Consenting Adults (1992) Online

This movie had been in my Netflix Queue for sometime and I decided to give it a watch after meeting Mary Elizabeth Mastrontonio in person (very gracious lady). Anyway, I'd seen the film before, but it had been many years. After viewing it again this time around, I came to the same conclusion. The first half of the story is very engaging and interesting. Kevin Spacey is brilliant in one of his early roles. Mastrontonio and Kline are also very appealing. You like the characters and you care about them. However, the second half of the film, the "thriller" portion, is so lame and unrealistic that I completely lost interest. It's as if the writers simply gave up on how to finish this film off. They created very interesting characters, set up a nice story, but the story didn't have anyplace interesting to go. I'd love for someone to try a rewrite of this thing. Anyway, not much going on here with this film. The only relevance it has is if you are a Spacey, Kline, or Mastrontonio fan. Rating 5 of 10 stars and that is being somewhat kind.

Here's a film I thought was unfairly criticized by the national critics. Panned by about everyone, I thought this thriller was pretty good.

Yes, there is one major credibility gap in a key segment which I, too was ridiculous. (How can you make love to your neighbor, even in darkness, and not know who it is?!) Also, there is a clichéd ending, but that's not unusual in films.

Overall, however, I thought it was entertaining and nicely filmed. I'd like to see this on a DVD with a better transfer. The main actors - Kevin Kline, Kevin Spacey, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio - were all interesting, especially Spacey's villain character. It was also interesting to E. G. Marshall, who was a big star on television years ago. I'm sorry his role was so short.

The film also had good suspense. All of these are why I think the film is a lot better than it's considered.

highly underrated. spacey provides a top notch performance, as does the rest of the cast. there is a solid chemistry between all the players which far outshadows any scripting weakness. this is a very good film, with several plot twists and great pacing.

This movie is both unlikely and unlikeable. It is unlikely that good actors would sign on to such a ridiculous and implausible screenplay. Perhaps neither Kline nor Spacey read the script before agreeing to do this film. That seems the most plausible explanation.

At some point one would imagine that someone would have asked the director just why the audience should give a flying flip about the fate of the alleged protagonist. He is a man being framed for the murder of his neighbor, when he was only guilty of raping her. (I should also note that he had also arranged to have his own wife raped by the husband of his victim, but that man, the alleged antagonist, did not follow through. Instead he killed the woman Kline's character had assaulted and set out to frame him for it.) The women in this movie are as vapid as the men are vile. The framed character's wife ultimately forgives him when he is cleared of the murder without any regard for the fact that he had snuck over to their neighbor's house in the middle of the night to have sex with another woman without her consent. She also doesn't seem to mind that he had volunteered her for the same treatment.

"Consenting Adults" simply proves what a Hollywood screenwriter can do when given a big budget, big stars and no imagination. Kevin Kline and Kevin Spacey play suburban neighbors who become unlikely friends then slowly descend into episodes of criminal mischief and debauchery.

The picture starts off well enough. We're introduced to Kline and his wife (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) and their musically gifted daughter. He's a composer of commercial jingles who appears to be placid and content in his boring, upper-middle-class ways. Then Spacey and his stunning wife (Rebecca Miller) move in next door, and Kline's character is suddenly awakened: Spacey is a real schmoozer, a "financial adviser" with a sharp mind and an engaging personality; Miss Miller is a bombshell, and one can sense that Kline wants a piece of her. The tension and complications build until Spacey suggests to Kline a one-night stand of wipe-swapping, each man accosting the other's wife, half-asleep in bed, so they are unaware of the identity of the lover (in theory, anyway). Kline refuses, but Spacey and the idea keep gnawing at him, and eventually, craving a scrap of excitement in his dull life, he gives in. The final consummation between Kline and Miller is a lovely shot; his bare body caught in shadows in front of a glittering window-dressing, partially lit by street lamps. Unfortunately, that's where the movie ends.

