Final Analysis (C+ or 2/4 stars)
'Final Analysis' (a neo-noir erotic thriller directed by Phil Joanou) stars Richard Gere as Isaac Barr, a lonely San Francisco psychiatrist whose pretty patient, Diana Baylor (Uma Thurman), suffers from a traumatic secret in her past. Diana suggests that Isaac talk to her older sister to discover more insight into said trauma. When Isaac discovers that her sister, Heather (Kim Basinger), is drop dead gorgeous, he is all-too happy to oblige. Of course, it turns out there are a lot of lurid secrets that these two sisters harbor from their childhoods -- and secrets now, as well. Heather is married to Greek gangster/millionaire & psychotic sadist, Jimmy Evans (Eric Roberts). The mobster is a tyrant. But Heather has a way of embarrassing him in public …
By taking just one sip of wine, she goes crazy in what is called "pathological intoxication"; the scene where this occurs results with a restaurant in shambles. Isaac & Heather enter a hot & steamy affair. He wants her to divorce Jimmy, but she is terrified of what her jealous, rageful husband would do. One fateful night she drinks alcohol again & attacks her husband. And after the fall-out, Isaac uses his professional pull to try & help her out of the consequences of her actions. However, he soon starts questioning if she has been telling him the truth about ... anything. Deceptions enter the fray, where Isaac is eventually the prime suspect of a murder and, the plot owes much to 1944's Double Indemnity, 1987's Fatal Attraction, & mostly 1958's Vertigo - where the climax of that film & this one occurs high above stormy seas & jagged rocks at a lighthouse.
I tend to enjoy overwrought psychological thrillers. Heck, one month after this film released in 1992, we got the far superior Sharon Stone classic, Basic Instinct. Alfred Hitchcock might have dug this movie, which involves forbidden desires, betrayals, a pounding romantic music score, bizarre love triangles, a handsome psychiatrist, two sexy-but-nutty blonde sisters + a sadistic hubby. And the term "pathological intoxication" {is that even real!?} gives the film an added touch of neurosis that psycho-thrillers thrive on. But alas, Hitchcock did not helm this film. The pacing could have been tighter. There aren't any truly sympathetic characters to pull for. And this story is WAY too complex & labyrinthine for its own good; chock full of twists, turns, double-crosses & ridiculous reveals. After it is over, the film leaves you thinking that you just saw something snazzy, when really, you're baffled.
Richard Gere is always engaging to watch, but his character here is so aloof that you want to shake him & yell: "open your eyes, fool!" To say he is gullible would be an understatement. Kim Basinger has been better, but still lends her typical allure. Uma Thurman does a good job making you wonder about her character's temperament, curiosities & her zeal for romanticism -- just what ARE her intentions? And slugs wish they were as slimy as Eric Roberts is as gangster, Jimmy. Roberts overplays the role, but would we expect anything less from him? These characters are forced to spout a lot of stilted dialogues. And ultimately, these people feel more like pawns in a game or trained animals in a circus act rather than full-bodied characters.
'Final Analysis' is pretty sensational to look at, thanks to Jordan Cronenweth's photogenic eye with a camera. Famed art director Dean Tavoularis makes you want to move to San Francisco. And the actors involved ain't hard to look at, either. It's just a shame that the construction of this stylish film is as perplexing as it is -- it is needlessly complicated. And of course, there's the wackadoodle climax at that lighthouse. I wouldn't say that 'Final Analysis' is particularly good or bad, but the moment you stop to actually THINK about the movie, you feel kinda gypped of a wholly satisfying experience.
By taking just one sip of wine, she goes crazy in what is called "pathological intoxication"; the scene where this occurs results with a restaurant in shambles. Isaac & Heather enter a hot & steamy affair. He wants her to divorce Jimmy, but she is terrified of what her jealous, rageful husband would do. One fateful night she drinks alcohol again & attacks her husband. And after the fall-out, Isaac uses his professional pull to try & help her out of the consequences of her actions. However, he soon starts questioning if she has been telling him the truth about ... anything. Deceptions enter the fray, where Isaac is eventually the prime suspect of a murder and, the plot owes much to 1944's Double Indemnity, 1987's Fatal Attraction, & mostly 1958's Vertigo - where the climax of that film & this one occurs high above stormy seas & jagged rocks at a lighthouse.
I tend to enjoy overwrought psychological thrillers. Heck, one month after this film released in 1992, we got the far superior Sharon Stone classic, Basic Instinct. Alfred Hitchcock might have dug this movie, which involves forbidden desires, betrayals, a pounding romantic music score, bizarre love triangles, a handsome psychiatrist, two sexy-but-nutty blonde sisters + a sadistic hubby. And the term "pathological intoxication" {is that even real!?} gives the film an added touch of neurosis that psycho-thrillers thrive on. But alas, Hitchcock did not helm this film. The pacing could have been tighter. There aren't any truly sympathetic characters to pull for. And this story is WAY too complex & labyrinthine for its own good; chock full of twists, turns, double-crosses & ridiculous reveals. After it is over, the film leaves you thinking that you just saw something snazzy, when really, you're baffled.
Richard Gere is always engaging to watch, but his character here is so aloof that you want to shake him & yell: "open your eyes, fool!" To say he is gullible would be an understatement. Kim Basinger has been better, but still lends her typical allure. Uma Thurman does a good job making you wonder about her character's temperament, curiosities & her zeal for romanticism -- just what ARE her intentions? And slugs wish they were as slimy as Eric Roberts is as gangster, Jimmy. Roberts overplays the role, but would we expect anything less from him? These characters are forced to spout a lot of stilted dialogues. And ultimately, these people feel more like pawns in a game or trained animals in a circus act rather than full-bodied characters.
'Final Analysis' is pretty sensational to look at, thanks to Jordan Cronenweth's photogenic eye with a camera. Famed art director Dean Tavoularis makes you want to move to San Francisco. And the actors involved ain't hard to look at, either. It's just a shame that the construction of this stylish film is as perplexing as it is -- it is needlessly complicated. And of course, there's the wackadoodle climax at that lighthouse. I wouldn't say that 'Final Analysis' is particularly good or bad, but the moment you stop to actually THINK about the movie, you feel kinda gypped of a wholly satisfying experience.