The Temp

Plot synopsis:
Peter Derns (Timothy Hutton) is an executive for a cookie company. He has just been released from a clinic after being treated for paranoia and he is still in a shaky emotional state. On his first day back at work, he becomes further upset when he walks into a marketing meeting to make a new product presentation without knowing that his company has been taken over by a major food conglomerate. The company's new owners are looking to make cutbacks and Peter's whole career is riding on his new-product introduction. Peter's ruthless boss and supervisor, Charlene (Faye Dunaway), whose job is also at risk, wants a complete report by Peter on her desk no later than noon on the following day. When Peter's male personal assistant, Lance, takes off, he frets that he will never make the deadline. But to Peter's good fortune, the company assigns him a temp worker, the brunette, seductive-looking Kris Bolin (Lara Flynn Boyle).
Kris soon proves herself to Peter by solving two marketing problems with Peter's new product in short order over the next few days. Peter and Kris soon bond over their lunch breaks where Kris tells Peter about herself: she has an office-skills degree from Stanford and has a husband and young daughter. Kris, being ruthlessly efficient, brilliant and unflaggingly loyal to Peter, hopes to use her skills to become his permanent secretary. Despite Kris's possessive attitude, Peter cannot seem to do without her, nor can the rest of the office. Not only does Kris help him deliver his report to Charlene on time, she passes on credit to him for her own ideas.
However, soon various people around the office meet with unfortunate "accidents," beginning when Peter's assistant, Lance, returns the following week and, while attempting to fix a paper shredder during his first day back, is maimed when his right hand gets stuck and mutilated, forcing him to take permanent leave. Peter starts to note the deaths of some of his rivals for advancement in the company, such as Hartsell (Oliver Platt), who is found dead in his stalled car on a busy expressway after being stung by a wasp. Another few days later, Jasser (Dwight Schultz) is found in his office after hanging himself in an apparent suicide. Peter becomes to suspect that Kris is responsible for these deaths, but he cannot prove it or get anyone to listen to him due to his recovering mental state. Nevertheless, the deaths of the executives lay the groundwork for Peter's own unearned promotions.
Meanwhile, Peter is determined to win back his estranged wife (Maura Tierney), and begins to spurn all of Kris's advances towards him. Peter, starting to distrust Kris, refuses her advances for a romantic relationship, as well as a professional partnership, and even just a simple friendship. Soon things for Peter begin to go wrong. A marketing test for Peter's new cookie product is horribly sabotaged when broken glass is added to the batter of the cookies, injuring random people who test the new product out. Peter becomes more convinced that Kris is behind the mayhem, but he still cannot get anyone to listen to him because everyone around him writes off his claims as more paranoia.
Soon, Peter's paranoia begins to work against him as he starts to suspect an old friend (Steven Weber), at a rival cookie company, of being behind the events. Peter also begins to suspect Charlene herself is trying to destroy his career to protect her own. Peter begins looking into Kris's past and learns that at her last temp job at a local bank, her boss, whom she may have had an affair with, died mysteriously. Peter also learns that Kris never went to Stanford, nor does she have any husband or child. Peter confronts Kris about what she may be doing behind the scenes, but she naturally denies doing anything wrong. The very next day, Peter is shunned from his job after someone frames him for leaking company information to a rival company. However, Kris comes to his aid by accepting responsibility for the "computer error", which earns Peter's promotion to vice president and Kris's promotion to marketing executive.
By the climax of the film, Peter and Kris are sent to the company's bakery on a weekend retreat, where the car in which they are both riding nearly runs off the road after someone tampers with the brakes. After checking into their hotel for the night (in separate rooms), Peter gets a message from Charlene about an emergency at the company's bakery. Upon going there, he finds a dead security guard, killed by a letter opener knife that Kris had earlier given him. Kris is also present at the bakery, but appears to be suffering from a mild concussion due to a supposed blow to her head. He enters the bakery grounds office and attempts to call for an ambulance, but someone hits him from behind and tries to finish him off, only for someone else to tackle his attacker.
