Film Review: Sliver
SLIVER is not a bad movie, just not as good as the Ira Levin novel it’s based upon. It looses something in the translation especially in the script from infamous screenwriter Joe Eszterhas, better known to most people as the man behind BASIC INSTINCT and SHOWGIRLS. Like many of Eszterhas’ films there are plenty of sexual overtones which is present in the novel but the deeper meaning of the novel is in the seduction of voyeurism and having the ability to play God with the lives of other people.
This is present in the film but whereas it was the reason for the novel here it is glossed over and a minor character bit that’s left to the sidelines as the murder mystery is brought to the forefront. By allowing the film to become a knockoff of BASIC INSTINCT, Eszterhas has diminished the impact of the story and made it nothing more than your run of the mill suspense thriller. The film has been easily forgotten over the years but had the care been taken with the material this film could’ve been just as memorable as Levin’s other screen adaptations – THE STEPFORD WIVES and ROSEMARY’S BABY.
The saving grace of the film is director Phillip Noyce’s superb job as he has made the sliver building a character unto itself just like it is developed in the novel but the cast does not fair as well. Sharon Stone as Carly Norris, whom when she moves into the sliver building begins to have an affair with a younger man Zeke (William Baldwin) one secret too many, is perfect for the role of a successful book editor although I would never equate her with someone who would be single for long, which is the type of character she was cast for in the film. Also, the ending is too predictable having both Zeke and Jack (Tom Berenger) be both despicable men with secrets that could destroy them.
The problem in the film lies in the fact that it is like so many other suspense thrillers of the ‘90s. They are entertaining yet highly forgettable.
An independent filmmaker who writes screenplays and articles mostly in the entertainment fields.
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