MovieChat Forums > Fatal Attraction (1987) Discussion > Alex Gone Insane

Alex Gone Insane

posted 9 years ago by Jayson_Orleans-Perez
12 replies | jump to latest

Say what you will about the theatrical ending, but it had Alex go completely insane to get what she wants: the object of her affections, Dan Gallagher.

Also, Alex and her fvcking rambling. She goes in when it comes to rambling like there's no tomorrow. I thought one of film's legitimately funny moments was when Dan was listening to her on the tape and she starts flipping her sh!t towards the end of the tape calling Dan a "f@ggot" and such.

The theatrical end has Alex rambling on about Beth to Beth, which I found kinda ironic. However, it's the beginning of her rambling that I found quite creepy and it kinda gave me chills.

"What are you doing here? Why are you here?"

That line resonates with me because it's so effectively chilling. It signifies that Alex has gone completely batsh!t insane and has lost touch with reality. Alex actually thinks that Beth is the intruder in her life with Dan. She seems to be projecting herself onto Beth.

Then she has the audacity to call Beth a "stupid, selfish bitch", whilst cutting herself with a big ass Halloween knife. How in the hell is Beth selfish? Is she supposed to willingly share her husband with everyone, let alone with a crazy ass? Then Alex was like "I know what you're trying to do. You're trying to move him into the country and keep him away from me...".

Some of the craziness that spews from Alex's mouth is actually genuinely creepy. It's hard to feel sorry for her when she says psychotic sh!t like that, not that I felt sorry for Dan, either. Beth was the only victim in the entire ordeal and the only one I felt sorry for.

Knock it off, Hudson.

[–] Jayson_Orleans-Perez 9 years ago

I do want Highpriestess to answer because I love our dialogue on Fatal Attraction, but anyone can openly answer.

Knock it off, Hudson.

[–] highpriestess32 9 years ago

Thank you, Jayson for wanting me to weigh in 

Some have remarked how Dan came clean but he never would have had he not realised finally that his family were in danger.

You are completely correct. Alex was 100% crazy. The lingering look she gave Dan at the book-signing party was indicative to the audience that the chase was on. She gave him flirtacious looks the morning after at the meeting and although she manipulated a situation, Dan was in the wrong for persuing her so-called "charms".

During her and Dan's fight scene when he laid the knife down, she took on a look of twisted pleasure. It was a look of hopelessness also and from that point on we see her in the same dress infiltrating the Gallagher household. The tension when Beth closed the steamed bathroom mirror was gripping. By this point, Alex was so deeply desperate and disturbed that she had seemingly convinced herself (or was trying to convince Beth), that Dan was hers which showed major dellusions.

Had Beth not killed her she would have happily taken both of them down. But Beth was true to her word "This is Beth Gallagher and if you ever come near me or my family again I will kill you".

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] Jayson_Orleans-Perez 9 years ago

Thanks for responding, HighPriestess! I always enjoy our chats on Fatal Attraction.

Alex WAS wearing the same damn clothes that she had on during her fight with Dan in the apartment. I never gave that much thought. If that's the case, she's even crazier than I thought. I also wondered if she drove to Dan's house that night or if she just walked. I think she walked because her feet were dirty as fvck. Also, I think since Dan was on heightened alert, he would have heard her car slowing down to park. I guess she could have parked further down the street.

Also, Dan was awfully lax with locking the doors and securing the house. He was told by the Bedford police Lieutenant that the cops in Manhattan couldn't find her. If I had heard that, and I knew Alex could easily come and go inside of my home, I'd have that house more secure than Fort Knox.

Knock it off, Hudson.

[–] highpriestess32 9 years ago

Thanks, Jayson for your kind words! I too enjoy our exchanges on this board - very dearly 

I too wondered if it was the same night. He went to the cops and they were supposed to be bringing her in for questioning but she vanished - to Dan's house (his security is second to none LOL)  She appeared to be wearing the same damn dress alright and wielding the same knife too. I never noticed her dirty feet though - must pay attention to that part next time - good observation my friend!

What type of acid do you think she poured over his car that time?

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] Jayson_Orleans-Perez 9 years ago

I think she poured hydrochloric acid on his car. It's a very corrosive acid that would have ate through the metal on the car with ease. I just don't know how it was transported. What did she transport it in? It couldn't have been ordinary tupperware, or Alex wouldn't have had any hands left! LOL. It's found in some bathroom cleaners, however, it's very, very diluted to the point that it won't cause harm to the human skin, let alone burn through metal. I guess she could have made it herself, charged the ions with distilled and combined the muriatic acid (which can be found at pool supply stores) with the sulfiric acid (which can be found at hardware stores). She could have gotten the sulfiric acid from an automotive store, as I think in the 1980s, car batteries weren't sealed like they are now.

Maybe she just made it right in front of Dan's car and threw it on there, although the movie seems to suggest that Alex already had the acid on hand, since she got away so fast and clean.

What I also find odd is the close up of the rabbit in the vapor. I figured the rabbit was surely going to asphyxiate from those dangerous vapors. Perhaps it was clever foreshadowing by the director.

Knock it off, Hudson.

[–] highpriestess32 9 years ago

I just thought that maybe she paid someone else to do it? Bunky the keeper of the keys was not at his station either so maybe Alex orchestrated it so he was conveniently called away allowing her to slip in and totla his car.

I always thought the same regarding the rabbit - the way the camera zooms in on it as Dan places the cage on the floor as it is surrounded by fumes! I expected it to keel over there and then but yes, it must have been a clue as to what was coming later!

