History Film / ToDieFor

* DeathByAdaption: [[spoiler: Suzanne is assassinated by a Mafia hit man and buried in ice as revenge for her husband, Jimmy's, death. In reality, Pamela Smart, who the movie is based on, got caught and convicted for murdering her husband, Greg Smart, and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.]]

* NiceGuy: Larry is a very nice guy.

* PoliceAreUseless: Subverted. The criminals are completely incompetent and the police catch on to them immediately. The police can also see through Suzanne's StepfordSmiler Act. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, the most solid proof that Suzanne is the mastermind of the crime is ruled inadmissible in court, so they cannot convict her.]]

** Jimmy can be seen as one by audience members. [[spoiler: It helps that, unlike Suzanne, Jimmy shows that he's conflicted up until the moment he commits the murder and appears remorseful about it.]]

* PoliceAreUseless: Subverted. The criminals are completely incompetent and the police catch on to them immediately. The police can also see through Suzanne's StepfordSmiler Act. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, the most solid proof that Suzanne is the mastermind of the crime is ruled inadmissible in court, so they cannot convict her.]]

* PoliceAreUseless: Subverted. The criminals are completely incompetent and the police catch on to them immediately. They can also see through Suzanne's StepfordSmiler Act. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, the most solid proof that Suzanne is the mastermind of the crime is ruled inadmissible in court, so they cannot convict her.]]

* PoliceAreUseless: Subverted. The criminals are completely incompetent and the police catch on to them immediately.

* HotScoop: Suzanne is indeed a sexy TV news reporter.

* DumbBlonde: Played with. While Suzanne [[BookDumb clearly lacks book smarts]] and general self-awareness, she is fairly gifted at manipulation and intimidation (or at least, picking the right people to manipulate and intimidate).

* TheMafia Played with: Suzanne's father's fears that her Italian-American husband comes from a Mafia family are intended to come across as ridiculous and borderline racist. [[spoiler: Turns out they ''are'' a Mafia family but they only react when ''Suzanne'' has a man killed, and then the only person they hurt is Suzanne herself in revenge.]])

* TheVamp: Played with; Suzanne has the ruthlessness and the looks but lacks the brains to pull it off properly -- her 'seduction' and 'manipulation' are hilariously ham-fisted and obvious. Luckily her targets are even dumber than she is.

* CastingGag[=/=]HypotheticalCasting: In the novel, Suzanne Stone Marietta states she would like to see "that actress that just got married to Creator/TomCruise in real life" play her in a movie about this. Well...

* BrainlessBeauty: Suzanne is gorgeous (and willing to use her looks to manipulate others) but at the very least extremely BookDumb if not outright stupid.

* DumbBlonde: Played with. While Suzanne clearly lacks book smarts and general self-awareness, she is fairly gifted at manipulation and intimidation (or at least, picking the right people to manipulate and intimidate).

* CastingGag[=/=]HypotheticalCasting: In the novel, Suzanne Stone Marietta states she would like to see "that actress that just got married to TomCruise in real life" play her in a movie about this. Well...

[[quoteright:304:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/to_die_for.jpg]]

''To Die For'' is a 1995 BlackComedy directed by Gus Van Sant. The film is an incredibly dark satire on celebrity obsession. Creator/NicoleKidman plays Suzanne Stone Maretto, a beautiful and ruthlessly ambitious (if not particularly talented or overly bright) young woman desperate to become a world famous news anchor, even if she has to commit murder along the way.

* CastingGag[=/=]HypotheticalCasting: In the novel, Suzanne Stone Maretto states onshe would like to see "that actress that just got married to TomCruise in real life" play her in a movie about this. Well...

* DumbBlonde: As noted under BrainlessBeauty the blonde Suzanne is a bit of an airhead.

* BlondesAreEvil: Suzanne, though she doesn't realize so much about her evil ways...

* HomoeroticSubtext: Lydia seems to be just as entranced by Suzanne as Jimmy and Russel. Suzanne, despite her general stupidity, actually does pick up on this, and mentions Lydia's "lesbian tendencies" when trying to bully the girl.

* TheMafia (Played with: Suzanne's father's fears that her Italian-American husband comes from a Mafia family are intended to come across as ridiculous and borderline racist. [[spoiler: Turns out they ''are'' a Mafia family but they only react when ''Suzanne'' has a man killed, and then the only person they hurt is Suzanne herself in revenge.]])

