Our Windy City Blowhard, Capone sent ol'Father Geek the following overnight...
Hey there. Capone in Chicago here. I know I'm going to take a beating for this review, but I don't care. Diane Lane is a honey and she's naked for large section of this film, so I make no apologies. But that's not the only reason to check out UNFAITHFUL between screenings of SPIDER-MAN. Read on...
Adrian Lyne hasn’t made many films in his career as a director, but the handful he has made all seem to have struck a nerve with audiences worldwide. His films aren’t always the most well made in terms of story or performances, but sometimes they are. What his films have in common is the almost uncanny ability to be the most talked about films when they’re released. Look at the list: FLASHDANCE, 9 1/2 WEEKS, FATAL ATTRACTION, JACOB’S LADDER, INDECENT PROPOSAL, and the 1997 remake of LOLITA. For different reasons, most of these films become benchmarks in button pushing FATAL ATTRACTION and INDECENT PROPOSAL took a hard look a the fragile state of the institution of marriage. 9 1/2 WEEKS, and LOLITA focused on obsessional behavior. And JACOB’S LADDER was one of the first modern films to play with timelines and make us question the reality of what we were watching. FLASHDANCE made us want to wear leg warmers. In Lyne’s latest film, UNFAITHFUL, he moves back into his familiar stomping ground of a troubled marriage.
Based on the 1969 Claude Chabrol film LA FEMME INFIDELE (THE UNFAITHFUL WIFE) starring Stephane Audran, UNFAITHFUL is the story of the Sumners, a seemingly happy couple played by Diane Lane and Richard Gere. Part of what makes UNFAITHFUL as good as it is has to do with the fact that there are no overwhelming circumstances that would make Connie Sumner jump into the arms of another man. The couple doesn’t fight. Edward Sumner doesn’t ignore her or cheat on her. And they seem to have a healthy sex life after 11 years of marriage. They also have a precocious son, Charlie, played by everyone’s favorite “Malcolm in the Middle” brother, Erik Per Sullivan. They live in a New York City suburb and perhaps they have fallen into a safe, slightly predictable and boring routine, but whatever reasons Connie has for allowing a younger man (Olivier Martinez) to sweep her off her feet, are never made clear. These ambiguities exist in real life and I was pleasantly surprised to see them represented in an American film. So often in films, the husband (or wife) is such a pain in the ass, you’re practically wishing an affair on the poor wife (or husband).
In UNFAITHFUL, you felt a great sadness once Connie makes her decision. Yes, she seems happy as she has what appears to be frequent and unbelievable sex day after day with Martinez, but that doesn’t make you happy for her. Lane has covered this territory before in A WALK ON THE MOON, but in that film, her husband was painted broadly as neglectful. That just isn’t the case here.As the affair continues on for weeks on end and the couple’s boldness with going out in public grows, it seems inevitable that they will get caught. A tension slowly builds during the first half of the film. We don’t want to see this family fall apart, but her level of satisfaction starts to grow on us and sometimes we’re not sure who we want her to end up with. Edward begins to suspect something is going on almost immediately, and finally he breaks down and hires a private detective to confirm his suspicions. All of this deception comes to a head when Edward visits the love nest shortly after Connie has left after an afternoon tryst, and the two men meet for the first time. I don’t want to say too much more about where the story goes from here, but if you know anything about Claude Chabrol films, you can probably guess that someone ends up very messed up before the film is over.
Despite the fact that UNFAITHFUL deals with an adulterous relationship, the movie is a far cry from a remake of sex-reversed FATAL ATTRACTION. Events start to spiral down a clearly dark path after Martinez and Gere stand face to face for the first time, and the film’s ending--as with most of UNFAITHFUL--is left open, not neatly wrapped up as you’d expect. The fate of the characters’ relationships is unclear. Will any of the characters pay for their sins? Trust me, this movie does not play out like you think it will.Diane Lane has never been sexier; let me make that clear right from the start. Even though you’re angry with her for cheating on her husband, she makes it almost seem worth it. Richard Gere...well, he certainly doesn’t soar beyond his abilities, but he does a credible job in the Michael Douglas role. And his trademark blinking is all over this film. The scene where he and Lane finally talk openly about what she’s done is very strong and painful. He may have cornered the market in playing the suffering husband. Martinez is a little too handsome for me not to hate him, but his powers of seduction are clearly strong as was evidenced by the women around me moaning things like, “Damn!” and “Look at him” whenever he’d appear on screen partially dressed (which is most of the time).
Having been bombarded over the last couple of years with morally correct tales of adult mischief, it was somewhat refreshing to be reminded what Adrian Lyne is capable of. I’m not sure people will discuss UNFAITHFUL after seeing it the same way they have his previous films, but the divorced individual I saw it with certainly had plenty to say.
Caponecapone@aintitcoolmail.com
