Unfaithful
Many people engage in extramarital affairs because they’re frustrated sexually, bored, abused, or just completely unfulfilled. But Unfaithful is the first film I’ve seen in which someone strays outside of a perfectly happy marriage (although I’m sure this is quite common in real life). This scenario could be schadenfreude for polyamorists.
Diane Lane and Richard Gere played Connie and Richard, a happily married couple in the suburbs of Westchester County, New York (and they live in a far nicer area than the gritty part of White Plains in which I resided). They have a son, Charlie (played by a young actor named Erik per Sullivan, who I’ll always know as Dewey from Malcolm in the Middle).
They seem to live a conventional, traditional suburban life; Edward runs a business while Connie serves a housewife (albeit one that is involved with her community). One day, while shopping in New York City, a windstorm knocks her into a young man named Paul. Paul has supermodel looks, an attractive French accent, and a knowledge of books that surpasses even mine. So naturally, she’s turned on, and after a nice buildup and some hesitation on Connie’s part, they’re engaged in an affair.
And it’s a hot one. They’re having sex in restaurant bathrooms, empty movie theaters, and the hallway of his building. Edward does get suspicious and hires a private eye to follow her. (SPOILER ALERT) The photographs lead him to Paul’s apartment, where Paul is unapologetic about having slept with the man’s wife. This lack of empathy leads Edward to strike him in the head with a globe, killing him. While cleaning up the mess, Connie breaks up with Paul’s voicemail (she had discovered him with one of his many other lovers and gotten jealous, not because she was in love, but because this was HER territory).
To be fair, Connie endures a major internal conflict, as she struggles with the lust and excitement of this affair and how it stacks up with the idyllic suburban life she’s built (as per her staring at the family picture).
I won’t spoil what happens after Paul’s death, but I will say that while Connie and Edward remain united at the end, what’s to come can’t be a good thing. There is one exchange that stood out at the dinner table.
Charlie: I’m never getting married.
Connie: You might change your mind.
(Edward eyes Connie suspiciously).
Given what’s about to happen, I think singlehood may well be in the cards for little Charlie.
Diane Lane and Richard Gere played Connie and Richard, a happily married couple in the suburbs of Westchester County, New York (and they live in a far nicer area than the gritty part of White Plains in which I resided). They have a son, Charlie (played by a young actor named Erik per Sullivan, who I’ll always know as Dewey from Malcolm in the Middle).
They seem to live a conventional, traditional suburban life; Edward runs a business while Connie serves a housewife (albeit one that is involved with her community). One day, while shopping in New York City, a windstorm knocks her into a young man named Paul. Paul has supermodel looks, an attractive French accent, and a knowledge of books that surpasses even mine. So naturally, she’s turned on, and after a nice buildup and some hesitation on Connie’s part, they’re engaged in an affair.
And it’s a hot one. They’re having sex in restaurant bathrooms, empty movie theaters, and the hallway of his building. Edward does get suspicious and hires a private eye to follow her. (SPOILER ALERT) The photographs lead him to Paul’s apartment, where Paul is unapologetic about having slept with the man’s wife. This lack of empathy leads Edward to strike him in the head with a globe, killing him. While cleaning up the mess, Connie breaks up with Paul’s voicemail (she had discovered him with one of his many other lovers and gotten jealous, not because she was in love, but because this was HER territory).
To be fair, Connie endures a major internal conflict, as she struggles with the lust and excitement of this affair and how it stacks up with the idyllic suburban life she’s built (as per her staring at the family picture).
I won’t spoil what happens after Paul’s death, but I will say that while Connie and Edward remain united at the end, what’s to come can’t be a good thing. There is one exchange that stood out at the dinner table.
Charlie: I’m never getting married.
Connie: You might change your mind.
(Edward eyes Connie suspiciously).
Given what’s about to happen, I think singlehood may well be in the cards for little Charlie.
