Fatal Attraction
Stream
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A married man's one-night stand comes back to haunt him when that lover begins to stalk him and his family.
What critics thought
A slick, well-acted thriller that divided critics along cultural as much as aesthetic lines — audiences loved it far more warmly than critics did, and the gap between those reactions is itself part of the film's story. Glenn Close's performance drew nearly universal admiration, but the film's ending and its framing of the Alex Forrest character sparked serious debate about whether the movie stacks the deck unfairly against its female antagonist while letting the adulterous husband largely off the hook.
“takes a brilliantly manipulative approach to what might have been a humdrum subject and shapes a soap opera of exceptional power. Most of that power comes directly from visual imagery, for Mr. Lyne is well versed in making anything – a person, a room, a pile of dishes in a kitchen sink – seem tactile, rich and sexy.”
Janet Maslin·The New York Times
“gives the film some of its fatal attractiveness. So do James Dearden's plausible, nicely observant script, Adrian Lyne's elegantly unforced direction, and Close's beautifully calibrated descent into lunacy. Together they bring horror home to a place where the grownup moviegoer actually lives.”
Richard Schickel·Time
Accolades
Parents guide
- Violence
- moderate
- Sex
- moderate
- Profanity
- moderate
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- severe
Genres
Drama, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Adrian LyneDirector
Michael DouglasDan Gallagher
Glenn CloseAlexandra "Alex" Forrest
Anne ArcherBeth Gallagher
Ellen Hamilton LatzenEllen Gallagher
Stuart PankinJimmy
Ellen FoleyHildy
Fred GwynneArthur
Tom BrennanHoward Rogerson
Lois SmithMartha
Mike NussbaumBob Drimmer
J.J. JohnstonO'Rourke
Sam CoppolaFuselli
Maurice JarreComposer
James DeardenWriterFatal Attraction
A married man's one-night stand comes back to haunt him when that lover begins to stalk him and his family.
What critics thought
A slick, well-acted thriller that divided critics along cultural as much as aesthetic lines — audiences loved it far more warmly than critics did, and the gap between those reactions is itself part of the film's story. Glenn Close's performance drew nearly universal admiration, but the film's ending and its framing of the Alex Forrest character sparked serious debate about whether the movie stacks the deck unfairly against its female antagonist while letting the adulterous husband largely off the hook.
“takes a brilliantly manipulative approach to what might have been a humdrum subject and shapes a soap opera of exceptional power. Most of that power comes directly from visual imagery, for Mr. Lyne is well versed in making anything – a person, a room, a pile of dishes in a kitchen sink – seem tactile, rich and sexy.”
Janet Maslin·The New York Times
“gives the film some of its fatal attractiveness. So do James Dearden's plausible, nicely observant script, Adrian Lyne's elegantly unforced direction, and Close's beautifully calibrated descent into lunacy. Together they bring horror home to a place where the grownup moviegoer actually lives.”
Richard Schickel·Time
Accolades
Parents guide
- Violence
- moderate
- Sex
- moderate
- Profanity
- moderate
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- severe
Genres
Drama, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Adrian LyneDirectorMichael DouglasDan GallagherGlenn CloseAlexandra "Alex" ForrestAnne ArcherBeth GallagherEllen Hamilton LatzenEllen GallagherStuart PankinJimmyEllen FoleyHildyFred GwynneArthurTom BrennanHoward RogersonLois SmithMarthaMike NussbaumBob DrimmerJ.J. JohnstonO'RourkeSam CoppolaFuselliMaurice JarreComposerJames DeardenWriterStream
Rent & Buy