Pretty Thing

Directed by Justin Kelly, a filmmaker who had already explored dynamics of desire and control in films like I Am Michael, Pretty Thing marks Alicia Silverstone's return to openly sensual territory after years away from it. She plays Sophie, a pharmaceutical executive who begins an obsessive relationship with a younger man, Elliot, played by Karl Glusman, in a classic nineties erotic thriller template updated with a contemporary sensibility and, notably, gender roles reversed from genre tradition. The film, released theatrically and digitally on July 4, 2025, was met with cautious reviews from genre critics, who appreciated the attempt to modernize the formula but flagged writing that did not always match its ambitions, earning a two and a half out of five rating from several independent outlets.

Still, the gender reversal remains genuinely interesting, with a female lead holding the economic and social power in the relationship, an inversion that recalls Fatal Attraction but told from her point of view. Silverstone brings unexpected vulnerability to the role, making Sophie's slow transformation from a woman in control to a victim of her own obsession believable. Not a masterpiece, but Pretty Thing proves that the audience nostalgic for the nineties theatrical erotic thriller is alive and well, and ready to embrace new variations on the genre.