Movie Type: Psychological Thriller, Crime Thriller
Themes: Miscarriage of Justice, Flight of the Innocent
Main Cast: Kevin Kline, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Kevin Spacey, Rebecca Miller, Forest Whitaker
Release Year: 1992
Country: US
Run Time: 100 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Composer Richard Parker (Kevin Kline) and his wife Priscilla (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) live an ordinary suburban life until they meet their new neighbors Eddy (Kevin Spacey) and Kay (Rebecca Miller). The two couples become friends until some mate-swapping is suggested by the men. The plot takes a nasty turn, however, when Richard sleeps with Kay -- who turns up, the next morning, bludgeoned to death with a baseball bat. Soon, Richard is charged with the crime and must prove his innocence. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
Review
At what point does a preposterous film become preposterous? In Consenting Adults, is it when Kevin Spacey drives his motorcycle out of the moving van and into his garage, demonstrating to his new neighbors just what a wild card he is? Is it when the film's husbands agree to swap wives secretly in the middle of the night, believing the women will be too sleepy to recognize they're having intercourse with an impostor? (Which, one might add, removes a bit of the "consent" from the title). Or does the total descent into idiocy wait until the final showdown, in which Spacey inexplicably brandishes an Uzi submachine gun as "self defense"? However it's sliced, Alan J. Pakula's Consenting Adults, a thriller about dysfunctional marriages, is pretty dysfunctional itself. The best thing going for it is that it starts out at least resembling the structure of other thrillers, approaching plausibility now and again. But its central portion -- sometime after this ill-fated nighttime switcheroo -- is rife with red herrings, leaps in logic, and shoddy camerawork. If the viewer can't determine who's in on the scam and who isn't, that should be because the narrative establishes an air of mystery about the characters -- not because the execution is incompetent. Even if Consenting Adults wasn't fatally flawed as a production, its essential gender politics should give a thinking person pause, as the film's women are grossly mishandled by their men. That's fine if that's the filmmaker's message, but the weakness of the female characters seems more a careless accident than a device intended to expose male ugliness. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
E.G. Marshall - George Gordon; Kimberly McCullough - Lori Parker; Jerry Campbell - Prison Guard; Bruce Evers - Maxie; Ed Grady - Mr. Watkins; Benjamin Hendrickson - Jimmy Schwartz; Billie Neal - Annie Duttonville; Ginny Parker - Martha; Edward Seamon - Hotel Desk Clerk; Suzanne Stewart - Mrs. Watkins; Veronica Vera; L. Warren Young - Musician in Blues Connection; Lonnie Smith - Dr. Pettering; Michelle Smith - Christmas Caroler; Mark Wood - Christmas Caroler; Alixe Gordin; Judson Vaughn - Max Roth; Meredith Brasher; Tommy Cresswell - Charleston Detective; Annie Sprinkle; Janette Lane Bradbury - Dry Cleaner Lady; Robert C. Treveiler - Charleston Deputy
Credit
Alicia Keywan - Art Director, Katie Jacobs - Co-producer, Gary Jones - Costume Designer, Ann Roth - Costume Designer, Alan J. Pakula - Director, Sam O'Steen - Editor, Michael Small - Composer (Music Score), Joe Mulherin - Musical Direction/Supervision, Carol Spier - Production Designer, Stephen Goldblatt - Cinematographer, Pieter Jan Brugge - Producer, Alan J. Pakula - Producer, David Permut - Producer, Gretchen Rau - Set Designer, Matthew Chapman - Screenwriter, Robert "Bobby Z" Zajonc - Pilot
Thirteen run-of-the-mill instrumental pieces by Michael Small made to accompany a contemporary romantic thriller, plus a couple of moody songs sung by Q. Rose, one of which is Charlie Rich's "No Headstone On My Grave." ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
Gerald Wiggins (Piano), Ron Cristopher (Engineer), Christopher Dedrick (Orchestration), Bill Hatcher (Bass), John "Spider John" Koerner (Guitar), Sonny Kompanek (Orchestration), Stephen Krause (Music Scoring Mixer), Skip Lane (Sax (Tenor)), Joe Mulherin (Producer), Cheryl Rogers (Piano), Q. Rose (Vocals), Q. Rose (Performer), Bob Russell (Guitar), Andy Simkins (Bass), Andy Simpkins (Bass), Michael Small (Composer), Michael Small (Conductor), Michael Small (Producer), Michael Small (Main Performer), Michael Small (Performer), Greg Townley (Engineer), Emile Charlap (Orchestra Contractor), Paul Humphreys (Drums), Dave Collins (Engineer), Dave Collins (Mastering), Todd Kasow (Assistant Producer), Todd Kasow (Music Editor), Judy Kaganowich (Art Direction), Jim Jackson (Drums), Jimmy Jackson (Drums)
Composer Richard Parker and his wife Priscilla live an ordinary suburban life until they meet their new neighbors Eddy and Kay Otis. The two couples became friends. Kay is an amateur singer with a great blues voice, which attracts Richard's attention. Eddy is attracted to Priscilla. It becomes clear that Eddy is a scam artist - he fakes a neck injury after an auto accident for the insurance proceeds, the majority of which he offers as a gift to the Parkers. Eddy chastises Richard for not living dangerously, and suggests they swap mates for an evening. The plot takes a nasty turn when Richard does sleep with Kay (supposedly without her realizing that he is not her husband) and Kay turns up bludgeoned to death with a baseball bat the next morning. Later in the film it is revealed that Eddy spent the night elsewhere, to establish an airtight alibi. Since Richard's fingerprints are on the bat (the two couples having played a friendly game of softball earlier that day) and his semen is found in her body, he is charged with the crime and must prove his innocence.
Insult is added to injury for Richard, as Priscilla disowns and divorces him due to his infidelity, and Eddy becomes Priscilla's lover and substitute father to Richard's child. Richard discovers that Kay is alive when he recognizes her voice singing in a radio talent show. With the help of a private investigator hired by the insurance company from which Eddy is attempting to collect a $1.5 million indemnity claim, Richard tracks her down and gets the truth of how he was betrayed. She is guilt-ridden over her part in it, but terrified at Eddy's threat to implicate her if she testifies. Shortly thereafter Eddy, anticipating his moves, murders her and slips away. Implicated in a second murder, Richard must now flee the scene as police sirens approach.
Priscilla discovers a forgotten plane ticket Eddy used on the night of the first murder and, realizing Eddy's guilt, worries over what to do about it. Richard performs a commando-style raid on Eddy's house and Eddy, anticipating this move as well, reveals to Priscilla his plan to murder her and shoot Richard as a homicidal intruder. Richard and Priscilla, working together, eventually kill Eddy, using the original baseball bat.
The film ends with the camera gradually pulling away to a wide aerial shot of Richard and Priscilla moving into a very secluded house with no neighbors visible for miles.
Trivia
This film was adapted and remade into the 2001 Hindi film Ajnabee.
