Skip to main content
Def by Temptation (1990)
Coming from the late-’80s Spike Lee cadre of artists, School Daze actor James Bond III directed just one film: Def by Temptation, a horror artifact returning to the big screen at the Clinton Street Theater.
Def by Temptation builds on urban, vampiric AIDS parables like The Hunger (1983) and Vampire’s Kiss (1988) but centers its story in Black life. In Brooklyn, a succubus known only as Temptress (Cynthia Bond) preys upon overeager barflies while setting her sights on a more innocent target: preacher-to-be Joel (Bond III), who’s visiting from North Carolina to reconnect with an old friend (Kadeem Hardison).
Samuel L. Jackson and Bill Nunn notably appear in Def by Temptation, but the best carryover asset from Lee’s circle is cinematographer Ernest Dickerson, who lends disorienting power to the seduction scenes, creating mystery with low angles and focusing his lens on the bodies of men who believe they can sexually “conquer” the Temptress’ demonic force.
Dickerson’s visual flair and Bond’s messy, take-no-prisoners morality merit a watch from anyone interested in the overlooked entries of Black horror film history. Clinton, Feb. 20.
ALSO PLAYING:
5th Avenue: Space Is the Place (1974) and The Last Angel of History (1996), Feb. 17-19. Academy: Moonlight (2016), Feb. 17-23. Cinema 21: Funny Face (1957), Feb. 18. Cinemagic: Toy Story (1995), Feb. 18. Alien (1979), Feb. 17, 18 and 20. Aliens (1986), Feb. 18-20. Predator (1987), Feb. 17, 19 and 21. Predator 2 (1990), Feb. 19 and 21. Clinton: Little Shop of Horrors (1986), Feb. 18. Malcolm X (1992), Feb. 18-19. Ganja & Hess (1973), Feb. 21. Hollywood: In & Out (1997), Feb. 16. Flash Gordon (1980), Feb. 19. Cléo From 5 to 7 (1962), Feb. 20. Shaolin vs. Wu Tang (1981), Feb. 21.