Starring: Richard Gere, Diane Lane, Olivier Martinez
Director: Adrian Lyne
Rated: MA15+
THE director of Unfaithful is Adrian Lyne. He made Fatal Attraction and this present film is a close relative of that one.
Edward Sumner (Richard Gere) and his wife Connie (Diane Lane) appear to have a happy marriage. They are financially secure, loving parents and faithful to each other. That is until, on a windswept day in New York, Connie meets Paul (Olivier Martinez) and she begins to have an affair with him. Edward becomes suspicious and it all ends in tears.
Adrian Lyne has had great success with erotic thrillers. As well as Fatal Attraction, he directed Indecent Proposal and the most recent version of Lolita. The content of these films will be enough for some people to know that Unfaithful is not for them.
Lyne tries to convince us that suburban boredom is the main reason for Connie’s infidelity. The problem is that she seems both mentally stable and happy until her chance meeting with Paul.
The set-up of her character’s motivation is crucial to the story and Lyne fails to deliver. At no stage do we see a bored Connie at home who could then risk everything for an adulterous affair. Quite the opposite. She has a great child, a caring husband and a good job. Rather than evoke sympathy, Connie appears capricious.
What Lyne is good at is composing his shots. The cinematography and editing in this film is very fine indeed.
Ultimately Unfaithful says nothing new in any way that makes it stand out from the pack.