In his disoriented state, Peter wanders out of the office to see Kris struggling with Charlene in a brutal fight along a catwalk. Yet it is nearly impossible to tell from Peter's point-of-view if Kris is trying to kill Charlene, or if Charlene is trying to kill Kris. Peter intervenes in the fight and Charlene falls from a plank and is left hanging from a railing. He attempts to pull her up but she slips from his grasp and falls to her death, but not before saying "The picture".
Months later, Peter works on rebuilding his relationship with his family, and is made president of the company and privately thanks Kris for saving his life. However, as he settles into Charlene's office, he glances at an open box containing some of her stuff that is still being cleared out, and spots four exact photos of Kris's husband and child together, each in exactly the same frame that she uses. After Charlene's secretary explains that they were a cheap gift from her to Charlene, and that the photos just came with the frames, Peter suddenly realizes what Charlene meant by her last words.
Peter theorizes that Charlene did indeed look into his earlier claims about Kris' lies and discovered that she had not only lied about her educational background, but also about having been married, having no doubt seen the photo she used. Knowing she would be fired, Kris orchestrated the incident at the bakery with the intent to kill Charlene, and possibly Peter as well.
Peter confronts Kris with this revelation, but she yet again denies everything and states that the photo is a means for single office women like her to discourage male co-workers from hitting on them. (Note: throughout the entire film, whenever Kris is caught in a lie about her past or work, she makes up a whole new lie on the spur of the moment to replace or patch up the old lie). Peter, however, refuses to believe her anymore. He is now aware that Kris is a master manipulator and sociopath, but also aware that he will never be able to prove that Kris was responsible for all the deaths and incidents at the company nor will she ever admit to any wrongdoing. Peter decides to remove Kris the old fashioned way: he fires Kris and orders her detained until the police can escort her out.

Tags: murder

Review:
(Con Air is another example for me.) The performances are more than adequate for this type of movie, so it is easy to watch.
Basic premise, Peter Derns (Timothy Hutton) gets a temp, Kris Bolin (Lara Flynn Boyle) that is smart, sexy and ambitious.
When things start to go wrong as Kris works her way up the ladder, everyone thinks he's just paranoid.
But even though this movie is predictable, it doesn't stop me from watching it whenever it's on.
THE TEMP is one of those glossy 90s office thrillers that you can watch with one eye closed, walk away from it for a few minutes, come back to it and not miss a thing.
Lara Flynn Boyle, the main reason for watching this, plays a nutjob temp who fills in for corporate exec Tim Hutton's regular secretary.
Pretty soon, his in-office competitors and acquaintances are dropping like flies, and the very existence of the company is threatened -- all thanks to the evil machinations of the delectable and obsessed Ms. Boyle, who is lots of fun to watch as she slithers about and whispers dire warnings in her boss' ear.
Hutton perhaps plays his part a little too straight, but old-timer Faye Dunaway as the beleaguered company head tears up the scenery in every one of her too-few scenes.
Try watching Boyle and not think of her in WAYNE'S WORLD, by the way.
A standardized psychological thriller, in the "The Hand That Rocks The Cradle" mold; we have yet another female character that seduces the men with her attractiveness and at first appears to be incredibly genial and helpful, but gradually turns into a possessive, obsessive person, ready to try anything to achieve her goals.
Lara Flynn Boyle is not quite up to the level we'd like her to be, but Timothy Hutton is an effortlessly likable actor, easy to identify with.
I'm relieved to see I'm not the only one who finds pleasure in this cunning little trifle from "Fright Night" director Tom Holland.Yes, it's a blank-from-hell picture and yes also, the blank in question happens to be a secretary/admin assistant (amazing how much mileage this particular career gets in this role), but "The Temp" jazzs up the stakes by making the stalkee --- in this case ad man Peter Derns (Timothy Hutton) --- a paranoid head case with anger management problems.Lara Flynn Boyle of Twin Peaks fame plays the stalker with a mix of innocence and deliberateness that suggests a truly unhinged personality waiting to detonate.
Watching her manipulate and provoke Hutton's character provides for some sick thrills --- it's like tormenting a wounded insect only the insect probably has more going on upstairs.The plot is cheesy, for sure, but the script always keeps you watching.