* CastingGag \ HypotheticalCasting: In the novel, Suzanne Stone Maretto states onshe would like to see "that actress that just got married to TomCruise in real life" play her in a movie about this. Well...

* TheMafia (Played with: Suzanne's father's fears that her Italian-American husband comes from a Mafia family are intended to come across as ridiculous and borderline racist. [[spoiler: turns out they ''are'' a Mafia family but they only react when ''Suzanne'' has a man killed, and then the only person they hurt is Suzanne herself in revenge.]])

* PlayingAgainstType: Creator/NicoleKidman as a sociopathic airhead.

%%
%%
%%
%% ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.
%%
%%
%%

Though not a box office success the film was praised by critics and has become a minor CultClassic. It earned $21,284,514 in the United States market, the 77th most successful film of its year. Kidman earned her first Golden Globe for her role and many fans still rank it with some of her best work (and certainly her best comedy).

* RetroactiveRecognition: Joaquin Phoenix and Casey Affleck in his first big role.

* BlondesAreEvil: Suzanne is both blonde and evil.

* TheDitz (Most characters actually. Suzanne would be TheDitz in any other movie but next to Larry and Jimmy...)

* Fainting: Janice faints.

* ItsAllAboutMe: Psychologists agree that Suzanne is eligible for a diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder.
%%* AmbiguouslyGay: Lydia and Janice
%%* AmbitionIsEvil

%%* BlondesAreEvil

%%* DeadpanSnarker: Janice.

%%* Fainting: Janice.

%%* HotScoop
%%* IceQueen: [[spoiler: Literally, at the end.]]

%%* [[KentBrockmanNews Kent Brockman Weather]]

%%* NiceGuy: Larry

%%* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain

%%* SmallNameBigEgo
%%* StepfordSmiler

%%* WoundedGazelleGambit
%%* YouthIsWastedOnTheDumb: Jimmy, Russell and Lydia.

* FakeEthnicity: Irish-American Matt Dillon as an Italian-American.

%%* BlackComedy

%%* BrainlessBeauty

%%* DumbBlonde

** It's the same ethnicity. European / Caucasian.

%%* VillainProtagonist

-->"You're not anybody in America unless you're on TV. On TV is where we learn about who we really are. Because what's the point of doing anything worthwhile if nobody's watching? And if people are watching, it makes you a better person."
-->--'''Suzanne Stone Maretto'''

'''''To Die For''''' is a 1995 BlackComedy directed by Gus Van Sant. The film is an incredibly dark satire on celebrity obsession. NicoleKidman plays Suzanne Stone Maretto, a beautiful and ruthlessly ambitious (if not particularly talented or overly bright) young woman desperate to become a world famous news anchor, even if she has to commit murder along the way.

* AmbiguouslyGay: Lydia and Janice
* AmbitionIsEvil
* BlackComedy
* BlondesAreEvil

* BrainlessBeauty

* DeadpanSnarker: Janice.
* DumbBlonde
* Fainting: Janice.

* FauxlosophicNarration (Suzanne - played for laughs)
* HotScoop
* IceQueen: [[spoiler: Literally, at the end.]]
* KarmaHoudini ([[spoiler: Seemingly played straight, then subverted. The cops gain evidence on Suzanne via Lydia wearing a wire but her lawyer gets it declared inadmissible in court because it was acquired through entrapment. ''Then'' the acquitted Suzanne goes too far painting Larry as a drug addict which causes his father-in-law to order a hit on her.]]
* [[KentBrockmanNews Kent Brockman Weather]]

* NiceGuy: Larry
* PlayingAgainstType: NicoleKidman as a sociopathic airhead.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain
* RetroactiveRecognition: Joaquin Pheonix and Casey Affleck in his first big role.
* StepfordSmiler

* SympatheticMurderer (Suzanne is convinced she's one. The reality is otherwise.)
* TedBaxter

* TheVamp (Played with; Suzanne has the ruthlessness and the looks but lacks the brains to pull it off properly -- her 'seduction' and 'manipulation' are hilariously ham-fisted and obvious. Luckily her targets are even dumber than she is.)
* TheVamp

* VillainProtagonist
* WoundedGazelleGambit
* YouthIsWastedOnTheDumb: Jimmy, Russell and Lydia.
----