* * * out of 4
- 2002 • released by 20th Century Fox
- directed by Adrian Lyne
- written by Alvin Sargent and William Broyles Jr. (after the film La femme infidèle by Claude Chabrol)
- starring Diane Lane, Richard Gere, and Olivier Martinez
- 124 minutes
Compared to other directors of his ilk, Adrian Lyne's résumé is extremely short. From his debut film Mr. Smith in 1976 to Unfaithful in 2002, Lyne has only nine titles to his credit. This has been a matter of quality over quantity: Lyne is selective with his material to the point of being overtly fussy, but it encourages his painstaking detail and thorough execution.
As a prime example of the gaps in Lyne's biography, Unfaithful is still his most recent film after eight years. The film seems an epilogue to his long-time focus on sexual relationships that peaked with Nine ½ Weeks and Fatal Attraction, both major successes in the 1980s. Unfaithful, using similar material, was also a top box office attraction despite mixed reviews from critics; it has pocketed $122 million worldwide and an Oscar nomination for Diane Lane's performance.Lyne had long admired the work of French director Claude Chabrol, particularly in his 1969 drama La femme infidèle, which became the starting point for Unfaithful. For years, Lyne tossed around the idea of building on Chabrol's theme, but left matters alone. This changed, however, when the premise of La femme was expanded by writers Alvin Sargent (Julia, Ordinary People) and William Broyles Jr. (TV's China Beach). This new screenplay gave the affair considerably more detail and told the story with a frankness that is only nowadays possible.
The plot of Unfaithful is painfully simple, yet it touches upon a great many emotions and sentiments. Diane Lane plays Connie Sumner, a suburban New York housewife who has been married for several years to Edward (Richard Gere), the owner of an armored car company. Connie has borne one child, a son named Charlie (Erik Per Sullivan), who attends grammar school. The middle-class family appears stable and free of conflict, but it is painfully ordinary: the large house, the Mercedes, and the shaggy dog look far too neat for problems not to exist beneath the surface.
Connie is a former city resident who has yearned - at least in fantasy - for the bohemian life that Paul Martel (Olivier Martinez) represents. Martel is an antiquarian book dealer who plies his trade from a Manhattan loft. In striking relief to Connie's loving but dull husband, Martel embodies a raw, unbridled sexuality that draws her interest. Through a chance meeting on the street, Connie and Paul settle into an affair that is far more carnal than affectionate.
With a husband and son waiting at home, it is only a matter of time before things start to unravel and hearts are broken. Infidelity is a topic worked to death by cinema, which made Unfaithful a considerable risk to produce. Sargent and Broyles, however, tell the story from both Connie and Edward's viewpoint, leaving empathy for both characters. Tension also reaches high levels through the screenplay's effective plotting and dialogue.
Diane Lane's performance was nominated for several acting awards, including the Oscar and Golden Globe. All three adult leads are very good, but Lane is the person who truly shines. Her performance is intense, nuanced, and without a moment's doubt of her character. Gere and Martinez are effective, particularly in a key scene where the two gentlemen meet. Lyne has done superb work in converting Gere from his usual grittiness to a more vulnerable figure.
The one substantial flaw of this movie is that Paul Martel does not entirely work as a character. We have seen the French man of mystery a bit too often and Olivier Martinez is forced to climb uphill against the sarcasm that his character draws. Luckily, Martinez takes firm hold of the material and works to dispel the stereotype. It also seems that Erik Per Sullivan deserved more screen time as the couple's son, but he fills the child role excellently.
Music duties went to Jan A. P. Kaczmarek, who has since won an Academy Award for Finding Neverland in 2004. Kaczmarek's soundtrack uses regular orchestration, is unobtrusive, and effectively colors the given scenes. Unfaithful is also the first Lyne project edited by Anne Coates (Lawrence of Arabia, Becket). Cinematographer Peter Biziou (Nine ½ Weeks) has returned to Lyne after an extended absence and costume designer Ellen Mirojnick (Fatal Attraction, Jacob's Ladder) stays on board.
Unfaithful is frequently aired on television and there are plenty of DVDs to get your hands on. The 2002 release from 20th Century Fox is packed with extras, including a film-length commentary track with Lyne, commentary from Lane and Martinez on specific scenes, 11 deleted scenes with Lyne's remarks, cast interviews, a 15-minute featurette on Unfaithful's production ('An Affair to Remember'), and an editing featurette with Coates.
The film is presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) with Dolby 5.1 surround sound. Dubbing is offered in Spanish and French, along with subtitles in Spanish and English. Both the video and audio of Unfaithful are solidly treated. Lyne's commentary offers useful background on the production, especially on why scenes were dropped or changed. The deleted scenes include a moralistic ending that was pushed by 20th Century Fox executives but later dropped in favor of Lyne's version. Decades on, adultery is still a popular subject for filmgoers and Lyne's newest project (not to mention Lane's performance) is definitely worth seeing.