The dialogue is smooth for the most part and even when it borders on camp, it's not so over the line that it breaks the spell (until near the end when some of the action gets a bit superhero-ish).Despite being a fun ride, "The Temp" suffers from one of the lamest closing lines ever (tied with "Get a Life" from "Sliver") but even that will give you a little chuckle.
I too turned this film on not expecting much...in fact as something to fall asleep to...BUTits not as bad as you might thinkTim Hutton plays paranoid pretty much the same as he did in 'Dark Half' and Lara Flynne Boyle does a fine job as the obvious 'crazy' whilst managing to hold up one of the most ridiculous hairstyles in years...and the movie still works as long as you think of it as a sub-Fatal Attraction thriller and not expect some novel work of cinemaGive it a go....
Good performances by the leading characters, especially Laura Flynn Boyle and Faye Dunaway.
She kind of channeled her character from the movie Network, but it didn't work here as well.
That's the case with most of his movies.Lara Flynn Boyle was great.
Therefore, there was no eye-candy in this one for me, although I understand that Boyle was, for most men.Portland, and Oregon in general looked great.
That was just thrown in for scenery, because the coast is way west of the road to Salem.The main character's personal problem from the past is key to the plot.
A simple, cheap plot device, but I'll allow it.I thoroughly enjoyed the physical atmosphere, the buddy aspect, the believable wife, Hutton's persona, and the devilish Boyle.
It stars Lara Flynn Boyle (The Practice) as a quirky, femme fatale who causes problems for the people around her.
It never really went into Boyle's character's personality, about WHY she was so strange!
The plot is routine thriller material without surprises and the movie still attempts to cash in on the success formula of "Fatal Attraction", which was made half a decade earlier.
She  the gorgeous Lara Flynn Boyle  immediately proves herself useful and she even gives good input for the company's newest project.
"The Temp" is one of those countless early 90's thrillers that introduce femme fatales as dangerous psychopaths (other examples being "Single White Female", "The Crush" and "The Secretary") but this premise actually is pretty weak and overly predictable.
It's my all-time favorite "guilty pleasure" movie, but unlike this one, is truly so bad, so over-the-top and loony it's moved on the dial past "0" and to "10" in its awfulness.This picture, for me (as with others who've commented here) also falls into the "guilty pleasure" classification.Nothing new for Fay Dunaway; she is attractive, but gnaws the scenery like a horde of beavers.And this entire crew in the featured business enterprise, including Hutton and Boyle with their supporting players, would have trouble running a Junior Achievement project, say, where the kids were selling glove compartment emergency kits, or carriers for your television directory and remote control - much less engaging in big-time corporate strategies.
Throughout the film, this thought held almost as much fascination for me as the plot and performances.Another fringe benefit of a presentation like this one is that if you're interrupted, or have to leave for a brief chore or errand, there is no problem picking it up when you return.The attractiveness of the cast, and the quality of their talents and resumés, is a few notches above those normally found in this type of t.v. film -- so this is another plus, which makes it perhaps 7*, instead of the 3 to 5 it would otherwise merit..
Very suspenseful film stars the Lara Flynn Boyle as a temp who is climbing the corporate ladder faster than her boss (Timothy Hutton) and makes his life a living hell the entire way by sabotaging his work and murdering various executives.
Boyle turns in a delightfully wicked performance that rises beyond, and Hutton's performance as Peter Derns is exceptionally true to what any man would do.
Lara plays a convincing deadly Diva, along the same lines as some of the greats like Kathy Bates in "Misery", Glenn Close in "Fatal Attraction", and Sharon Stone in "Basic Instinct." Rarely do you see this many twist and turns in what looks to be a straightforward plot...Actually I really like this movie!
Stunning and popular star Lara Flynn Boyle overtly titillating us and wearing skimpy outfits even including a bikini, Timothy Hutton, habitual scene stealer Oliver Platt during younger and thinner days, superstar Faye Dunaway, and Steven Webber from the TV show "Wings." How's that for voltage?
