Fatal Attraction (1987)

Adrian Lyne's slick thriller is praised as a gripping, suspenseful hit driven by two riveting performances, with Glenn Close's unhinged portrayal singled out as spectacular. The reversal of the typical stalker dynamic leaves a nasty but unforgettable impression.

The critic notes it helped create the 'crazed female from hell' genre, praises Glenn Close's excellent performance and Adrian Lyne's skill at milking tension and slick power, while acknowledging the dubious message about affairs.

The critic calls Fatal Attraction a glossy but pulpy studio thriller that became a cultural phenomenon and Oscar nominee despite its trashy story of an affair gone wrong. They single out its effective dread, strong performances, and honest embrace of its sensationalism over deeper ambiguity.

The movie is an exciting New York thriller built on the idea that casual sex without bonds can lead to psychopathology, with tight direction and strong performances that keep viewers gripped for most of its runtime. The botched climax turns it toward slasher territory and undermines its potential complexity.

The film is a thoroughly conventional thriller elevated by director Adrian Lyne's slick, seductive style and visual imagery that makes every element tactile and rich. Michael Douglas and Glenn Close deliver strong performances in a manipulative soap opera of exceptional power.

The critic examines the video re-release featuring the original darker ending, in which the protagonist is framed for murder after the mistress's suicide, and contrasts it favorably with the theatrical happy ending. Hollywood's preference for feel-good resolutions is critiqued as undermining the story's moral ambiguity.

The critic finds the film notable mainly for Glenn Close’s resilient and complex performance as Alex, which gives physical form to inner torment. They single out Adrian Lyne’s visual style and use of layers and lighting for praise, while complaining that the screenplay is shallow and the reshot ending undermines the original intent.

The critic describes it as a glossy but clichéd Hitchcock-by-numbers thriller whose overheated visual style clashes with a tepid script, ultimately a predictable collection of thriller tropes that will appeal to those holding misogynistic views.

The picture is a skillfully made cautionary tale about the perils of casual sex and adultery, but it offers a hostile version of feminism through its portrayal of the obsessed woman. Glenn Close plays the character as pitiable and biologically driven in bravura demonstrations of passion directed by Adrian Lyne.

The critic praises the film's core chemistry and ambiguity, which raises questions about whose side the audience should take, along with strong casting that makes the central performances convincing and intense. She notes that test-audience changes to the ending shifted it toward more conventional thriller territory but still finds much to appreciate in its intelligent story, passion, scares and character work.

The critic views the film as a cultural phenomenon and enduring classic precisely because of its flaws, including its strategically finessed misogyny and crowd-pleasing ending changes, rather than in spite of them. They single out Glenn Close's performance and the film's glossy, prestige-packaged erotic thriller style for praise while critiquing its conservative, button-pushing approach to gender dynamics.