A few hours later, Miss Miller turns up dead, bashed with a baseball bat, and Kline, having had sex with her is cast as the murderer. From this point, nothing in the story appears to make much sense; its as though the screenplay was flowcharted by a computer programmer. This happens, then this, then this. Human emotions are never considered, and the movie becomes an acted-out cartoon, each actor assuming a caricature of something that fits a framework; any chance for texture in the performances is completely destroyed.

The plot is full of holes, and sometimes, in a truly suspenseful picture, the audience is willing to overlook it. Not this time. It's all so by-the-numbers, you can virtually guess what will happen next even though you don't understand why. If the dead girl wasn't Spacey's wife, then who was she? Why didn't Kline recognize her as a different girl when he rushed into the bedroom? (Do all vapid blondes look that much alike?) Why does Mastantonio immediately discount her husband's plea of innocence? (so much for 14 years of marriage) If she's so much happier with Spacey, why does she agree to play the tape? I considered that she might toss it in the lake they were standing by, but I knew she wouldn't. Then the computer program wouldn't run.

There's not much to like about the performances in this thing. Kevin Kline, it's been my long-held opinion, is only good when he's acting up a storm. When he plays a regular person, he's just boring, he radiates very little presence to the audience. He's not a convincing Everyman, as Jimmy Stewart was, he's just dismal and you don't really care whether he clears his name or not. The boringness is not so evident in the first part of the film (in fact, it fits), but once his life is on the line and he has reach to down deep for some reserve of passion, it isn't there. He's not compelling enough to be The Man Caught in the Web (he'd be lost in a Hitchcock picture). Kevin Spacey is superb in the early scenes as the sleazo Eddie, and he gives the picture its only zing; he has the right admixture of charm and smarm to draw you in and make you wary at the same time. But by the end, he's just another psychotic killer and his eyes gleam freakishly like Nicholson's in "The Shining". If there's such a thing as a cardboard cutout of a deviant, this is it. Audiences may like Forest Whitaker's subdued performance as a polite southern gentleman sniffing out the scam (he's like the Lovie Smith of insurance investigators), but it belongs in another movie.

A good movie could have been made from this material. From the crucial point of the wipe swap, it could have been a character study on how lives are destroyed by this kind of self-indulgent behavior, or at least a better thriller, with Spacey leading Kline into deeper and more diabolical adventures. But "Consenting Adults" is straight from the textbook, and a cursory-level high school textbook at that.

. . .but the weirdest thing is - it is eerily similar to the Aykroyd/Belushi film "Neighbors." Heavily derided in it's time, it matters not whether you liked it, it had some really weird elements to it. NOW - take out the weird elements and leave a basic plot: "Exciting" guy with a bad bleach-job and his sexy wife move in next door to thoroughly-mundane guy and his attractive wife; who, by the way have a sexless marriage. Kline/Belushi are set up as "marks" immediately, and almost as immediately the new neighbors begin a contrived "seduction of the innocent". Soon, the mundane guy finds himself trapped in an existential hell of Blondie's making(Spacey/Aykroyd). Well. Consenting Adults is not a good movie - or even interesting. Spacey gives a charismatic performance as usual, but the script lacks any originality. This was another entry in the ". . .from Hell" high-concept series of scripts from the early-90's. Babysitter. . .Cop. . .Neighbor. . .Dentist. ..I wish I could say that the best parts of this film ended up on the editing room floor - considering the cast - but there's no way this script was ever anything but stale.

SPOILERS THROUGH:

I've seen this movie a couple of times and have to admit I moderately enjoyed it even though it's got a lot of flaws. I think the all around premise is intriguing enough and the cast is great but somehow the movie loses it's way and doesn't make the impact it could, though it always stays watchable.

The movie had several really good ways it could have gone. It could have kept away from the whole thriller thing and just been a relationship movie, concentrating on the couple swapping issue. It could have also gone in the Noir direction but as a halfway believable one. The problem with this movie is there are to many plot holes to count AND it plays sometimes like a horror film with all the try to scare tactics, numerous plot holes, and it just becomes to out there. It's disappointing because the central premise is really interesting.

