Film

Mata Hari

Other titles called Mata Hari: the 1931 film.

A 1985 espionage thriller centered on history's most infamous spy, where Sylvia Kristel navigates the shadowy world of WWI intelligence as Mata Hari—caught between empires, lovers, and her own survival. It's a pulpy, sensual take on the legendary femme fatale, blending romance with intrigue. For anyone who loves glamorous period spies and morally flexible characters.

TMDb rating2.1

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Atomic Blonde2017

Charlize Theron as a MI6 agent in Cold War Berlin, with the same blend of seduction, espionage, and action. Sharp, stylish, and genuinely thrilling—the template this film reaches for.

But The action can overshadow the character work, and some plot turns feel more convenient than earned.

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Red Sparrow2018

Jennifer Lawrence as a Russian intelligence officer weaponized by her own state. Explores the same intersection of body, power, and agency that defines Mata Hari's predicament.

But Nearly two-and-a-half hours and occasionally sluggish; the moral complications can feel muddled.

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The Spy Who Loved Me1977

Roger Moore's Bond at his most charming, mixing glamorous locations, high-stakes espionage, and a romantic tension that never quite settles into certainty. Pure entertainment.

But If you're looking for grittiness or realism, this is glossy escapism—which is the point, but not everyone's evening.

The Spy Who Loved Me poster

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Memento/Mori

Both use the dancing body as a primary text—a woman's literal physicality as the site where history, politics, and personal desire collide in ways she cannot fully control.

A visually audacious BBC drama about an elderly woman reflecting on her life as a dancer and lover in early twentieth-century Europe. Intimate, sensual, and utterly strange in its form.

But Experimental structure and very long; it's more prose-poem than plot, and many will find it precious rather than engaging.

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More like this (7)

Nikita1990

Luc Besson's original about a woman drafted into espionage. Visually stunning, violent, and genuinely seductive in a way that feels dangerous rather than safe.

But The pacing is deliberate and sometimes slow; it requires patience with style over plot momentum.

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Body of Lies2008

DiCaprio and Crowe in a modern espionage thriller with real moral weight. Explores the cost of deception and the blurred lines between agents and assets.

But Heavy and occasionally didactic; the romance subplot feels secondary to the intelligence game, which may disappoint if you're here for the personal stakes.

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Infamous2006

Toby Jones and Daniel Craig in a fictionalized account of Mata Hari's final days. More intimate and tragic than glamorous, it leans into the historical reality of her fate.

But Deliberately downbeat and claustrophobic; there's no real action and the tone is mournful rather than thrilling.

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A Perfect Spy1987

A BBC miniseries based on Le Carré, with Peter Guillam at its center. Methodical, intelligent espionage where doubt and moral compromise are the real enemies.

But Glacially paced by modern standards; if you need plot momentum or action beats, this will test your patience severely.

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Female Agents2008

A French WWII thriller about four women recruited as spies. Gritty, tragic, and genuinely perilous—shows the other side of the glamorous spy coin.

But Bleak and brutal; the film doesn't shy from depicting the cost of resistance, which can be unrelenting.

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Ava2020

Jessica Chastain as an assassin for hire navigating personal ghosts and professional betrayal. A stylish, violent character study in moral compromise.

But Derivative of better films and occasionally feels like it's coasting on visual style; the story doesn't quite justify its own ambition.

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OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies2006

It exposes the absurd artificiality of the seduction-and-espionage formula that *Mata Hari* plays straight—same genre mechanics, but with the mask removed and the comedy turned up to eleven.

A French comedy that deconstructs the spy-thriller genre itself, with a hapless agent navigating 1950s Cairo. Hilarious, formally precise parody that loves the films it skewers.

But The humor is very specifically rooted in European cinema knowledge; if you don't recognize what it's parodying, the jokes evaporate. Subtitles required.

OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies poster

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Fraulein Doktor