I am well aware of the bad pun I just made in the title of this review. If you didn't think that was funny, all I can tell you is that it is probably funnier than 95% of the gags in this film. I will admit that a couple of the gags here and there elicited a few chuckles out of me, but for the most part, I kept watching this film wondering why a production assistant didn't pull Carl Reiner aside and say, "Sir, this isn't funny. I recommend shutting down production."
I'm betting that 1994 must have made for a hell of a family reunion at the Reiner household. Carl Reiner's son, Rob Reiner, ended his hot streak of memorable films when he released "North" (1994), the comedy that almost permanently derailed his career. The elder Reiner, who is also no stranger to funny and often times memorable films ("The Jerk" (1979), "The Man With Two Brains" (1983)), probably felt the same pain as Rob after releasing this forgettable mess of a film.
"Fatal Instinct" is a comedy that is a spoof, but is sometimes unsure of just what it is spoofing. It is supposed to be a parody of erotic thrillers that came out in the late '80's and early '90's. Of course, there are many references to scenes in "Fatal Attraction" (1987) and "Basic Instinct" (1992), hence the name of the film. Scenes from other such thrillers like "Sleeping With The Enemy" (1991), "Body Heat" (1981), and "Cape Fear" (1962 or 1991) are also obviously repeated.
There are two problems with this films repeating scenes from these movies. First, the key word is "repeat". None of the actors in these scenes even try to reflect the irony of the most memorable moments in these crime thrillers. Sure they reference Sharon Stone's infamous lack of underwear in "Basic Instinct", and Glenn Close's roasting a bunny in a pot in "Fatal Attraction". Simple referencing of such scenes does not make them funny.
Second, the film is rated PG-13, which means kids can see it. Because "Basic Instinct" and "Fatal Attraction" were R-rated movies that both came close to being NC-17, kids would not (or should not) have been able to see them. Therefore, any jokes about, or references to, these films, regardless of whether or not they're funny, are going to fly over kids' heads. If you're going to spoof R-rated movies, why not go edgier with the on-screen gags? Kids probably would not want to see the movie anyway, so why did the filmmakers not even think to make this movie R-rated?
When the film is not reenacting femme fatale shots from movies adult audience members probably have already seen, it seems as though it inserts infantile gags in an attempt to be "The Naked Gun" (1988). Armand Assante is a good dramatic actor, but in this movie, it seemed as though he tried way too hard to be Leslie Nielsen. Nielsen was funny in the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker comedies because he said ridiculous things while keeping a straight face. Assante all too often seemed aware of the absurdity of his lines, and his natural comic timing was usually way off.
On top of all those errors, there were a lot of really tired running gags. Seeing gum and toilet paper being stuck to Sean Young's high heels wasn't particularly funny the first time, and was even less the fifth time around. The joke about Assante being both a cop and a lawyer was also about as stupid as his closet being full of the same suit. The film was also inundated with really stupid character names (i.e. Max Shady, Judge Skanky), and horrible, obvious puns.
Nowhere were these terrible puns more evident than in the courtroom scene. Once the bailiff called for a ten minute recess, guess what happened next? Yep, all the members of the court went outside and played games. Get it? Like it's recess in elementary school!?!?! Ho ho HO!!!!!! Note: By sheer coincidence, there was an equally bad courtroom joke in Rob Reiner's film, "North". When the main character's parents are in comatose during his divorce from them, their attorney says, "I'm afraid the defense rests". Which joke is worse? You decide.
So this film was bad. It had very good actors in it that tried way too hard to be funny, and looked stupid as a result. Even worse, there was really no story. The writer of this film seemed to be so busy naming erotic thrillers that the audience never cares about the fate of the characters in THIS movie. The film spins its wheels while managing to go nowhere. Carl Reiner should be thankful to Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, though. If they hadn't made their awful spoof movies, which are far more guilty of repeating pop culture moments, "Fatal Instinct" would probably be the worst parody film of all time. It is fatal to watch, and you should trust your instinct by not seeing it.
I'm betting that 1994 must have made for a hell of a family reunion at the Reiner household. Carl Reiner's son, Rob Reiner, ended his hot streak of memorable films when he released "North" (1994), the comedy that almost permanently derailed his career. The elder Reiner, who is also no stranger to funny and often times memorable films ("The Jerk" (1979), "The Man With Two Brains" (1983)), probably felt the same pain as Rob after releasing this forgettable mess of a film.
"Fatal Instinct" is a comedy that is a spoof, but is sometimes unsure of just what it is spoofing. It is supposed to be a parody of erotic thrillers that came out in the late '80's and early '90's. Of course, there are many references to scenes in "Fatal Attraction" (1987) and "Basic Instinct" (1992), hence the name of the film. Scenes from other such thrillers like "Sleeping With The Enemy" (1991), "Body Heat" (1981), and "Cape Fear" (1962 or 1991) are also obviously repeated.
There are two problems with this films repeating scenes from these movies. First, the key word is "repeat". None of the actors in these scenes even try to reflect the irony of the most memorable moments in these crime thrillers. Sure they reference Sharon Stone's infamous lack of underwear in "Basic Instinct", and Glenn Close's roasting a bunny in a pot in "Fatal Attraction". Simple referencing of such scenes does not make them funny.
Second, the film is rated PG-13, which means kids can see it. Because "Basic Instinct" and "Fatal Attraction" were R-rated movies that both came close to being NC-17, kids would not (or should not) have been able to see them. Therefore, any jokes about, or references to, these films, regardless of whether or not they're funny, are going to fly over kids' heads. If you're going to spoof R-rated movies, why not go edgier with the on-screen gags? Kids probably would not want to see the movie anyway, so why did the filmmakers not even think to make this movie R-rated?
When the film is not reenacting femme fatale shots from movies adult audience members probably have already seen, it seems as though it inserts infantile gags in an attempt to be "The Naked Gun" (1988). Armand Assante is a good dramatic actor, but in this movie, it seemed as though he tried way too hard to be Leslie Nielsen. Nielsen was funny in the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker comedies because he said ridiculous things while keeping a straight face. Assante all too often seemed aware of the absurdity of his lines, and his natural comic timing was usually way off.
On top of all those errors, there were a lot of really tired running gags. Seeing gum and toilet paper being stuck to Sean Young's high heels wasn't particularly funny the first time, and was even less the fifth time around. The joke about Assante being both a cop and a lawyer was also about as stupid as his closet being full of the same suit. The film was also inundated with really stupid character names (i.e. Max Shady, Judge Skanky), and horrible, obvious puns.
Nowhere were these terrible puns more evident than in the courtroom scene. Once the bailiff called for a ten minute recess, guess what happened next? Yep, all the members of the court went outside and played games. Get it? Like it's recess in elementary school!?!?! Ho ho HO!!!!!! Note: By sheer coincidence, there was an equally bad courtroom joke in Rob Reiner's film, "North". When the main character's parents are in comatose during his divorce from them, their attorney says, "I'm afraid the defense rests". Which joke is worse? You decide.
So this film was bad. It had very good actors in it that tried way too hard to be funny, and looked stupid as a result. Even worse, there was really no story. The writer of this film seemed to be so busy naming erotic thrillers that the audience never cares about the fate of the characters in THIS movie. The film spins its wheels while managing to go nowhere. Carl Reiner should be thankful to Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, though. If they hadn't made their awful spoof movies, which are far more guilty of repeating pop culture moments, "Fatal Instinct" would probably be the worst parody film of all time. It is fatal to watch, and you should trust your instinct by not seeing it.