Fatal Attraction

Termed as one of the most scariest movies of all times in Bravo’s chart Fatal Attraction was a path breaking film that gave rise to a lot of debate regarding the values of marriage and affairs outside marriage.

A sexual fling of a married man gone completely wrong is the backdrop of the movie. Even though he moves on with life after the brief affair the woman does not want to let go and things go berserk when she is discovered to be suffering from Borderline Personality disorder or (BPD). A mental illness that makes her obsessive about the man who just had a casual affair with her. Alex played brilliantly by Glenn Close is a psychotic individual who tries to hang on to the married Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas), even after he has completely got over her. This obsession becomes so dangerous that the attorney soon finds his life turned completely upside down by the constant stalking of the woman. The difficult role of Alex in Fatal Attraction played by Glenn Close was first offered to a lot of accomplished actors but many turned it down. Finally it was taken up by Glenn who was till then known only for her roles as a good woman in films like “Jagged Edge” and “The Natural”.


The film has many frightening scenes, and the portrayal of the scorned woman and her ensuing madness comes across wonderfully so that it becomes really scary at times. One of the high points in the movie is when Alex not being able to get the attention she wants from Dan kills his daughters pet rabbit and puts it on the boiler of their kitchen. Another such scene is that of the climax when Glen’s character tries to murder Dan’s wife when she is taking a shower. However she herself gets killed in the process. The creators of Fatal Attraction had thought of another ending to the film where the character of Alex finally kills herself. However trivia has it that the audiences that were shown this ending was not exactly happy with it. The makers then put together a highly dramatic episode that is possibly among the most remembered scenes in Hollywood history. Michael Douglas being pursued with a knife and then finally drowning Glen in the bathtub from which emerges suddenly and is finally shot by Dan’s wife, were considered extremely violent scenes for Japanese audiences and therefore a different version was shot and then released. The film was a commercial success raking in the second highest business in the year 1987, the highest being the film “Three Men and a Baby”. The film was nominated in several categories in the Oscars including best actress, best director, best picture and best writing. Wikipedia


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