ONE NIGHT STAND RATING: 5 / 10 --> Not good
Review Date: May 3, 1998
Director: Mike Figgis
Writer: Mike Figgis
Producers: Mike Figgis and Ben Myron
Actors: Wesley Snipes as Max Carlyle
Nastassja Kinski as Karen
Ming-Na Wen as Mimi
Kyle MacLachlan as Vernon
Robert Downey Jr. as Charlie
Genre: Drama
Year of Release: 1997
Mike Figgis' follow-up to the critically acclaimed LEAVING LAS VEGAS (8.5/10) from 1995, examines the repercussions of marital infidelity, and another man's struggle with HIV contamination.
PLOT: A married man with two kids has a one-night affair with a married woman during a weekend business trip to New York. Once back in LA, he contemplates his life and the consequences of his sinful act.
CRITIQUE: Comparing this film to FATAL ATTRACTION (8/10) or PHILADELPHIA (7/10) would be doing a great disservice to either one of those films, but nonetheless, the plot line doesn't stretch far from their respective story lines. Marital infidelity and a close friend dying of AIDS are the main topics in this film. Unfortunately, Figgis resolves absolutely nothing in regards to the infidelity topic, and scores only a few points in respect to the horror of a man dying of this disease. The film concludes on an absolutely ridiculous circumstance, which doesn't actually show anyone working through any of their complex issues.
The main problem I had with this film was its lack of honesty and realism in regards to the after-effects of a one-night affair. Nobody in this story seemed hurt, angry or despondent about the situation, while the better half of the film concentrated on a friend's struggle with the fatal disease. Robert Downey Jr. played his part as the man dying of AIDS remarkably well, while the rest of the cast didn't offer any mentionable performances. I found Kinski's character weak in persona, but did like Ming-Wa's strong and independent wife character (Mind you, I've had a thing for her since TV's "The Single Guy").
Overall, this film had very little entertainment value, no grand moral conclusions or solutions, and nothing exceptionally interesting to offer anyone. Figgis' directorial style was cool at times, but he did overuse the "fade to black" shot during one too many internals. If you are interested in either subject matter of this movie, I suggest that you rent either one of the two films that I mentioned earlier on, and save yourself some time and money.
Little Known Facts: Joe Eszterhas was an uncredited writer on this film (This might explain a lot of things...:)). Wesley Snipes appeared in Michael Jackson's "Bad" music video. You can only see him in the full length, 16 minute, black & white/color music video. And despite the fact that Wesley does not often acknowledge it, he did attend the State University of New York (SUNY) at Purchase and graduated with a BFA in 1985. Robert Downey Jr. lived with fellow actor Sarah Jessica Parker for 7 years during the 1980s, and studied ballet in London when he was young. Nastassja Kinski has a daughter with Quincy Jones, and is fluent in English, German, French, Italian and Russian.
(c) 1998 Berge Garabedian
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