Fatal Affair Movie Review

No rabbits were boiled in Netflix's new thriller "Fatal Affair," but it's certainly hard to watch the film and not think about "Fatal Attraction," the 1987 movie starring Glenn Close and Michael Douglas. From the poster design to the overall story arc, "Fatal Affair" is a woefully generic concoction, which doesn't offer any cheap thrills to make it even an entertaining watch.

We shouldn't judge a book - er, movie - by its cover, but going into "Fatal Affair," it's clear we are not up for anything profound - and that's perfectly okay. Not every movie has to move the ground beneath you, but "Fatal Affair" is just too boring, too by-the-numbers, and too afraid to deviate from its influences to entertain on the most basic level. There's an art to "entertaining garbage," and "Fatal Affair" misses the mark every step of the way.
Nia Long stars as Ellie, a successful attorney who moves to the suburbs with her husband Marcus (Stephen Bishop) to restart their life as empty nesters (their daughter recently started college, but returns to the new home for a visit). Ellie and Marcus clearly love each other, but their marriage is in a rough patch following an accident Marcus was involved in. Hopefully, their new home and Ellie's decision to start her own law firm will take some pressure off their marriage.

Enter David (Omar Epps), a former classmate of Ellie's. He gets a job at her soon to be ex-law firm, where they can catch-up before Ellie moves on to her own business. Immediately, David seems very adamant that he and Ellie make time to properly get reacquainted. He asks her to drinks, but she can't go. Coffee? Busy. Finally, Ellie invites David to drinks on what should be a girls night out, but her best friend doesn't show.

Ellie and David talk about life over drinks, which leads to shots, which leads to dancing, which ultimately leads to a boozy lapse in judgment in a club bathroom. In under a minute, Ellie takes herself out of the situation and rushes home to her real life, which is, despite any present unhappiness, where she really wants to be. David, however, has different plans, and what happened that night doesn't end there. He continues to forcefully pursue Ellie, ignoring her pleas to leave her and her family alone.

The title of the movie is disingenuous as to what the film is about. There isn't a sustained affair, and Ellie and David's sexual interactions are limited to those few seconds in the club bathroom. Ellie wants her marriage to work, so the remainder of "Fatal Affair" is about Ellie trying to stay away from David. "Fatal Few Seconds" probably wasn't a succinct enough title.

"Fatal Affair" isn't so much overtly bad as it's overtly mechanic. Every step the movie takes is copy-and-pasted from a different film, and that kind of routineness doesn't allow for much fun to seep in. Director and co-writer Peter Sullivan (he co-wrote the screenplay with Rasheeda Garner) is so beholden to the shopworn story that he forgets to inject any kind of propulsive energy into the material. Long and Epps do what they can with the flimsy screenplay.

Netflix acquires, produces, and puts out so much material, it's easy to look at their catalog and assume most of their original movies are bad. They really are a platform that gives a home to legendary filmmakers and new talent alike. "Fatal Affair" feels like an easy product for them to attract a ton of views without delivering on its premise.

"Fatal Affair" is now streaming on Netflix.

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About Wanni Arachchige Udara Madusanka Perera

Hey, I'm Perera! I will try to give you technology reviews(mobile,gadgets,smart watch & other technology things), Automobiles, News and entertainment for built up your knowledge.
Fatal Affair Movie Review Fatal Affair Movie Review Reviewed by Wanni Arachchige Udara Madusanka Perera on July 19, 2020 Rating: 5

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