Add in a proved plot-line with a long pedigree, some great whacky dialog, and top it off with the inspired idea of a corporate thriller set in a cookie company with the climax in an industrial kitchen, and yeah...
What I didn`t know was that there was a personal assistant from hell film called THE TEMP untill I saw it on TV the other night .I`ve got to admit I`ve got a soft spot for these type of movies even though they`re all the same .
As you`d expect THE TEMP plays out like the rest of them with an everyman character finding his life falling apart with the climax involving a physical life or death struggle .
Timothy Hutton plays the everyman character fairly well in this , and the final scene isn`t as how you`d expect it .
Without doubt the best scene involves some public samples of biscuits .If you like these type of movies you`ll like THE TEMP .
A divorced executive(Timothy Hutton) comes back to work after suffering from paranoia.
His boss(Faye Dunaway) brings him back with a surprise: The cookie company is being bought by a major brand.
Then suddenly, he would get a temp(Lara Flynn Boyle) to help him out.
The cast of the movie is great.
I find this movie very interesting and very entertaining.
The movie begins with Peter Derns (Timothy Hutton) talking with someone but we never see who.
He does have problems with paranoia during the show.I was hoping to see some of the love and romance from Lara Flynn Boyle that she is capable of but her character Kris Bolin does not show that.
Kris Bolin however is not evil and calculating; only a guilty person would be.The movie is a mystery.
I really think that if you knew at the beginning how it will end then there are times you would think it is ridiculous that the person would do what they do.I like that Peter Derns treats Kris Bolin as an equal as much as he does..
He wants to get back together with his wife (they are separated and I think that is implied at the beginning of the movie) and behaves accordingly.
I like Maura Tierney as the understanding and tolerant wife but the wife is not in the movie a lot..
Peter Derns an executive at Mrs. Appleby's cookie company wants to move up the chain, but his finding it hard and his marketing just isn't working.
Is it all in his head, all is Kris really behind all of this.Director Tom Holland has such films behind him like "Fright Night", "Child's Play" and "Thinner", but this sedate (and tame) psycho-thriller really does pale in comparison to those fun flicks.
Because of Holland's panache and a terrific cast (Faye Dunaway is great!), it stays effectively watchable.
Timothy Hutton is perfectly cast, and the excellent Lara Flynn Boyle is rapturously sexy and cunning to the bone.
Oliver Platt appears, but seems wasted in an insignificant part as a slimy executive.Lukewarm thriller that never finds its way out of its artificial mould and ends rather abruptly..
It's one of those movies that when you're home for the holidays and watch at your parents house, it's not even worth it.
It was filmed in my home town and that was the only good thing about the movie.
Delightfully nasty film about a temporary office assistant (Lara Flynn Boyle) who makes life for her new boss (Timothy Hutton) a living hell through her perfect organizational skills, a cold icey manner, and the fact that she is raising up the cooperate latter faster then him.
Lara Flynn Boyle's trim body and slick cool look make her a perfect choice for her role.
I really enjoyed this movie and the possible plot twists, but they don't really happen.
Gosh...I thought I was the only person that liked this movie.
**** REVIEW INCLUDES "GREAT DIALOG" SPOILERS **** Wow was I surprised to see all the positive reviews of this movie here.
Well get this chemical makeup: Stunning and popular star Lara Flynn Boyle overtly titillating us and wearing skimpy outfits even including a bikini(!), Timothy Hutton, habitual scene stealer Oliver Platt during younger and thinner days, superstar Faye Dunaway, and Steven Webber from the TV show "Wings." How's that for voltage?
Add in a proved plot line with a long pedigree (Hand that rocks the cradle, Single White Female, many more), some great whacky dialog, and top it off with the inspired idea of a corporate thriller set in a cookie company with the climax in an industrial kitchen, and yeah...I'll bank that.
Actually I really like this movie, even just watching it straight.
The only problem I have is Faye Dunaway's really bad, hammy, mugging acting, and toward the end Boyle picks up some of the same style, but other than that I like it.
However, if you make me analyze it, OK, it's riddled with plot holes, dropped threads, unanswered questions, implausibilities, etc, but that really doesn't matter if the movie succeeds in entertaining me.
