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 Unfaithful (2002)
Rated: R for sexuality, language and a scene of violence.
Runtime: 124 mins.
Director: Adrian Lyne
Writer: Claude Chabrol (film La Femme Infidele); Alvin Sargent (screenplay)
Cast: Diane Lane, Richard Gere, Eric Per Sullivan....complete cast
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Most memorable quote: "Your eyes are amazing do you know that? You should never shut them, not even at night"
by Terese Henry
I decided to write this review because I don't know what to make of this movie, and I believe that writing or talking about something can occasionally help one discover his/her thoughts as well as express them. I do know, as you can tell from my high Se7en rating, that Unfaithful stuck with me long after I saw it, so I wanted to explore why.
As I conducted a little research, I discovered that my movie viewing life contains some strange parallels with director Adrian Lyne's various films concerning sexual indiscretions. In high school, I remember thinking that his 9 and a Half Weeks was both very sexy and a great movie. Having seen it since, I was dismayed my immature notions of both relationships and films. Later in college, I was living in my first apartment when I spent an uncomfortable first date watching Fatal Attraction, a film which definitely has stood the test of time even though that boyfriend didn't. My husband and I saw Indecent Proposal as newlyweds just like the ones played by Woody and Demi, and the other night we, the mature couple, took in Unfaithful, Lyne's latest venture into sexual turmoil, which just happens to focus on an established marriage.
Pretty creepy, huh? Well, Lyne revels in making viewers uncomfortable by having us watch seemingly normal people get themselves into some strange situations in the name of desire. Unfaithful is no different. We meet a beautiful couple, Connie and Edward Sumner, who live in the upscale Westchester County outside of New York City. Richard Gere is good as the stable, loving husband; in true Hollywood fashion, he's older than his on-screen wife, but he's still handsome enough to pull it off.
Diane Lane is wonderful as the stay at home mom who should have stayed at home instead of going into the city on a very windy day. There she wanders into colorful SoHo and runs smack dab into Paul Martel, played by Olivier Martinez. Despite her obviously happy marriage, she is drawn into a sexual encounter that soon turns into an obsession. I first saw Lane as a teenager in The Outsiders and remember her most recently as Willie's mom in My Dog Skip, so her in this role was at first jarring for me. However, she is completely convincing as the old money, clean-faced soccer mom who just happens to have a husky voice and a great body. I was impressed that her sex appeal was derived from her curves, unlike most of Hollywood waifs' scarily thin bodies.
Martinez is perfect for his role as the lover, too. My husband refers to him as the greasy Euro dude, but that's the point, right? Her marriage was happy, remember, so why did she stray? It was strictly for the sex; I saw no other reason. He personifies sex: the black leather jacket, longish dark hair, defined physique, indistinguishable accent - bad boy deluxe! (Think of the guy on the cover of a cheesy romance novel.) Even though he is a book dealer, no one tries to fool us into thinking he is smarter, richer, or nicer than what she already has. But she can't help herself from finding excuses to return to his confusing apartment, filled with art, books and strange music...again and again and again. Lane supposedly pulled a muscle while filming one of the sex scenes, which were shot from some interesting angles instead of full shots which, to me, always create either a documentary or porno feel.
The movie is beautifully shot overall. The settings enhance each scene's purpose, juxtaposing the funky, almost dangerous atmosphere of the city with the serenity of the 'burbs. Focusing on the various characters' wedding rings is another subtlety of the seething conflicts just under the surface. I enjoyed the suspense of will they get caught, how, by whom, will she confess, etc. Both of the lovers seem to also enjoy the danger of the affair, but the movie doesn't go down the obvious route of the "bored housewife tries to escape her life in the suburbs."
I did feel that the film took too long to get to the affair, but after all, we already knew it was coming. Gere's character doesn't take too long to become suspicious, however, nor to hire an investigator to find out the truth. I won't spoil the results of this investigation, but I was pleased at the way the consequences were handled. My husband and I discussed some other options the next day, but we couldn't find a better, more realistic ending.
The Julia Roberts factor is high because girls love seductions and stories about relationships. The Macho factor can be attributed to Gere's surprising reaction as a sedate husband scorned. My husband and I split on the Get Lucky; I thought it was sort of erotic whereas he called it creepy. The In Law and Baby Sitter factor are non-existent due to the film's sexual content. As I said before, the Se7en factor is high, but the lingering effects are not depressing, so the Of Mice and Men factor is low. Because there is no shocking climax, the wrap up factor is low, but this is not a bad thing. I liked the "life goes on" ending. Overall, it gets a three/four reel rating, but I can't explain why.
This film is similar to In the Bedroom because it deals with upper class people caught in a mess due to sex and revenge, and it exudes a strong sense of place. Even though In the Bedroom was better, Unfaithful doesn't fall into the Hollywood trap of promoting the stereotype that all rich people are bad, although it could. Of course no character is "all good" in most films these days, but in this one, no one is "all bad" either. Therefore, we find ourselves asking ourselves what we would do in these situations, which is, I'm sure what Adrian Lyne wants us to do.
Terese Henry
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Screen formats: Widescreen 1.85:1
Subtitles: English, Spanish, Closed Captioned
Sound: English: Dolby Digital 5.1; French: Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Other Features: Color; interactive menus; scene access; director's commentary; actors' scene-specific commentary; deleted scenes (with optional commentary); making-of featurette; scene editing featurette; cast interviews; script notes; photo gallery; trailer; alternate ending.
DVD Easter Egg (hidden feature): Hidden Outtake - From the Main Menu, select the 'Special Features' option. Now select 'Deleted Scenes'. Highlight 'Special Features' and arrow DOWN on your remote. The word 'Deleted' will become highlightes. Select it to reveal an additional outtake!
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Complete Cast:
| Diane Lane......... |
Connie Sumner |
| Erik Per Sullivan.......... |
Charlie Sumner |
| Richard Gere.......... |
Edward Sumner |
| Olivier Martinez.......... |
Paul Martel |
| Myra Lucretia Taylor.......... |
Gloria |
| Michelle Monaghan.......... |
Lindsay |
| Chad Lowe.......... |
Bill Stone |
| Joseph Badalucco Jr....... |
Conductor |
| Erich Anderson.......... |
Bob Gaylord |
| Damon Gupton.......... |
Other Businessman |
| Kate Burton......... |
Tracy |
| Margaret Colin .......... |
Sally |
| Marc Forget ......... |
Café Bartender |
| Larry Gleason .......... |
Tim |
| Dominic Chianese ........ |
Frank Wilson |
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