Indecent Proposal

Indecent Proposal

Starring Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson, Robert Redford, Seymour Cassel

Directed by Adrian Lyne

It's always been one of those debatable questions: what would you do for a Klondi...I mean million dollars?  Would you kill someone, sleep with someone, or purposefully destroy another person's livelihood?  What is the price for you to do something you think you'd never want to do?  Are you someone who could easily be bought?  While the film has this sort of important question dangling over itself like the sword of Damocles, there's no real payoff for the answer.

Diana (Demi Moore) and David (Woody Harrelson) Murphy have been in love since high school, and have been married for a good amount of time.  They obviously love and care for one another tremendously, but then they fall on hard times during a recession where they both lose their jobs and possibly their home, with only $5,000 to their name.  David decides to risk it all in Vegas, where Diana meets wealthy billionaire John (Robert Redford), who's immediately smitten with her.  The couple looses all their money, and it's during this time John gives a tempting offer: one million dollars for one night with Diana.

At first the couple is opposed to the idea, but as they contemplate what a million dollars can do, they decide to allow it to happen, but every gift has a price tag, and this one night threatens to destroy the life that they spent years building, eliminating decades worth of trust in a few fateful hours.

Before "Fifty Shades of Grey" opened the door for voyeurism and BDSM, "Indecent Proposal" served as the 90s version of the book/film, offering viewers a voyeuristic look at something that probably no sane, loving couple would consider, while providing the BDSM for those who enjoy the pain of sitting through a nearly-two-hour snoozefest that provides little to no character development, chemistry, or sensibility.

As stated earlier, the film does pose an important question: what would you do for a million dollars?  John's offer is quite tempting and he oozes snake-oil salesman confidence with his proposal: a lifetime of not fearing being broke, and the price is just a few hours with David's wife.  It seems oddly simple, but of course nothing is as it seems.  Here, the film could've gone in many different directions, offering tantalizing twists and turns to keep the viewers riveted, but ultimately went for the bare bones aspect and choosing to elongate it thirty minutes longer than it should have.

With big hitters like Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson, and Robert Redford as the triangle of amorality, you'd expect something more than what you get.  The chemistry between Harrelson and Moore is non-existent, and it almost seems like they act like brother and sister than husband and wife, and it's very hard to believe that they're so in love with one another - which I guess helps in the decision being so quickly agreed upon.  Yet the chemistry between Moore and Redford is equally nonexistent, and it seems that Moore's Diana is moreso a non-caring entity you don't really like than a self-empowered woman she's supposed to be.  Diana seems more like a ping pong ball being sent across the net by David and John, yet she also seems to relish in the delight of having both men chasing after her in a sense.

The performances come across as wooden, hollow, and lacking any depth.  We know as much about these characters at the start as we do at the end, and none of them offer anything remotely intriguing or memorable, which makes me wonder why it did so well back in the 90s - but then again, the "Fifty Shades" franchise is soaring, and I absolutely don't understand that either.  Maybe I just don't get love.
In what should've been a compelling, thought-provoking concept, "Indecent Proposal" instead provides top-notch actors sleepwalking through their performances in an elongated dullard of a film that wastes every golden opportunity it was given.

The Score: C-