So with that in mind, you could look at it as one of the "so bad it's good" genre, and it does succeed on that level.
This movie features that, but in four directions: Hutton and his boss, Hutton and his buddy (Webber), Hutton and his rival (Platt), Hutton and Boyle.
Finally, it's no surprise that Hutton and Platt both turn in performances that are well worth watching.
I would have liked to give this movie a 10, because it's really one of my favorites, but I couldn't do that in good conscience, so I had to go easy on the superlative..
If a movie could win an award by being weird and by the numbers simultaneously The Temp would win hands down..
SPOILERS THROUGHOUT: The Temp is a by the numbers "stalker genre" Movie similar to movies like Single White female, Fatal Attraction and Swim Fan-which I had the privilege of seeing not that long ago.
Actually it's, while not unwatchable, pretty unoriginal in the way the story goes but I doubt when they made this, originality was the main thing they were aiming for.The two things I noticed with this movie were: first, the movie (for the beginning and middle) plays like any other stalker movie and actually becomes almost dull at times.
The second thing I noticed is that "twists" are introduced which in this movie's case, is not a good thing, because most of them don't make any sense and the movie plays in such a way that by the end one is more baffled then intrigued.The movie also had an opportunity after one of the twists to go in a rather interesting direction but it doesn't happen.
The whole scene at the end with the chases in the factory was just to much and I'm not sure if the final twist in the last few minutes was supposed to be clever but all it made me do was think: CMON!
By the end of the movie The Temp has become to jumbled and over the top to be interesting.
Laura Flynn Boyle's character is so dedicated to her boss that when he jokingly suggests that a fellow coworker with whom he is in competition with for a promotion be killed - she actually does it.
It held my interest and yes the ending was rather lame but I enjoyed it up until that point.Timothy Hutton is always good in a role.
Laura Flynn Boyle held my interest.
Stop with the fillers and cigarettes for food!) It's horrible to see once beautiful actresses go downhill so badly.I don't really know if Faye Dunaway did a good job or not because rather than focusing on her acting skills all I could see were her terrible teeth.
I love watching him onscreen.As far as my serious critique of this film - the one thing I will say for it is...it did do a good job showing the psychological aspects of the affects of someone who is a pathological liar.
To complicate matters with the situation Timothy Hutton's character is just coming off of therapy in regards to paranoia.
I don't know how many people are out there IRL going to the extremes that Laura Flynn Boyle's character did; but IRL even on a much smaller scale (and not like the extremes in this film) pathological liars seemingly skate through on everything and are never held accountable for anything because they lie and twist things just enough so they are still believable.
If questioned they can always find a way to put things back on the other person so that they think they are the ones that are wrong or who might be losing their mind.
At the end of the movie Timothy Hutton's character says "you've always got an answer".
While viewing this I even found myself wondering at certain points along the way if she had actually done those things.
If they hadn't had the one smoking gun with the phone call he got in the hotel you still might be able to walk away from this film thinking it was up for interpretation - whether she was truly guilty or not or if it was just his paranoia.
I think the film is leading you to believe that she did do all those things; but the way they portrayed it - it's not like they went back and showed her specifically doing each of those things.
Did she do that so that Timothy Hutton would think it was somebody else so that she wouldn't look guilty and they would have a bonding moment?
But we're just kind of left hanging and having to figure out our own ending.At any rate I think it was ok.
If anything it's fun to go back and see these movies for the wardrobes alone..
This movie has all the trappings to be a sexy thriller in the vein of Basic Instinct, Fatal Attraction, Body of Evidence, but it misses on three counts....1.
Lara Flynn Boyle (who I adored in The Practice) does not have the chops to play a character that Sharon Stone, Glenn Close and Madonna cornered in their respective turns.
You are waiting for something more fun and climactic, but since Hutton's character was such a goody-goody, not much else is realistically possible.
Sat through this with the wife, overly long, dull, insane situations, add nonsensical ending and the cable TV rating of 1 (one) star is generous.
The Temp is right out of the Dummies Guide to Movie making, page 2.