Fascination is a potboiler without a pot. It loosely follows the plot of Hamlet. Adam Garcia plays Scott Doherty, a spoiled young artiste who sulks more than Anakin Skywalker. Scott’s father dies (played by James Naughton) under mysterious circumstances, and his wife (played by the “still a hotty” Jacqueline Bisset”) returns from a cruise with a new beau (Stuart Wilson). Scott smells something fishy, and with the help of a new stepsister/lover (Alice Evans), he tries to get to the bottom of this crime. So…nds fascinating? Not really.
Everything about Fascination is not fascinating. It’s only interesting in the sense of how much worse can it get! For a thriller, it moves like molasses. For eroticism, it’s more awkward than sexy. As far as underwater sex scenes go, I’ll take the one in Showgirls any day. The performances aren’t the saving grace either. Garcia is one note, Bisset tries her bisset, and Alice Evans deserves an award for one of the strangest performances I’ve ever seen. You can watch the film in a director’s cut or a theatrical cut. The director’s cut is a bit shorter, so I might go for that one.
Audio
This movie can be heard in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround. What’s the point though? It’s very front heavy. Surround effects are minimal. Maybe using “Surround” gives the movie more weight than it actually has. Don’t be fooled. Dialogue is clear enough though. But you don’t want to hear it half the time.
Video
The video transfer is as bland as the movie. With the exotic locales, you would the colors would be eye popping. The palette feels like a TV movie. Seen in 2.35:1 widescreen, the movie has a scope it doesn’t deserve. Digital artifacts are minimal though. I’ll give it that.
Special Features
A few things here. There’s an alternate ending. It’s advertised as “never before seen”. But I did see it! I couldn’t tell the difference between this ending and what I saw in the original film. I don’t get it. There’s also a “making of” featurette that’s also bland, and a “from page to screen” featurette that’s mildly “fascinating”. There’s a few TV spots as well.
Final Thoughts
Fascination tries to be a steamy throwback to the old film noir days. But it plays more like film beige. Laughable and uncomfortable, this movie makes Showgirls look like a masterpiece. But if you like watching bad movies, Fascination, in that respect, is very fascinating.
Special Features List
- Alternate Ending
- “Making of” featurette
- “From Page to Screen” featurette
- TV Spots
