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Unfaithful (Full Screen Edition) by Adrian Lyne
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DVD Cover InformationActor: Diane Lane, Erik Per Sullivan, Myra Lucretia Taylor, Olivier Martinez, Richard Gere Director: Adrian Lyne DVD: Region Code 1 Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; Spanish (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled) Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC Picture Format: 1.33:1 Running Time: 124 minutes DVD Release Date: 2002-12-17 Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Studio: 20th Century Fox
Movie Reviews of Unfaithful (Full Screen Edition)Movie Review: [4.5] It always ends in disaster Summary: 4 StarsI really enjoy this film, even after multiple vewings it is still effective. The key is great performances with attention to detail, especially from Diane Lane. The story too, is well written, also bringing out attention to details and the affair is just half of the tale, as an unexpected event turns things around half-way through the film, releasing a lot of tension, suspision, and unfaithfulness.
One might expect that Unfaithful is about a wife cheating on her husband (been done before and the cover art of the case gives this away). This is only half of the film, which makes it a fine product altogether. However, the first half of the film is well accomplished. We are introduced to the Sumner family, husband Ed (Richard Gere), wife Connie (Diane Lane) and young son of about 8 years of age, Charlie (Erik Per Sullivan). They live quitely, comfortably in the suburbs in a beautiful white house, picket fence etc etc. Everything is fine and for the most part the family is happy. Ed works a lot like most husbands, and one might believe too much work can lead to his wife's affair. Not so true. He does a fine job of balancing work and family, spending a lot of time with his boy and equally with his wife, in a variety of tender & romantic encounters. Connie seems happy but accidently bumps into Paul Martel (Olivier Martinez) on the street one day. He invites her to his place for a minute, she stays briefly. Slowly and cautiously, Connie revisits, fighting with herself whether to conintue the visits or let it be. She visits one too many times, eventually finding herself romantically involved and addicted soonafter. Yet at the same time, she still spends time with her family, and having fun. Eventually she begins to break down, realizing she doesn't need this and realizing her husband has always been good to her. But they always end in disaster, one of her friends states, about affairs.
Connie gets the soptlight in the film, especially in the first half, along with Paul (though there is little exploration to his character, but the story focus is ment to be on Connie). Ed gets his chance in the second half of the film, when he encounters Paul and an unexpected turn of events occur, haunting him (Ed) for the rest of the film. It is at this point when the title "Unfaithful" is at it's ripest form. Suspense is finally at its climax, as suspicions begin to rise both from husband and wife.
Unfaithful could have been a suspense thriller, but it is not. While there are some moments of anger, and a bit of hatred, Unfaithful actually has a very romantic and touching quality to it. This is very evident in the soundtrack, which is light piano accompanied by a bit of strings throughout most of the film. The ending scene wasn't very sharp, but the end of the film up to that point actually surpirsed me, in a good way. I enjoyed seeing acts of love and forgiveness at work. While Unfaithful contains a lot of sexuality, it is not that kind of film. There is a rather deeper meaning at play here, performances and story are strong enough, that it might just make you think twice about cheating, and maybe recognize the better parts of a beautiful marriage.
Acting - 4.5
Charcaters - 4
Drama - 4.5
Story - 4
Overall - 4.5
Summary of Unfaithful (Full Screen Edition)From the director of Fatal Attraction comes "a steamy thriller" (People Magazine) about physical passion so intense, it consumes everything - and everyone - in its path. Edward and Connie Summer (Richard Gere, Diane Lane) have the perfect life: a happy marriage, an eight year old son, and a beautiful house in the suburbs. But when Connie's chance encounter with a handsome stranger (Olivier Martinez) erupts into a full-blown affair, desire becomes obsession, and the true price of betrayal takes a shattering toll. Pulsing with heart-pounding suspense and erotic thrills, Unfaithful is "sexy", stylish and seductive!" (Wireless Magazine) If you ever need dramatic proof that adultery is inevitably destructive, look no further than Adrian Lyne's Unfaithful. Drawing inspiration from Claude Chabrol's 1969 film La Femme Infid?le, the director of Fatal Attraction is mining similar territory here, but this grownup thriller is more intimate than Lyne's dead-bunny potboiler, probing more deeply into the rush of conflicting emotions provoked by infidelity. In what many critics praised as the role of her career, Diane Lane plays the instigator of emotional turmoil, a seemingly happy housewife and fundraiser who cheats on her devoted husband (Richard Gere, in a welcomed change of pace) when she casually encounters a seductive Frenchman (clich? alert!) played by Olivier Martinez. Allowing his actors to speak volumes without words, Lyne emphasizes silent tension over explicit thrills, creating a sexually charged thriller that remains riveting even as it turns partially predictable. "Someone always gets hurt," says one character in a pivotal scene, and Unfaithful fulfills that prophesy in a timeless tale of passion. --Jeff Shannon
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