Which films use seduction as power play?

Lust, Caution (2007), The Beguiled (2017).

What kind of technique is seduction as power play?

It is a narrative technique. Related narrative techniques include Non-Linear Narrative, Symbolic Object, Female Agency as Structural Default.

Narrative technique · used in 2 films

Staging intimacy and temptation as a contest for control, so each embrace or offer shifts who holds power over whom.

Examples

Lust, Caution
Ang Lee · 2007
Lee uses the encounters between Wong and Mr. Yee to chart who holds control. The first is violent, the next is more consensual and affectionate, and in the later ones Wong takes charge of her own desires. By the end, the power has shifted in ways neither planned.
Where to see it: Wong and Yee's first night: Their first sexual encounter is violent and cruel. Over the next few weeks the relationship becomes more consensual and affectionate.
The Beguiled
Sofia Coppola · 2017
McBurney flatters each woman to stay protected, and each one wants his attention. Every charm shifts who holds power in the house. Farnsworth sees through it and plays her own game.
Where to see it: The preparations. The women and girls give him presents and prepare a lavish dinner for him.

Questions

What is seduction as power play in film?: Staging intimacy and temptation as a contest for control, so each embrace or offer shifts who holds power over whom.
Which films use seduction as power play?: Lust, Caution (2007), The Beguiled (2017).
What kind of technique is seduction as power play?: It is a narrative technique. Related narrative techniques include Non-Linear Narrative, Symbolic Object, Female Agency as Structural Default.

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