a small twist, but I saw it coming pretty quickly so there was no surprise there, which is a shame. There’s nothing like a good twist to surprise the viewer and make a movie better.
Chloe is a charming little erotic thriller, but not a classic and for most people, or at least men, the nude scenes of Julianne Moore and Amanda Seyfried will be the main reason to watch this. Chloe luckily doesn’t go down the road most of these thrillers do and end in a slasher-style way, but the twist that is incorporated is rather predicable.