Fatal Instinct (1993)

There is definitely an excellent idea hidden in the background of the film. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find it.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

You don't have to know the erotic thrillers being spoofed to enjoy this Carl Reiner film. Its smart slapstick in his usual absurdist and cinematic style. Its corny stuff but its totally self-aware cheekiness. I found myself LOL'ing quite a bit and also enjoying the acting, cinematography and editing. Reiner is a master comedy director and this is as enjoyable as The Man With Two Brains and Summer Rental. This one just doesn't appeal to as big or hip an audience.

With the opening sequence there is a glimmer of hope but roll on a few minutes and it soon becomes clear that this is going to be well short of the mark of decent spoofs like Airplane, Naked Gun and Hot Shots. A good cast does nothing for the poor jokes and bad direction. Some of the cast were totally underused especially John Witherspoon who is extremely funny and might have added that something which was definitely missing from this film.I should have went with my Instinct after the first few minutes and stopped watching, that i'm afraid was my Fatal mistake. Overall if you like the above mentioned spoofs stay well clear of this one.

Carl Reiner tries his hand at an "Airplane!"-styled spoof of crime-thrillers, such as "Basic Instinct" and "Body Heat", but the results are full of cheap gags and silly smut. Armand Assante is the befuddled cop, Sean Young is the femme fatale, Kate Nelligan is Assante's two-timing spouse, Rosie O'Donnell is...Rosie O'Donnell. Assante, he of the droopy bedroom eyes and self-satisfied smirk, allows himself to be a little ridiculous here, but slapstick buffoonery just isn't in him, and he struggles manfully to have a good time. The movie just doesn't have the correct look of a crime-noir down--and worse, it appears to have been made by a filmmaker with a very standard, square sense of humor. * from ****

Carl Reiner, a man that knows about comedy, is the man behind this spoof on the noir genre. Mr. Reiner, working here with David O'Malley's screen play, has created a film that parodies movies like "Double Indemnity", "Basic Instinct", and "Fatal Attraction", among others, with great style.The result is a film with some clever lines spoken by the cast as though they are acting in the prototype movies that Mr. Reiner is spoofing, with great panache. Not everything works, but when it does, the fun never seems to stop making us laugh.The cast Mr. Reiner assembled is up to the task. Armand Assante is excellent as Ned Ravine, a man who is a policeman and lawyer and who does some excellent dancing in those red stiletto shoes his character seems to love. Sherilyn Fenn is the loyal secretary Laura. Kate Nelligan does an excellent imitation of Barbara Stanwyck as the scheming wife, Lana. Sean Young has some good moments in the film."Fatal Instinct" is a film to watch with a lot of friends. Mr. Reiner shows why he has been one of the best comic writers in America.