CONSENTING ADULTS. Directed by Alan J. Pakula; written by Matthew Chapman; produced by Alan J. Pakula and David Permut for Hollywood Pictures. Starring Kevin Kline, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Kevin Spacey and Rebecca Miller. Rated R.
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The story of Evil seducing Good and then making Good pay for its indiscretion—it may have been done a time or two before, but it is really a great basic storyline, and it deserves better treatment than it gets in Consenting Adults.
Good here is represented by the Parkers, particularly Richard (Kline). He's a composer who is married to Priscilla (Mastrantonio) and who writes commercial jingles but yearns to play—can you guess?—jazz. (This is just about how predictable the whole movie is, by the way.)
Evil is the Otis', at least Eddie (Spacey), who move in next door and soon become fast friends of the Parkers. Eddie even considerately sets up an insurance scam to earn them the money to pay off some debts. Red flags go up in the audience's mind immediately, of course, but the Parkers seem no more capable of resisting Eddie's charm than the old-time horror movie heroes can stay out of dilapidated houses.
In spite of its tendency to cliche, however, it's not really the basic story that's at fault here. It's the details that leave a lot to be desired. Character development is practically nonexistent, in spite of a seemingly interminable build-up. And, once we finally get to the meat of the tale, the narrative becomes quite leaky and contrived.
The script, I suspect, is the main culprit. But a large part of the blame must lie with Kline's character, as well. I'm usually quite a fan of his, but his performance here is just too lackluster. (I know, he's supposed to be lackluster, to contrast with the flamboyant Eddie, but he takes it so far that it's impossible to care much what happens to him).
I'm sure Kline would have had more fun playing the role taken by the other Kevin; he would have done a good job with it, too. And after seeing Spacey just a few days ago in Glengarry Glen Ross, where he was outstanding as a guy showing practically no emotions, I believe he could have made lackluster very interesting indeed.
Well, next time maybe the casting directors will consult me before the movie gets made, and we'll see some improvements!
November 4, 1992