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Basic Instinct
1992
This steamy thriller to end all steamy thrillers stars Michael Douglas as Nick, a boozy San Francisco police detective who finds himself drawn to the prime suspect in a murder case--manipulative, sexually uninhibited novelist Catherine Trammell (Sharon Stone). Catherine's latest book features a murder uncannily similar to the .. Read more
| Starring | Sharon Stone, Michael Douglas, Jeanne Tripplehorn, George Dzundza |
|---|---|
| Director | Paul Verhoeven |
| Genres | Thriller |
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Basic Instinct
This steamy thriller to end all steamy thrillers stars Michael Douglas as Nick, a boozy San Francisco police detective who finds himself drawn to the prime suspect in a murder case--manipulative, sexually uninhibited novelist Catherine Trammell (Sharon Stone). Catherine's latest book features a murder uncannily similar to the one Nick is investigating, and as the pair engage in a mating dance of dangerous one-upmanship, more murders occur, all described in her current work, about a boozy cop in love with a killer. Nick's psychiatrist (Jeanne Tripplehorn), and cop partner (George Dzundza) are both worried about him, and Catherine's jealous lesbian lover (Leilani Sarelle) may be trying to kill him, but Nick is just too turned on to care.
Director Paul Verhoeven shows an admirable lack of restraint in this ludicrously enjoyable thriller, a sort of postmodern noir with Joe Eszterhas's script coming off like Mamet by way of Penthouse. Stone and Douglas exhibit fine chemistry (and most of their bodies), and there's some lovely Bay Area scenery courtesy of cinematographer Jan de Bont (who went on to direct films such as SPEED and TWISTER). Wayne Knight (Newman from SEINFELD) and Mitch Pileggi (Skinner from THE X-FILES) are precinct heads who question Catherine in the infamous leg-crossing scene.
| Starring | Sharon Stone, Michael Douglas, Jeanne Tripplehorn, George Dzundza, Dennis Arndt, Leilani Sarelle |
|---|---|
| Director | Paul Verhoeven |
| Studio | MOMENTUM PICTURES |
| Run time | DVD: 2 hrs Blu-ray: 2 hrs 3 mins HD DVD: 2 hrs 8 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Collections | 100 Feisty Females |
| Genres | Thriller |
| Language | English |
| Dubbed | German, Spanish |
| Subtitles | Dutch, English, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Turkish |
| Released | DVD: 20 May 2002 Blu-ray: 15 Sep 2008 HD DVD: 26 Mar 2007 Production year: 1992 |
| Format | DVD |
Basic Instinct (1992)
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Critics' reviews (6)
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Director Paul Verhoeven's reputation is built on his wonderful lack of taste and restraint, and these “qualities” are fully to the fore in this controversial but massively successful thriller. Sharon Stone became a sex symbol of the 1990s for her cool portrayal of the predatory novelist who may or may not be a murderer, but who enjoys tormenting policeman Michael Douglas all the same. Writer Joe Eszterhas shamelessly reworks ideas and themes he had earlier exploited in films such as Jagged Edge and Music Box, but the sheer overheated nature of Verhoeven's direction makes this extremely watchable.
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Overheated, overlong melodramatic thriller with an implausible plot that requires its audience to accept that Michael Douglas is irresistibly attractive to bisexual women. But the skill and pace of the direction makes one regret that they were not exercis
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Most helpful member's review
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13 out of 20 people found this review helpful
Y-shaped coffin required...
As someone at a funeral once said: well at least they're together now...
Can't have been talking about Catherine Trammel's legs mind you - the notorious leg crossing scene in all its slow mo DVD zoom glory is present, well trimmed and ready for inspection.
Reminds one of the scene in Naked Gun:
'Nice beaver...'
'Thanks - I just had it stuffed!'
And she certainly does at every opportunity, which in a way detracts from what otherwise is a fast paced, gritty thriller, in that those scenes are what most would remember from viewing the film, rather than the other things that weigh in its favour.
Michael Douglas is good as the edgy cop being pushed WAY too far by the devious Sharon Stone, and George Dzundza is great as his understanding but bigoted partner Gus. The music is spot on, and the lush colours on show show off what is a pretty reasonable video transfer. Nice Lotus cars too.
Recommended.
By the way just be thankful it's not VHS - you don't really think that scene would be playable without tracking errors do you...??!! -
Most recent members' review
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
[Highly rated reviewer]
Really Good psychological murder film.
This is a really Good psychological murder film. Haveing never seen this before i thought i better wtach it before I watch the second one. I thought it was going to be slow n boring but instead it was vert fast moving and exciting with what way the plot and sub plots would turn.
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News and features
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Stone to star in Basic Instinct II
- 12 Jul 2004
Reports indicate Sharon Stone has signed on to star in a sequel to "Basic Instinct". And Stone has said she may well strip for the film, even though it is 12 years after the original. "I'm like: 'Does anybody want to pay $12 to see me naked?' I'm like: 'I guess it's OK'," the 46-year-old is quoted in the Herald Sun as saying. But her on-screen partner from the first film, Michael Douglas, will not appear in the sequel, said the actress. Instead a more youthful male lead will Read more
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