by Frank Calvillo
I strongly believe Carl Reiner to be one of the most gifted comedy writer/directors of all time. Very few minds have been able to touch him in terms of writing, timing and the way he makes the two flow together so smoothly in films such as Enter Laughing and The Man With Two Brains. To put it simply, the man makes comedy movie gold. Meanwhile his ability to showcase the unique talents of some of the most popular comic stars of their generations, including Steve Martin, Lily Tomlin and Kirstie Alley, have made him the kind of director actors beg to work with.
While some of Reiner’s films such as The Jerk and All of Me have become bona fide classics, for me it was always Fatal Instinct, Reiner’s 1993 send up of erotic thrillers and film noir, which made me really appreciate what pure comedy could be.
In Fatal Instinct, cop/lawyer Ned Ravine (Armand Assante) finds himself intrigued by a striking, yet unhinged blonde named Lola Cain (Sean Young), whom he pursues much to the dismay of his devoted secretary Laura (Sherilynn Fenn). At the same time, his wife Lana (Kate Nelligan) is having an affair with Frank (Christopher McDonald), the local mechanic. While the two hatch a plan to murder Ned, a recently-released convict (James Remar) plots his own deadly revenge against him for losing his case many years ago. Hopelessly clueless, Ned must try to stay alive in this hilarious take on some of the best thrillers of all time.
Most films cut from a similar cloth as Fatal Instinct often garner laughs by making fun of the genres they parody. That may be fair enough and effective to a point, but it’s not the only way for a film such as this to succeed. In fact, the reason Fatal Instinct works as well as it does is because the filmmakers have approached the film as an homage towards the films they are satirizing. Among the many classic/neo-noir and erotic thrillers sent up are Body Heat, Cape Fear, Basic Instinct and Sleeping with the Enemy. However, Fatal Instinct never goes for laughs at their expense, but rather takes their events and puts a comic spin on them; a difference which is certainly felt.
The biggest example of this can be seen in the film’s three female leads; each of whom beautifully embodies a different 1940s actress whose name is synonomous with the kinds of films which inspired Fatal Instinct. Nelligan, a noted character actress goes so far as to mimic some of Barbara Stanwyck’s vocal patterns in her turn as the murderous wife, while Fenn takes the girl Friday role and adds an enchanting hint of Gene Tierney to her performance.
Neither one can hold a candle to Young however, who hands down has the flashiest role in the film as a Joan Crawford-like seductress with Sharon Stone-like tendencies.
One of the greatest moves Reiner made was in the choosing of Fatal Instinct’s cast. Each of the four leads are first and foremost dramatic actors, not necessarily known for their comedic chops. And yet at the same time, each of them are hysterical in their roles, because they clearly have the same affection as Reiner does for the genre they are sending up and recognize that Fatal Instinct is more tribute than anything else. The standouts however, are Assante and Young giving some of the most surprising turns of their careers with the former playing it hilariously straight and the latter going to town with the femme fatale persona.
For some, Fatal Instinct might work better as a parody rather than a Reiner film, but make no mistake, there’s plenty of the director’s trademark brand of humor to be had here in touches big and small. Moments such as showing the wall of the jail cell of Remar’s character with photos of Charlie Manson, Adolph Hitler and Julie Andrews in a row are slight, but always get a laugh, while dialogue such as when a DA shouts out during a trial scene “I object! There’s no need to deal with the facts in this case!” are all home runs, mainly because Reiner has his actors deliver them with such hilarious conviction. Other jokes are played continuously, but sparingly so as to never lose their punch. The best of these remains Young’s character always needing the proper background music to speak, including one scene where she pauses during a revelatory plot point to change the scene’s score on her stereo.
To date, Reiner’s sole time in the director’s chair since Fatal Instinct was for the 1997 Bette Midler comedy That Old Feeling. It’s a real shame since very few directors possess such a keenly perceptive grasp of genre or such a versatile approach to comedy. If anyone doubts that such a filmmaker exists, they need only watch Fatal Instinct to be proven wrong.
The Extras
The commentary track by Reiner and screenwriter David O’Malley features some interesting stories about the making of Fatal Instinct. One in particular stands out, in which Reiner tells of how the film’s original title, “Triple Indemnity,” was thrown out for legal reasons as was friend Mel Brooks’ suggestion “Frontal Attraction.”
Sorry, no gossip-y Sean Young stories here (the actress apparently relished working on the film to the point where she tried to perform as many of her own stunts as possible), but Reiner does talk about the benefits of working on-set with a screenwriter, given the right circumstances.
With over twenty minutes of deleted scenes (including one extended, HILARIOUS sequence featuring Dudley Moore in drag), there’s nothing but the same sort of fun material which populates the rest of the movie.
The Lowdown
Lovers of both parodies and thrillers will find plenty to enjoy here, while fans of the director will definitely consider Fatal Instinct to be classic Reiner.
Fatal Instinct hit Blu-ray September 22nd from Olive Films