The cast is good with Spacey stealing the film and being the standout. But ultimately the movie is disappointing because it starts out so interesting, with such a strong hook, that it ultimately becomes a bit of a letdown just when it reaches the pinnacle of being at it's most interesting.

The focus shifts from the multiple relationships of the characters, and becomes just another thriller with plot twists and plot holes that make no sense. There's a point when one thinks they can actually start counting the plot holes because there are so many of them. I'm not saying the twists(or some of them) aren't clever, but things needed to actually make some sense to make this movie go beyond entertaining which it is, into being a really good movie and that never happens.

I could go into some of the plot holes but that would make this review way to long. I will use one example though and that's when a certain woman is supposedly murdered. Then a man is arrested for the murder. He begins to suspect she wasn't killed and eventually finds out she's alive, a "lookalike" is killed. He goes to see this woman. They speak. Then she really IS killed. The same man is suspected of the second murder. But how come the police don't express any surprise that the second murder is the murder of someone who is supposed to be have already been murdered way earlier? Wouldn't the police react to that? Especially because the first woman who was murdered was identified by her own husband? Is this making sense to anyone? That's my Point. It still doesn't make sense to me. I actually did kind of like this movie. After all, I've seen it more then once. But I couldn't help being disappointed overall. I would rather have watched a movie about the four characters and how they interact rather then just another thriller. Consenting Adults is absorbing though, keeps one watching, has a great cast and can even be watched more then once without losing the element of intrigue. Spacey and the rest of the cast in general elevate this and the writing, with all it's implausibilities, is clever. Ultimately my vote is 6.5 and if one likes psychological thrillers and doesn't mind implausibility, this is your movie! 6.5 out of 10.

Alan J. Pakula's 'Consenting Adults' is A Decent Thriller! It has some catchy moments & convincing performances working for it.

'Consenting Adults' Synopsis: A man is falsely accused of murdering his neighbor's wife.

'Consenting Adults' has its share of minuses, but what makes most of the goings-on work, is its brisk Screenplay Written by Matthew Chapman. It has some good, catchy moments, that are note-worthy. Alan J. Pakula's is perfect. Cinematography is good.

Performance-Wise: Kevin Kline is excellent. Has there ever been a better scene-stealer? Kevin Spacey makes a good menace, although he's been better. Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is fabulous in a performance that ranks amongst her finest to date. Rebecca Miller is highly effective. Forest Whitaker is believable.

On the whole, 'Consenting Adults' has merits.

Consenting adults has a strong cast, a decent script and a deeper than expected story, that builds and sustains enough tension throughout; without sinking into as much sexually explicit detail, as the title may suggest.

Kevin Kline, Kevin Spacey, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio and Rebecca Miller all portray there characters well, with Spacey and Miller stealing most of the credit.

Consenting Adults is a reasonably safe choice for most thriller fans, it's not the best out there; but its entertaining and intriguing enough to please.

6/10

Considering the acting talent and the late, great director Alan J. Pakula you would expect "Consenting Adults" to be a top notch thriller. Think again. It starts off well but then slowly descends into silliness.

Kevin Kline and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio play a happily married couple in suburbia. In next store moves Kevin Spacey and his very sexy wife. As the men get to know one another Spacey continually hints that maybe the couples show switch for a night of wild sex. When Kline finally does agree Spacey's wife ends up dead. So far so good. Then the movie stumbles into cliches, predictability, and ridiculous scenes that make you wonder how the screenwriter let the good idea get away.

Wow, this movie was so bad it was almost as funny as watching one of those awful Grade B sci-fi flicks Elvira used to show, but not quite. Surprised at the two Kevins--Kline and Spacey--whom I usually enjoy--being in this dud. The story line was highly implausible, the acting was terrible, the cinematography so unfocused that I can't believe this boring little blunder was even made. Even the singing was terrible. Kevin Kline's character, in it's own way, was almost as low as Spacey's, especially with the sneaky wife swapping part. After he has his way with the supposed Rebecca Miller character, he sits at his kitchen table next morning and tells his wife he loves her! Yeah, right!

