Fatal Attraction 4K UHD (1987)

[Matt89]

Originally Posted by Oatlord

Yeah the theatrical ending is much better. It’s pulpy but it’s done really well, and it was nice to see Dan’s wife settle the score after all she’d been through, she was the true victim in the story.

Glenn Close really didn’t want to go with the theatrical ending because it made Alex ‘less sympathetic’ but I had no sympathy for that crazy, manipulative, psychotic bunny-boiling b**ch anyway. I get that an actor needs to empathise totally with their character but it’s like - you are the villain in this psycho-thriller, just own it.

And what a psycho-thriller. It’s pitch-perfect and all the performances are outstanding. I wish they still made films like this. It was nice to see Adrian Lyne return with Deep Water. It’s no Fatal Attraction but it was a pretty absorbing erotic thriller.

I think that was sort of her point, though. As someone who's a big fan of Fatal Attraction myself (who also plans on picking up the UHD), I must admit that the film does have a very unsympathetic view of mental illness. And yes, I understand this is a thriller and the movie would've been way less interesting if Alex wasn't a "crazy b*tch", but I think that's exactly why Glenn Close has a point. I agree that her character has a certain sense of depth that is overlooked for shock value. It sort of trivializes the issue of mental illness. And the fact that there's no mention of the type of mental illness she suffers from makes it even worse. She's just portrayed as "crazy".

It also does bother me somewhat that Michael Douglas' character

[Show spoiler]essentially gets away with everything in the end.

After all, he was the assh*le with a wife and kids who decided to have a one night stand with another woman. He essentially wanted to have his cake and eat it too. He's a terrible father and husband.

And don't get me wrong, I'm in no way advocating for the film to be "cancelled" or anything of that nature. Absolutely not. I love the movie, it's a classic '80s thriller, but it's not without its faults and I totally understand the criticism the film often receives regarding its treatment of Alex and mental illness.

~Matt