Fatal Attraction Pt 3: Who is the monster and who is the victim?

by Nathaniel R

Glenn Close at the Oscars, awaiting on the verdict yet again

Welcome back to the boiling and bloody finale of our three-part retrospective of Adrian Lyne's classic thriller Fatal Attraction (1987). In part 1, Husband and father Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas in his best performance of 1987 -- sorry Wall Street) stumbled out of the pouring rain and straight into an even wetter two-night stand with Alex Forrest (Glenn Close in her most iconic role). Things start hot but end bloody with a suicide attempt. In part 2, Dan clings hard to his wife Beth and his daughter Ellen, desperate for normalcy again. He eagerly grants them their dream gifts: a new home in the suburbs and a pet bunny rabbit, respectively. As we return to the film, Beth and Ellen are still oblivious to the family's pregnant stalker.

One more thing: I realize this retrospective would have been less out-of-the-blue obsessive and better-timed if tied to the 35th anniversary three years back or the launch of the inferior miniseries retelling exactly two years ago or even Michael Douglas's 80th birthday last year. In this way I fear I'm much like Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas) himself delaying the inevitable. He kept missing perfect off ramps to avoid this dangerous liaison with Alex and even its aftermath. Where did it get him? Now he's down one car, paying two mortgages, lying to his wife, and trying to avoid a very angry stalker while angling for a life-changing promotion at work. Pass the beta blockers. Now, back to the film...

[voiceover] You're scared of me aren't you? You're fucking frightened of me -- you're afraid. You're afraid, aren't you? You gutless, heartless, spineless, fucking son-of-a-bitch.

1:21:03 Dan is still sneaking around -- albeit for less sexy reasons,,,

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Fatal Attraction Pt 2: She's not going to be IGNORED, Dan!

by Nathaniel R

In Act 1 of Fatal Attraction (for a three-part retrospective), we met the happily married Gallaghers and their longsuffering dog Quincy, who was neglected for almost a whole weekend. The cause was Husband Dan's (Michael Douglas) sexually explosive weekend with a new co-worker Alex (Glenn Close). Dan ignored a handful of fire-engine red flags.

When we left our players, Alex was suicidal and Dan was headed back to his normal life. He will now attempt to pretend that nothing at all has happened. You can guess how how that attempt plays out!

"What are you doing here? It's 8:00 AM."

40:08 As we return to the film in progress, Dan tells his executive assistant Martha that he's 'in the shitter' and way behind at work. That's what happens when you fuck Glenn Close all weekend...

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Fatal Attraction Pt 1: Everything AND the Kitchen Sink

Three-Part Mini-Series
Every once in a blue moon we'll take a movie and baton pass it around the team and really dive in. This time Nathaniel's going solo. But if you like this approach to investigate a movie we've gone long and deep before on the following films: Rebecca (1940), West Side Story (1961), Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf (1966), Rosemary's Baby (1968), Cabaret (1972), Silence of the Lambs (1991), Thelma & Louise (1991), Aladdin (1992), and  A League of Their Own (1992) -Editor

by Nathaniel R

Did you know/remember that Fatal Attraction was released in Paramount's 75th year? I did not but it's a detail that feels somehow right. Founded in 1912, the second oldest of Hollywood's few surviving major studios (Universal predates it) celebrated its diamond anniversary in zeitgeist style with one of its all time most profitable and leggiest hits. The Adrian Lyne thriller, which we'll discuss in three installments, was the second highest grossing film of 1987 and left the kind of cultural footprint that most movies can only dream of; it kept people talking for months on end, it ignited Hollywood's late eighties /early nineties erotic thriller craze, it made Glenn Close into a superstar by casting her against type (this detail is mostly forgotten but we'll get there), indirectly helped Michael Douglas win his Wall Street Best Actor Oscar, and took a B genre film all the way to the Oscars with six nominations.

While box office success and Oscar success (objective, mostly) has never automatically correlated with quality (subjective, mostly), you did once-upon-a-time have a much greater chance of the former by doubling down on latter. Which is just what Fatal Attraction did. All these years later, it really holds up as an example of Hollywood making grade A art with a B genre. So let's see why in scene-by-scene form...

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Randomness... 1987 (Part 1)

by Nathaniel R

BROADCAST NEWS (1987)

Once we reached the late 80s young Nathaniel was fully immersed in Oscar passions so there are less glaring omissions in films screened. Why am I talking about myself in the third person? Nevertheless 1987 is now so long ago that I really wonder about my initial take on so many of the movies. For instance, a lot of people I respect think very highly of The Dead – and it even gets a very loving homage in Almodovar’s current film The Room Next Door. I remember it as a high minded, intermittently potent drama but also kind of dull. It’s probable I was too young for it at the time (I did see it in theaters…and went specifically because Anjelica Huston had won the Oscar the previous year for 1985’s Prizzi’s Honor so I was in the flushes of new fandom). But we’re jumping ahead of ourselves.

NATHANIEL’S TOP TEN OF 1987 

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Randomness... 1986

by Nathaniel R

Continuing our 80s retros for a couple more weeks. Strangely when I examined it on Letterboxd (are you following me there?) I realized I’d seen fewer films from 1986 than I had the years surrounding it. I'm not sure why this is. Anyway, I thought it might be fun to also share Letterboxd lists to go along with this 80s party, so 1986 is here. Okay, Let’s jump right into the favourites, alphabetically… 

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