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] Jayson_Orleans-Perez 9 years ago

You know what, Highpriestess, I've never thought about Alex using the "keeper of the keys" in order to orchestrate the entire thing. I could totally see her paying him off to throw the acid on Dan's car. After all, the attendant was nowhere to be found and the scene was kinda creepy, actually, with the lighting and the tension. I actually love the cinematography in this movie.

I agree about that damn rabbit! I've said that for years. It's not a reaction shot! LOL.

Knock it off, Hudson.

[–] highpriestess32 9 years ago

LOL it was such a poignant scene. Dan indulges his daughter with the rabbit after Beth says on the phone "You got her? is she cute?", his seceratary admires it and then he gets to the car park and shouts for Bunky before helping himself to his own car keys.

Then he slowly approaches and sees this plume of acid steam coming from his vehicle and we get this very obvious attention-evoking close-up of the bunny on the ground surrounded by it as though it is meant to keel over and asphyxiate! I was thinking at the time "Nooo, Dan! Forget that heap of dissolving metal, think about the poor animal!" LOL!

Then we see Alex in the distance, a floor or two higher looking down on the scene. She could have paid off Bunky or just ensured he was not at his station via some devious means so that some street bum could earn a few bucks by totalling it for her.

Then he tells Beth there was some problem with "the electrics". Slight understatement LOL 

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] Jayson_Orleans-Perez 9 years ago

The scene with Alex pretty much stalking Dan kinda stuck with me. She had planned this out not only to get her revenge, but also to follow him to his home. Why wasn't she at work? At which point in the film did she say *beep* it, I'm going to commit to stalking this guy 24/7!"? I think it was at this moment in the film that Alex had lost all sense of reality, especially with her crazy ass ramblings.

When do you think Alex lost touch with reality?

Knock it off, Hudson.

[–] highpriestess32 9 years ago

I suspect she lost it frequently in all honesty which rather begs the question as to how she held down a fairly responsible job inbetween her manic delusions.

I find it hard to believe that Dan was her first victim/major crush. She lied about her father with such ease on that Sunday. To my mind she was trying to act like a temptress in order to prolong the affair and get Dan to herself. Only when she realised he was not interested did she show her true colours. She had a tantrum, tore his shirt then sliced up her wrists in a manipulative bid to win his sympathy.

Of course, Dan did not contact her so she then tried the charm offensive once more with the tickets to Madame Butterfly - proclaiming she was really OK and other things had led to her self-harming. Once again Dan makes it clear he is not going to continue seeing her so after this she starts the silent phonecalls. Pregnant or not, she was not going to just let him walk away unscathed.

You mention that scene when she stalks Dan in his hire car. She looked MANIC. Her hair do was very harsh and swept back from her crazy ass face. Yet in some situations she was made to look feminine and almost willowy. Like on that Sunday at the park playing with the dog, Quincy. Also at the meeting she looked very soft and feminine. Do you think this was deliberate?

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"

[–] Jayson_Orleans-Perez 9 years ago

LOL HighPriestess, great minds thing alike!!

I, too, found it hard to believe that Dan was the first one that she has done this kind of crazy action to. I think she has a history of mental instability with men. I don't know if Dan was her first married piece of ass, or if she was experienced in getting married men just to fix them up and send them on their way. I think she got bored quick and Dan offered her a challenge. On the other hand, you're absolutely correct, when Dan rejected her, she went apesh!t, tore his shirt, and then slashed her wrists in a desperate attempt to win him over (which sounds crazy just by typing it). She was manipulative, she was deceitful, and she was accomplished at deception. When Dan finally rejected her and wanted nothing to do with her, she seemed to take it in stride. In fact, in the scene in Dan's office, after Alex leaves, you see a look of relief on Dan's face. He's like "Finally!" Then, Alex snaps and starts blowing his phone up, trying to get him.

I know that guy that she supposedly stood up to sleep with Dan really dodged a damn bullet.

And YES!! The scene where she followed Dan. She looked absolutely insane. Meanwhile, we were treated to her ramblings over the tape while we saw Dan's reaction and Alex's determination. Alex looked HORRIBLE in that scene, which I guess was deliberate because in all other scenes, even the scene where she infiltrated the house to attack Beth, she still looked halfway decent. When she was following Dan, she looked terrible, like she just gave up on her appearance and her hair swept up behind her crazy ass face. She kept scowling, too. I think it was quite deliberate what they did in that instance.

Knock it off, Hudson.

[–] highpriestess32 9 years ago

Hi, Jayson, how was your weekend?

Haha your post resonates with my own - totally on the same page here. I do so enjoy our exchanges on here!

You are right regarding the office scene. Alex appeared to be taking his rejection on the chin and she even offers him a handshake prior to departing from his office. Perhaps wrongly, he gave her an obligatory hug (more to appear less of a cad I sense and appear more of a gentleman). He should have taken the handshake but he wasn't to know what was coming I guess and neither do I think the hug was misleading - I reckon she was going to go batsh!t crazy whatever the parting gesture!!

Another butt ugly moment was her crazy ass nonchalant face on the rollercoaster ride. I asked Ellen (the child actress also named Ellen as in the movie), how that ride was and she declared she looked scared only because she had a camera on the front bar and was afraid it was going to become detached LOL! 

Anne Archer is to be commended for her role too. When Dan FINALLY confessed all she MADE that scene. "Are....are you in love with her?". It was a very convincing scene and great acting as she went from fragility into a rage... "I want you OUT of this house! What is the MATTER with you?". A very poignant scene.

"These days you have to boil someone before you can sleep with them"