I wont be ignored Dan!

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Seemingly happily married man, Dan Gallagher, gives in to the seductive charm of Alex Forrest and partakes in a night of wild sexual passion with her. Trouble is, is that Alex is a tad unhinged and a woman scorned can be the ultimate nightmare.

I have just revisited this monster smash hit from the 80s (highest grossing film of 1987), and it still packs the same punch as it did back in the late 80s when it not only became a big hit, it also became a cultural phenomenon and one of the most talked about films of the decade. I'm saddened by the relatively average rating here because its significance and bravery should always be highlighted instead of pointless allegations about it being only of its time. Just how many imitations did Fatal Attraction spawn I wonder? Fatal Attraction was a monster hit because it gave the audience something different, a monster flip flop of having the man stalked by an uncontrollable female loony. Much credit goes to screenwriter James Dearden for laying it on like a slowly tightening spring waiting to explode, for as the plot unfolds and Alex Forrest's Madame Butterfly fuelled revenge gathers apace, the audience starts to realise it has been doubly conflicted on the emotional character attachment front.

Dan has done the dirty on his beautiful wife and child, the bastard deserves what is coming to him for sure? Alex is right in that he's had his fun and now she can basically go and whistle at the moon, but the cheeky saver here from the makers is that Alex did the chasing knowing that Dan was happily married, she led the way fully armed with the facts. This makes for a wonderfully constructed thriller that ups the suspense quota to positively seal the deal with a heart stopping finale. I'm mightily relieved that American test audiences gave the thumbs down to the rather downbeat original ending that saw Alex committing suicide and thus framing Dan for her murder, the ending that stands may lose impact on repeat viewings, but boy it has still got a kick to it.

Glenn Close is fantastic as Alex, playing against type she manages to convince as a disturbed individual, a perfect blend of sadness and soul destroying stupidness. Michael Douglas is also giving a performance of depth, firmly in the shadow of Glen Close's film stealing show, he none the less plays it perfectly and is believable in all aspects of the character, and I'm sure the ladies watching were pleased to see no sign of the saggy bottom that scared them in Basic Instinct five years later! This film coupled with Wall Street in the same year would propel Douglas to major A list status, and he rightly deserved it in my opinion. Anne Archer is Beth Gallagher, the hurt wife of the piece, she looks stunning and sexy, but thoughts of her looks are quickly erased with a special two layered performance of note. Containing a great script and directed astutely by Adrian Lyne, Fatal Attraction remains one of the best thrillers of the 80s, it was talked about profusely back then, and here and now it should not be forgotten. 9/10

I don't know if its just a matter of age, but this film did not work for me. The central pairing between Michael Douglas and Glenn Close was almost a complete deal breaker. I understand style and beauty standards change from decade to decade, but I was not seeing any attraction, fatal or otherwise. And that's not to say the performances were bad. I actually think they both did solid work. Maybe too solid in the case of Glenn Close, as her character struck me as the type to avoid almost immediately. Job well done I suppose. As far as the story goes, there wasn't much to it. It's a simple premise, and once the train is on the tracks it doesn't really offer many surprises. I spent much of the movie speculating on the next big sequence and was correct more often than not. The ending also suffers from a couple problems. I felt it borrowed a bit too much from the slasher/horror genre (especially with the cliché [spoiler]not-dead-yet Glenn Close jumping out of the bath tub for a final scare. I also think it would have benefitted from a less tidy/happy ending[/spoiler]. As an aside, my girlfriend and I had been specifically looking to watch an _erotic_ thriller and were quite disappointed in this film's offerings in that regard. However, we did get a good laugh out of the strange sex scene where the sink accidentally starts running and Michael and Glenn frantically start splashing water onto each other. Not sure we'll be incorporating that move, but definitely something to think about. As one final note, there are a couple scenes featuring casual racist stereotypes that are enough to make any modern audience grimace. They aren't a major part of the film, and are downright tame compared to something like Mickey Rooney's character in Breakfast at Tiffany's, but it's always interesting to see how things have changed over the last 30+ years.