Fatal Attraction - The character of Alex Forrest

In ‘Fatal Attraction’, there are many different characters involved in the film, however, the main characters in ‘Fatal Attraction’ are the married man Dan Gallagher, his wife Beth Gallagher, his daughter Ellen Gallagher and Alex Forrest, in which the events in the film occur around these characters, Alex Forrest calling Dan’s house telephone at all times throughout the day, Alex Forrest turning up at their apartment which is up for sale, Alex Forrest taking Dan and Beth’s daughter from school, sending Dan a cassette of verbal abuse, and turning up at their family home (once they have moved), which mostly occur in domestic settings.

In ‘Fatal Attraction’, Alex Forrest is a mentally unstable, disturbing and obsessive woman, who has a split personality, due to her being extremely calm compared to her actions in the film, in which Alex Forrest’s appearance is extremely noticeable because of her bold eyes (which are eye-catching), which adds to her evil streak of actions in the film. Furthermore, throughout the film Alex Forrest has many different aspects of psychological behaviour, as her taking Dan and Beth’s child from her school, calling home at all times throughout the day, and sending Dan the cassette to play, all play with Dans and Beths mind. Alex Forrest’s character in ‘Fatal Attraction’ is extremely effective, as she is unstable, disturbing and obsessive throughout the whole film, in which she plays with Dan’s mind to get her own way (over a series of times).

Throughout ‘Fatal Attraction’, there are many effective sequences that make ‘Fatal Attraction’ an extremely good film, such as Dan’s reaction when Alex calls home for the first time, Dan driving and listening to Alex’s cassette playing, and the end sequence, when Dan is in the dark isolated house, Beth is upstairs and the mirrors are misty as the kettle boils.

The sequence of Dan’s reaction to when Alex calls home for the first time is effective because this sequence puts Dan at edge, as he thinks the affair has been forgotten about, and his wife is right next to him in bed, in which Dan has to change his tone and the way he talks to her, so his wife doesn’t suspect he has had an affair, in which the audience want to see where the storyline is going to go.

The sequence of Dan driving and listening to Alex’s cassette playing is also effective because this sequence also puts Dan at edge, because the cassette playing of Alex abusing him shows she is willing to go to every extent to get her own way, no matter who she hurts in the process.

The end sequence of Dan being in the dark isolated house, with his wife Beth upstairs in the bathroom, and the mirror being misty, while the kettle boils is extremely effective, as it is a simple sequence, however, it is effective because Alex Forrest pops up out of nowhere, and the audience don’t know if Dan is going to get upstairs in time to save his wife from Alex Forrest, because the kettle is boiling and he can’t hear his wife screaming.

All the sequences stated above are effective on the audience watching, as they keep the audience on the edge of their seats because they don’t know what is going to happen next, and they want to know where the storyline is leading to. Furthermore, I would take the idea of the end sequence (Dan being in the dark isolated house, with his wife upstairs in the bathroom, and the mirrors being misty, while the kettle boils) to help me create my own effective thriller, as the idea is simple and achievable, yet extremely effective.