Mastrantonio's character left a lot to be desired in the way of integrity, such as the way she leaped at accepting the fraudulently acquired insurance money and then acted self-righteous defending Eddie for having the nerve to fight to get the cash. She did look very pretty, however. If the Rebecca Miller character was a bombshell, why was she shot usually at fuzzy distances, never in a sharp close-up except in the end, in the dark, when her face is mostly concealed by a ridiculous red wig? Her bathtub scene was hilarious, especially when she rose from the water with her butt to the camera and put on her robe just standing there. Her attempts to look sizzling in Kline's voyeuristic eyes only made her look like she had cramps. Her performance was moribund, and Kline's ran a close second for morbidity. This is one of the worst movies I have ever seen and only the well-grounded talent of Spacey and Kline saved their careers in its aftermath. Spacey does get good marks for the diabolical expression on his face when Mastrantonio is trying to flee the beach house, flings up the door thinking he is gone, and there he is in all his evil glory hiding in the closet. That's about the only good thing I can say about this flick.

This truly bland exercise in studio suspense proves once and for all that you can put all the talent in the world together, but if the script doesn't work, you're wasting your time. It does have the advantage of Kevin Spacey chewing scenery four years before anyone knew who the devil he was (I'll pay five bucks for that any day), but even he seems somewhat uninspired.

Richard and Priscilla Parker (Kevin Kline and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) are yuppie musicians who live in suburbia somewhere in the South (Georgia? Virginia? North Carolina? It's never really made clear). They have a dull but fairly stable marriage and a musically skilled daughter who they pack off to boarding school mainly because they're too busy with their careers to deal with her. Into their dull lives come rockin' and rollin' Eddy Otis (Kevin Spacey) and his hot wife Kay (Rebecca Miller, looking like she took a Valium).

Eddy and Kay barge into Richard and Priscilla's lives with gusto. He's a "financial adviser" with an unhealthy appetite for risk-taking; she's a doormat with a beautiful singing voice. Eventually (in part because Eddy manages to eliminate their debt via an incredibly risky and immoral insurance scam), the couples become best friends. Richard begins to find himself attracted to Kay, and Eddy proposes that he and Richard do a one-night swap, claiming (ludicrously) that in the dead of night, with their wives half-asleep, no one will be the wiser. Richard, who is also something of a doormat without nearly the personality to stand up to the bullying, aggressive Eddy, agrees to the swap.

Long story short: Richard ends up framed for Kay's murder, Eddy swipes a willing Priscilla and their kid, and Richard has to prove his innocence to the police, an insurance investigator (Forest Whitaker), and most importantly his wife.

There is not a single likable character in the entire piece. That's what blows me away. Eddy is charismatic and he's supposed to be charming (and with Kevin Spacey in the role, he comes damn close). But he comes off as loud, obnoxious, and overbearing. I know guys like Eddy. I don't let them anywhere near my fiancée because I know they're going to hit on her, and I don't make them my friends because I know that they'll stick a knife in my back the moment it suits them. I suppose the fact that I recognize the guy is a testament to Spacey's acting, which is not surprising, but if we're supposed to believe that Richard fell for his nonsense, it's help if he were a little less of a jerk. Kevin Kline dozes his way through playing Richard as a spineless schmuck dealing with a midlife crisis which unfortunately just happens to involve Uzis and bloodied baseball bats. I've never seen him look so bored. Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is a shrill, henpecking banshee as Priscilla. And Rebecca Miller is essentially playing a battered wife.

Y'know, I take it back. I don't just know guys like Eddy Otis, I think I actually know Eddy Otis. And his poor wife. I just hope they don't turn on me. If my life's going to be a movie, I'd much rather it be "Star Wars" or something.

