* 1956, Billings, MT

Education:     University of Montana (music, art); Montana State University (film); American Film

Institute, Los Angeles, CA

Assured director of modern films noir who has injected new life into the genre with a series of tough,

economical, and atmospheric tales. Dahl tells unsentimental stories of hopelessly stupid men who take

the fall for beautiful dames. Whereas most movies of this ilk are set against the backdrop of urban LA or NYC,

this Montana native finds the darkness in the heart of middle America, in claustrophobic towns surrounded

by great open spaces. In an era of imitations, both cheap and lavish, he offers the real deal.

Dahl entered the industry as a storyboard artist on "A" films (SOMETHING WILD, 1986; MARRIED TO THE MOB, 1988)

and an assistant director on "B" genre fare (THE DUNGEONMASTER, 1985).

He made his first feature as a student at Montana State University—THE DEATH MUTANTS (1980), a horror sci-fi send-up.

Dahl moved to LA where he attended the American Film Institute as a directing fellow. After making some

well-received shorts, including THE UGLIEST FAMILY IN THE WORLD, he shifted to music videos filming such artists

as Kool and the Gang and Joe Satriani.

Dahl found his voice as a director with the moody KILL ME AGAIN (1989), featuring Joanne Whalley-Kilmer as a femme

fatale who tours the West double-crossing the mob and luring unsuspecting men into her web. Largely ignored by the public,

the film raised eyebrows among industry insiders.

follow-up, RED ROCK WEST (1993), told a familiar hard-boiled story: seduction, double-crosses, and murder ensue when

a stranger pulls into town and gets confused for a hit man hired to kill the slyly adulterous wife of the local sheriff.

The film garnered at least as much attention for the way it reached the big screen as for its considerable merits.

Originally acquired for TV distribution by HBO, the film received such raves on the festival circuit that it was picked

up for theatrical release on a platform basis.

Staying with the familiar, Dahl's next effort, THE LAST SEDUCTION (1994), once again found its way to the silver

screen via the back roads of TV. This time out, Linda Fiorentino starred as a cold-hearted woman who steals drug

money from her weasel of a husband (Bill Pullman) and lures a bumpkin from the country into a world of treachery and murder.

The film received numerous accolades with many critics hailing Dahl as a filmmaker to watch.

Filmography John Dahl

1980   THE DEATH MUTANTS         director, screenplay

1985   THE DUNGEONMASTER        assistant director

1986   SOMETHING WILD              director

1987   PRIVATE INVESTIGATIONS   2nd unit director, screenplay

1988   MARRIED TO THE MOB        director

1989   KILL ME AGAIN                  screenplay

1993   RED ROCK WEST                director, screenwriter

1994   THE LAST SEDUCTION        director

1996   UNFORGETTABLE               director

1999   ROUNDERS                        director