Fatal Instinct is a 1993 American sex comedy thriller film directed by Carl Reiner. A parody of the erotic thriller genre, which at the time had reached its commercial peak, as well as being a pastiche of 1940s film noir and psychological thriller genres, in particular Double Indemnity, the film stars Armand Assante as lawyer/cop Ned Ravine who has an affair with a woman named Lola Cain. Kate Nelligan stars as Ned's wife and Sherilyn Fenn stars as his secretary. The film title is a combination of Fatal Attraction and Basic Instinct, both of which starred Michael Douglas.
Theatrical release poster
Double Indemnity is a 1944 American crime thriller film noir directed by Billy Wilder, co-written with Raymond Chandler, and produced by Buddy DeSylva and Joseph Sistrom. The film was based on James M. Cain's novella of the same name, which ran as an eight-part serial in Liberty magazine beginning in February 1936.
Theatrical release poster
Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck as Walter and Phyllis
Keyes is sure something is not right.
Wilder supposedly chose a bad wig for Stanwyck to underscore Phyllis's "sleazy phoniness".