Any number of Hollywood presentations stretch their plots to allow scenes that add thrills and give the actors a chance to "emote". CA takes this to another level, creating a universe where people do things for no particular reason except to keep the engine chugging along, pulling its strange cargo toward a requisite splashy finale. Along the way the movie becomes much like a creature that has passed through the transformation pods in "The Fly". You can kind of tell what was intended but the actual result is anything but pretty. Accompanying these oddities is the absolute stupidity required of the characters. At one point the lead, accused of one murder, discovers potential exculpatory evidence which he shares with an insurance investigator. This could save the insurance company 1.6 million dollars. The logical thing to do, of course, would be for the investigator, with the help of the police, to check this out saving the insurance company their money and eliminating the murder charge for the lead. But does the investigator follow it up? Well, that would be expecting these people to have high level thinking. High level in this case means what any reasonable person might think about. Since the characters in CA tend to have the thinking processes of turnips the lead follows up himself, resulting in yet another murder on his hands. However that does allow the requisite finale which is completed with the panache of a 5th grade play. The acting is fine, but plot holes and poor direction particularly of action sequences ruined the film.

Kevin Kline is cleverly framed for the murder of his best friend's wife, with a seemingly airtight case against him. Equal cleverness in working out this story seemed called for. Instead, the frame-up basically unravels by improbable happenstance and concludes with trite Hollywood-isms, finally throwing in the towel with a few assault-weapon blasts. Real subtle, yes?

Not too bad a way to pass the time, but ultimately a let-down.

Fans of Forest Whitaker ("The Crying Game") will be pleased to see this talented actor appearing as a very southern, shy, soft-spoken insurance investigator.

Besides characters played by Moe Howard or Stan Laurel, it's hard to remember a leading man who was as amazingly stupid as Kevin Kline's Richard Parker. The thing is, neither Kevin the actor or Richard the character seem to know that Richard is stupid, and the people around him, including the film's director, don't know it either. You want to pull for Richard because of what's happening to him, but he just keeps reacting in such an inane way, and digging his hole so much deeper that it's hard to care.

As far as Kevin Spacey goes, didn't his SEVEN character present himself as less of a psycho, at least on the surface? Apparently, Priscilla isn't much smarter than her husband, and the local police don't have much more going on than either of them.

This climax tries hard to create the mood of suspense in PLAY MISTY FOR ME or FATAL ATTRACTION, but by that point, after ninety minutes of watching these annoying people create their own hellish situations, why would it matter? Of course, the villain is even more annoying than the would be heroes, so you probably won't want to root for him, either.

It's difficult to remember when any of the three leads played less charismatic characters. If this film had been made in 1945, I might have cast Lou Costello, Bela Lugosi and and a leading lady more inept and annoying than any that I can think of, off the top (Jean Stapleton wasn't working yet at that point, was she?). Better casting choices today might be George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Theresa Heinz Kerry. You can figure out who would play which character, based on everything I said.

*** Warning spoilers ahead*** don't read this unless you've seen the movie ***

I thought this movie had an interesting start but as it went on it just got more and more stupid and illogical. Mastrantonios character is a disgusting and selfish person. Imagine being married to a woman who worries more about gossip and her own reputation than you being innocently thrown in jail for murder! She knows Spaceys alibi is fake, therefore she must also know he is the real killer. Why else would he lie to the police? There's no other reason. I can't understand why Kline tries to win her back in the last half of the movie, nor how they could have been married for years. She is a woman who doesn't give a damn about him, when he's thrown in jail she turns her back on him, she is more loyal to a complete stranger and she leaves him for the closest guy around. Why would you want such a woman back? And what exactly is the "evidence" that proves kline killed that woman? That he had had sex with her? That is another thing I don't understand about this movie. If they could see that he had had sex with her before the killing that must mean that he slept with the real wife, the wife he never got to know since spacey introduced him to "olivia kamen" instead. So then either he is so stupid that he doesn't notice that he is having sex with a woman he never met + the woman is equally stupid for not being surprised by a total stranger surprising her in bed. I guess I have to watch the movie again to find that out or maybe someone here have written something intelligent about that. Anyway I don't hate the movie but it's really hard to just ignore the facts that I've been commenting here.

Spoilers herein.

