Fatal Attraction (1987) Paramount/Suspense-Thriller RT: 119 minutes Rated R (strong sexual content, nudity, language, violence, stalking, thematic material) Director: Adrian Lyne Screenplay: James Dearden Music: Maurice Jarre Cinematography: Howard Atherton Release date: September 18, 1987 (US) Cast: Michael Douglas, Glenn Close, Anne Archer, Ellen Hamilton Latzen, Stuart Pankin, Ellen Foley, Fred Gwynne, Meg Mundy, Tom Brennan, Lois Smith, Mike Nussbaum, J.J. Johnston, Mike Arkin, Sam J. Coppola. Box Office: $156.6M (US)/$320.1M (World)
Rating: *** ½
Hello, pop culture historians. Today, let’s talk about Fatal Attraction, a stylish suspense-thriller that struck the collective nerve of the moviegoing public living in the AIDS era. I have vivid memories of seeing it with my father about a week into its run. The Saturday afternoon showing at the now-closed Granite Run Theater was packed. Everybody wanted to see it. Two hours later, I understood why. It’s INTENSE! It’s a rollercoaster ride of suspense and terror. The final shock caused the entire theater to practically jump out of their seats. I’ll never forget the audience reaction to Fatal Attraction, especially the woman that remarked (quite audibly, I might add) “I’ll never f*** again!” as the closing credits began to roll. It provoked loud laughter from everybody in attendance, even my dad. It was the catharsis we all needed after a tense two hours.
Directed by Adrian Lyne (9 ½ Weeks), Fatal Attraction went on to become one of the top grossers of the year and the recipient of six Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best Actress (Glenn Close), Best Supporting Actress (Anne Archer) and Best Director. It was also the most talked-about movie of the year. I recall overhearing a discussion among a few girls sitting at the adjacent table in the cafeteria at the community college I was attending at the time. They were talking about it from a feminist POV. They wanted to know why it had to depict a strong career woman as a total psychopath. They debated whether it was a female empowerment movie or a slap in the face of feminism. I wanted to jump in and say it’s simply an exceptionally well-done thriller intended to entertain. Good judgment prevailed instead; I decided to stay silent out of a sense of self-preservation. It’s a sign of an effective movie when it provokes such lively discussions.
Michael Douglas (Wall Street) stars as Dan Gallagher, a successful attorney living in New York with his wife Beth (Archer, Narrow Margin) and daughter Ellen (Latzen, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation). His marriage appears to be on solid ground which makes one question why he does what he does when his family goes out of town for the weekend. He has a brief but passionate affair with Alex Forrest (Close, The Big Chill), an editor at a publishing house his firm represents. It’s a liaison that turns out to be very dangerous. He wants to get on with his happy life; she refuses to accept that it’s over. Alex starts stalking Dan, showing up at his office unannounced and calling him all hours of the night. She becomes more and more unhinged, eventually becoming violent and a threat to his family.
Fatal Attraction stands as proof of how an ending can make or break a picture. If you’ve never seen it, I advise you to skip ahead to the next paragraph as I might drop a spoiler or two. Otherwise, proceed at your own risk. Originally, it had a different ending, a downer that would explain the references to Madame Butterfly throughout the movie. It didn’t go over with test audiences. Per the suggestion of the publicity rep handling the screenings, Lyne shot a new ending that was more of a crowd-pleaser. It turned out to be the right move. Audiences went wild for it (despite it rendering the whole Madame Butterfly motif arbitrary) and the rest is cinematic history. The insane amount of money ($367.7M when adjusted for inflation) made by Fatal Attraction is even more impressive when you consider its R rating and the comparatively lower ticket prices.
As solid a thriller as Fatal Attraction is, it doesn’t have the same impact as it did in ’87. A lot of it has to do with the countless imitators that followed in its wake. The 2009 thriller Obsessed is almost a complete remake albeit one with a PG-13 rating. In 2021, it doesn’t seem that bold anymore. It’s essentially a B-level thriller with A-list production values. It’s slick, stylish and sexy, all of which are typical of Lyne whose credits also include Flashdance, Indecent Proposal and Unfaithful. In collaboration with cinematographer Howard Atherton (Indecent Proposal), Fatal Attraction has a polished look that matches the intensity of the subject matter. Alex lives in a loft apartment in the meat-packing district, the ideal surroundings for a maneater. In one scene, Alex and Dan move quickly through the smoky, bustling loading zones to her place for a sexual encounter in the elevator. It’s one of the most memorable images. Speaking of sex, Fatal Attraction gets hot and heavy with scenes like the kitchen sink encounter with water gushing from the faucet and as the adulterous couple goes at it. It’s shocking in its sheer intensity.
Lyne effectively builds to a powerful crescendo with Alex descending into complete psychosis. At one point, she kidnaps the daughter and takes her to an amusement park while Beth searches frantically for her. The juxtaposition of the two scenarios, the fine work of editors Peter E. Berger and Michael Kahn, intensifies the urgency of the situation.
The three leads are exceptional, especially Close who adds a small measure of camp to her brilliant, operatic performance. Alex is a woman with serious issues- e.g. borderline personality disorder, erotomania and ultimately, psychosis. As she becomes increasingly dangerous, her appearance changes gradually to the point where she reminds one of Medusa, the mythical being whose looks turned men to stone. Her well-coiffed hair comes to resemble the snakes the she-creature had on top of her head. Am I the only one who notices this? Douglas, one of my favorite actors, makes Dan both despicable and sympathetic as he pays dearly for his illicit dalliance. You hate that he’s so coy and arrogant about it, yet feel bad for the guy as his shrewish ex-mistress tries to ruin his life out of revenge. As I said to my wife, the guy’s an a**hole, but he doesn’t deserve all this. I felt the most sympathy for Beth, the only decent character in the bunch. She’s the real victim here, not Dan. Her reaction when she learns of her husband’s infidelity, a combustible combination of anger and hurt, feels completely real. It resonates with the viewer. At the same time, she refuses to play the part of victim. Her fierce protective instincts come out when she realizes what Alex is doing to her family.
Some see Fatal Attraction as an allegory for AIDS with Close as the personification of the deadly disease punishing Dan for his sexual promiscuity, its central message being there’s no such thing as safe sex. That’s one way to look at it. If nothing else, it gave couples something to ponder for a while. For all I know, it may have even saved a few marriages by discouraging potential cheaters from going through with it. My take on Fatal Attraction is this; it’s a good movie that effectively tapped into the zeitgeist while providing audiences with a terrifying thrill ride. It may not be as powerful as it once was, but it’s every bit as relevant. Married guys and gals, keep your damn pants on!
