Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

Basic Instinct
1992
***
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Michael Douglas, Sharon Stone, Jeanne Tripplehorn, George Dzundza

A rock star is murdered with an ice pick, and the clues lead the detectives to a sexy and smart crime novelist. This trashy, stylish and hugely successful erotic thriller solves itself in ten minutes, but it takes another two hours until it's over. Michael Douglas is once again typecast as a man who has no control of what is happening to him, but Sharon Stone uncrosses her legs memorably in her terrific breakthrough performance. Followed by a poorly received sequel in 2006.