Some films are built around the notion of an acting duel, nothing more. And here we have two of the best at this sort of thing. Both excel at bouncing off of another actor. Here, the plot handily accommodates: Spacey's character is an actor himself who pulls a huge con on Kline. Kline is able to come out on top, but by cheating. We know to expect this because Kline is established early in the film as a cheater.

Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 4: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

A happily married couple (Oscar Winner:Kevin Spacey & Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) are receiving new neighbors from next door (Two Time Oscar Winner:Kevin Spacey & Rebecca Miller). When the husband is attracted to his neighbor. Her husband makes a bet that he will commit adultery. When he does sleeps with her, the next day he finds out she was murder. His neighbor frames him for murder but turns out, There is more than meets the Eye!

Directed by Alan J. Pakula (The Devil's Own, The Pelican Brief, Presumed Innocent) made a fine, but could have been better thriller. The film is highly watchable but flaws in places. Kline gives a surprisingly weak performance in the film. But the film is worth seeing for Spacey's turn as a murdering, sleazy new neighbor. The film also stars Forest Whitaker and E.G. Marshall. If you are a Kilne fan, you will be disappointed but if you are a Spacey fan, you might like this movie. Written by Matthew Champan (Color of Night, Runaway Jury, What's the Worst It Could Happen?). (*** ½/*****).

Watching Consenting Adults will teach you two essential things about sex thrillers.

1. They need to have some sex in them.

2. The hero can't be, by a country mile, the least interesting character on screen.

Richard and Priscilla Parker (Kevin Klein and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) are a married couple living in one of those suburban heavens of the early 1990s. Richard composes commercial jingles while Priscilla handles the family finances. They've got a huge house on a cul de sac and a daughter who spends most of her time away at school. Everything seems fine until Eddie and Kay Otis (Kevin Spacey and Rebecca Miller) move in next door. Eddie is a big talking hustler and Kay is a lovely but wistful wannabe lounge singer. The two couples become fast friends until Eddie gets a little too insistent on wanting to do a little wife swapping with Richard.

That ends the relationship, but the story suddenly informs us that Richard and Priscilla aren't the relatively happy couple they've appeared to be so far. We're supposed to accept that they are desperately unhappy and in need of the spark provided by their next door neighbors. That leads Richard to assent to Eddie's idea, and they slip into each other's home one night to have half-asleep sex with the other man's wife without her realizing it. The next day Kay turns up beaten to death with a baseball bat and Richard finds himself framed for the crime. He's thrown into jail, Priscilla leaves him and he's stuck with an irascible lawyer (E. G. Marshall) who thinks he's guilty. Richard gets out on bail, meets an insurance investigator (Forrest Whitaker) who's the only other person to suspect Eddie of misdeeds, and sets out to uncover Eddie's plan and get his family back.

Everything about this movie says it's supposed to be a sex thriller. The title, the DVD cover, the first 30 minutes of the film, they all make you think that. I even remember the TV ads for this movie when it was in theaters and those made you think it was a sex thriller. But aside from three naked butt shots, including a sideways look at Kevin Klein's ass, there is no sex in this movie. In fact, the only genuinely sexy aspect of Consenting Adults is the real estate porn it shows off. There are a lot of great looking homes and property put on display, but if you're looking for any arousal involving human beings…you'll be out of luck.

Compounding that weirdly fundamental flaw, Richard Parker is not just the least interesting character in this film; he's one of the least interesting characters in any film I've ever seen. Anyone who's seen him in other work knows Kevin Klein is very talented, but Richard Parker is just a flat block of wood. Every other actor in the story is allowed to inject a little or a lot of personality into their roles, but for some reason the director didn't let Klein do a damn thing with his performance. What makes it worse is that after the murder occurs, Richard becomes the only character the story really focuses on. You cannot build any tension in a thriller if the hero constantly facing danger could get killed and no one in the audience would care.

If the collapse of the housing market has left you anxious for some real estate porn or you'd like to take a gander at Kevin Klein's behind, this is a movie for you. If you're looking for something to excite and thrill you, instead of bore and frustrate you, don't consent to renting Consenting Adults.

