After stumbling at the box-office with the supernatural thriller “Jacob’s Ladder,” “Flashdance” and “Fatal Attraction” director Adrian Lyne struck box-office gold again with 1993's INDECENT PROPOSAL (116 mins., R). At one point, this slick romantic drama was supposed to star Warren Beatty, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. After the movie stalled in pre-production, “Indecent Proposal” ended up with Robert Redford (okay), Demi Moore (fine), and Woody Harrelson (huh?) as its leads. Even if the original casting might have made “Indecent Proposal” more durable over the years (people seem to have forgotten about it completely), it didn't hurt the movie too much at the time, since despite unfavorable reviews, Lyne's film rode the crest of over-hyped controversy to a $100-million domestic gross.
Woody and Demi play a happily married couple whose relationship is strained by financial difficulties. A trip to Vegas (never the cure for anyone's ills) results in the couple running into millionaire Robert Redford, who puts a proposal on the table for the two to ponder: if Demi will sleep with the millionaire for one night (and one night only), he'll give them a nice prize of $1 million.
Clearly, Lyne and producer Sherry Lansing were hoping for a repeat of the publicity that surrounded "Fatal Attraction" with “Indecent Proposal,” though – in the stark contrast to “Fatal” not to mention the likes of the previous year's smash “Basic Instinct” – this movie is really just a romantic piffle that Lyne accurately describes as a "fairy tale" in his audio commentary. From Howard Atherton's soft-focus cinematography to John Barry's lush, lyrical score, “Indecent Proposal” is a cinematic soap opera with unbelievable dialogue and ridiculously overwrought dramatic situations -- but that's also still part of its appeal years later. Redford's just-for-the-money performance is thankfully restrained, Moore gives a fine turn as the wife going to extremes to help out her husband (while falling for Redford's one-percenter), though Harrelson is little more than adequate here as the weakest-drawn character of the trio.
Amy Holden Jones's script, adapted from a Jack Engelhard book, didn't win any awards, but then again, it didn't have to: “Indecent Proposal” is a glossy melodrama that looks good, and no matter how silly it becomes at times, remains watchable because of its score and stars. Its biggest issue is that its first half – the one anyone will remember – is much stronger than its second portion, wherein Harrelson's character simply mopes about to such a degree you start rooting for Moore to leave him – and not take him back. The lack of dramatic tension makes the final half-hour a real slog, since we're all aware the movie isn't going to do something truly interesting and have Moore abandon her sad-sack husband completely, and the picture can do little but bide the time until it reaches its preordained destination.
Debuting in a 4K UHD/Blu-Ray combo this month from Kino Lorber, “Indecent Proposal” offers glossy Dolby Vision HDR grading (1.85) that propels the movie's slick visuals in 4K while easily surpassing Paramount's previous, old HD catalog master. Lyne's frank though sporadic commentary track is the sole supplement here, while 5.1 and 2.0 DTS MA sound options provide a perfect backdrop for one of Barry's dreamy '90s scores and decent songs (Sheena Easton and Herbie Hancock also pop up in cameos as themselves). Recommended for romantics, Redford fans, and Moore aficionados as well.