Michael Douglas, Glenn Close, Anne Archer

A married man's one night stand comes back to haunt him when that lover begins to stalk him and his family.

Flixster Users

67% liked it

21,655 ratings

Critics

80% liked it

40 critics

R, 2 hrs. 1 min.

Directed by: Adrian Lyne

Release Date: September 11, 1987

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: April 16, 2002

Get It:

Stats: 1,803 reviews

Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Your Rating



clear rating

Flixster Reviews (1,803)


  • August 10, 2009
    ?and the term ?bunny boiler? was born!

    A film that everyone knows the storyline, even if they haven?t seen it.

    A good role for Glen Close, as you really do not offer any sympathy to her all the way through, she becomes the ultimate stalker and quite a hatred builds toward h...( read more)er character throughout the film. Certainly an 80?s film worth seeing, but is rather dated now.
  • May 30, 2009
    Fatal Attraction is about a lawyer (Michael Douglas) who seems to have the perfect, nuclear wife, child, almost home in the country who suddenly decides to have an affair with a woman he meets in conjunction with his business dealings named Alex (Glenn Close). It's supposed to me...( read more)an nothing, but Alex goes bat shit, attempts suicide, and decides to make Dan's (Douglas) life a living hell.

    I have one question about this film. How in the hell does it get the credit of starting a generation of "love turns them psycho" films that we got pelted with in the late '80's and the '90's. Fatal Attraction is obviously a remake of Clint Eastwood's Play Misty For Me from 1971. It's been updated for the yuppie generation with Eastwood's hippish California DJ who uses his radio prowess to bed ladies into Douglas' lawyer who is living in New York City because hippies were replaced by yuppies because we all wanted to be big shots in New York and the man whore DJ becomes the family man because AIDS was scaring the hell out of us in 1987. How no one got sued over this I have no idea.

    Close is every man's nightmare- a woman who won't go away. I know that Michael Douglas is supposed to be the victim here, but you can see her point. Right? She delivers a performance that makes us feel sorry for her one minute, then we're scared to death she's going to do "something", then we just hate her to the point of wanting her dead. You've heard of the bad penny? She's a truckload of them.

    Other than Close, this is your typical '80's film with stylish crap and a country house to get away from it all. It's entertaining, though if you've seen Misty you know what the hell is going to happen.
  • January 25, 2009
    it's like your grandad shagging skeletor and you get to watch it! despite that... it's a much more solid film than basic instinct and the acting is exceptional. just a shame the advertisement for not cheating is between predator and an old man. glenn close is a psycho!!
  • November 3, 2007
    My heart almost went into orbit when someone behind me screamed in my ear during the denouement of this movie. The story is a well known tale of jealousy and revenge and takes elements from various sources, most notably the classic thriller Les Diaboliques . On the big scr...( read more)een, this is a film that holds a lot of tension in the audience, which is inevitably diminished when transferred to home viewing.

    There are also two versions of it. Which do I prefer? Well, I would say the theatrical release has more shock value, but the directors cut for me has a more satisfying resolution. It resonates more and it's the film I would now prefer to watch again. Once you've been shocked by the theatrical ending once, it doesn't work a second time, and then it feels a little flat afterwards.
  • September 7, 2007
    wow, what a classic also, now if anyone ever has the disire to "stray" watch this movie and imagine the worst plus 100...what a nutcase huh? But what an awesome movie and Glenn Close was excellent
  • October 30, 2009
    Even though I basically know the whole story, I'm interested in actually SEEING it.
  • October 29, 2009
    uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu
  • October 27, 2009
    The first half was an erotic drama with some thriller elements and the second half was a suspense revenge thriller. I think it was a little disturbing to see a woman getting beaten a lot (even though she's a villain) Also, the multiple sex scenes were unnecessary. One was enough,...( read more) really.
  • October 26, 2009
    A defining moment in cinematic history! Well that's what all the critics said at the time as well as warning all husbands to be extremely careful if they had an affair. Michael Douglas believes his quick affair with Glenn Close (whilst his wife is away as I remember) is done and ...( read more)over. She has other ideas and is soon turning up at inopportune moments, with threats of telling all. You tend not to feel sorry for his character though, but I don't know if this is from the woman's perspective.
    I didn't like the way the film took you to a place where he has told his wife and they are tryiing to get on with their life but then his family are put at risk. You seem to be on his side then thinking the bunny boiler has to go. There was an alternative ending to the one shown in theatres. I did enjoy the movie but I really didn't want to be forced to take his side in the end especially by using a child in order to make me feel that way.
  • October 26, 2009
    i loved that movie and still do.

Critic Reviews


January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Because the good things in the movie -- including the performances -- are so very good, it's a shame that the film's potential for greatness was so blatantly compromised. full review

View more Fatal Attraction reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • bigtvjp
    February 27, 2008
    Michael Douglas is simply too much of a solid he-man, he rocks the shit out of Glen Close specially when he has a go at her over the sink onto the kithcen counter@@@

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

More Like This


Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • The Pursuit of Happyness
    The Pursuit of Happyness (41%)
  • Deception
    Deception (50%)
  • Less Than Zero
    Less Than Zero (25%)
  • Obsessed
    Obsessed (78%)

Theater Showtimes & TV Listings


Fatal Attraction Trivia


  • "Fatal Attraction" (1987) was one of the most talked about movies of the 80s. Who played the sinister stalker, Alex Forrest?   Answer »
  • In "Fatal Attraction," when the Gallagher family returned home, what did they find that Alex had killed?  Answer »
  • In "Fatal Attraction," Beth actually threatens to kill Alex?  Answer »
  • In "Fatal Attraction," what is Dan's occupation?  Answer »

Recent News


No recent headlines. Got one?

Most Popular Skin


No skins yet. Interested in creating one?