Fatal Attraction (1987) Dir: Adrian Lyne
- Ridley Coote
- May 30
- 2 min read
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Typically speaking, I very much dislike films about cheating. However, considering this Adrian Lyne directed romantic thriller is considered an 80's classic, I felt I should endeavour to watch it anyway. It was hard to judge how I'd feel about this one, but I decided to be more optimistic than not, due to the film's positive reputation.
Visually speaking, I thought that there were a couple of very memorable shots, this was particularly apparent during the bathrooms sequences. The film has some fairly cheesy and typically 80's cinematography, which was slightly amusing, in a softcore erotic film kind of way, although the more thriller-based scenes were solid and serious enough.
Thematically, and unsurprisingly, there were signs of the film's age. The story heavily vilified the woman for, let's be honest here, the married man's terrible behaviour. It also didn't give a kind impression of mental health either, which was a shame. That said, in the context of the time, these issues wouldn't have been on the minds of most audience members or writers. Still, there's no denying that it's a little dated.
The suspense of the film, however, was tremendous. This was particularly true in regards to the climax, which was very well done. The narrative may have shown its age in its execution, but I can't deny that it was engaging. By the time the closing moments of the film arrived, the tension was sky-high. For what it's worth, I did enjoy the way most of the story played out, except perhaps the very end, which felt a little unrealistic.
The leading performance of Michael Douglas was very solid. I thought he had good chemistry with everybody he shared a scene with, especially his two love interests. He certainly had plenty of charisma to him, which helped to fit his character's confident and somewhat arrogant traits. What I found impressive was that Douglas was able to make himself slightly sympathetic, despite his character's actions.
Glenn Close certainly knew how to behave in an unhinged and seemingly unpredictable way, despite how tropey and predictable her character actually was. I can only respect and commend Close for being as committed as she was to her crazy persona. Despite the shallowness of her character, there was no denying the quality of Close's acting.
Anne Archer did an immaculate job of being as endearing and sweet as humanly possible. Truthfully, she likely wouldn't have needed much help gaining my sympathies, because of the nature of her role, but, regardless, she did a truly excellent job of being a lovable supporting character. I will also very briefly mention the names of Ellen Hamilton, Stuart Pankin, and Ellen Foley, for their solid, but comparatively very brief appearances.
Overall, contrary to my expectations and trepidations, at least from a personal enjoyment perspective, I actually thought this was a pretty good romantic thriller, or, as I like to think of it; horror film for unfaithful men. Parts of it were genuinely very tense, especially towards the end. As far as romantic thrillers go, I can definitely see why this one was so successful, even if it isn't aging brilliantly, in some ways.
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