(DIRECTOR):ALAN J. PAKULA(CAST):KEVIN KLINE, KEVIN SPACEY, MARY ELIZABETH MASTRANTONIO, FOREST WHITAKER.

This movie, directed by alan(all the presidents men)pakula, had alot of good things going for it, great cast, good director, decent music, but ultimately, it falls short, from the wasted role of forest whitaker, to the way the characters are developed, to the way the twists are revealed, all in all:a decent thriller with a great cast.***

I'm quite young and watching this film seemed like a bit of a waste of time

People might say oh yeah you wont get it but there wasn't a lot to get

Bits of it were jumpy n they were the only scary bits unless you don't like blood

Both me and my friend found it a bit boring at points

Some of just made no sense at all, like why would he get back with his wife?

The characters seemed a bit basic and most of it was just so bad it was amusing

It didn't really have anything going for it, seeing as it wasn't funny, or scary, or interesting.

I wouldn't watch it again

But if there's nothing on you could keep yourself entertained trying to work out the little plot it has.

I certainly agree with all the critical reviews. Nevertheless, I rated the movie much higher than the average for two simple but essential reasons: it was quite entertaining and definitely not boring.

I never liked Kevin Spacey and he did his best to justify my attitude toward him. On the other hand, Kevin Kline is one of my all time favorite actors despite his mediocre performance here.

P.S. I saw the movie when it first came out but I remembered only one single scene from it when I watched it the second time on 01/25/2018.

To those who say this is Hitchcokian...then you're that familiar with a Hitchcock film. Hitchcock would have had MUCH better pacing. The set up here was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long. I had thought this was just about wife-swapping, so I'm glad I stuck with it...but the only reason I stuck with the long "first half" was that I really like Kevin Kline and Kevin Spacey.

And that's just for starters. Too many machinations to be plausible. That's where the too clever for its own good comes in.

Is there a saving grace? Yes. Stellar acting from Kline and Spacey. It was still a couple of years before Spacey hit his stride (with "The Usual Suspects"), but he deliciously evil in this film. Never trust a man who wears white shoes! Did Kline ever hit his stride? I think not. Instead he had a nice steady career. But he's great here. Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is very good as Kline's wife.

Do I recommend this film? With strong reservations. If you don't generally enjoy Kline and Spacey, I'd skip it. But if you're a fan you'll probably like it. Just don't really expect to be sitting on the edge of your seat. It's not that suspenseful.

The film stars sexy Kevin Kline and Kevin Spacey, both married and recently becoming next door neighbors. Kevin Kine is supposedly in a happy relationship with his wife (played by Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, but all hell breaks loose when Kevin Spacey's character sets his new friend up for the murder of his wife so he can collect on a heft insurance policy. Does the criminal justice system in America really let a man who is about to stand trial for a brutal murder out on bail? Do they then let him wander, unsupervised, wherever he pleases? This movie started out great the way it established the growing friendship between two very different couples and then moved into a murder mystery. The acting was first-rate (with the exception of Rebecca Miller can we say boring?) but then the plot defied logic. Further, it is completely unrealistic that a shattered Kevin Kline's wife would have so immediately taken up with Kevin Spacey. By the time the film ended, it felt like a comedy, it was so ridiculous!

Overall rating: 7 out of 10.

"Consenting Adults" has a great premise, and the first half plays more like an observant drama about picture-perfect American suburbs, marital fidelity, the forbidden fruit, the pull of living on the edge, "does money buy you happiness?", etc. The second half is not as good as the first, and the violent climactic fight is particularly conventional. Yet on the whole this remains an above-average early-1990s thriller. Kevin Spacey's role is like a rehearsal for the double whammy of "calm psychopaths" that made him famous in 1995 ("Seven" and "The Usual Suspects"), Rebecca Miller makes a stunning femme fatale (or is she just an innocent victim? The fact that we don't know which for a long time is one of the film's strong points), the music score is very Bernard Herrmann-like, and the final shot is a very clever visual pun. **1/2 out of 4.