Basic Instinct - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

The film was entered into the 1992 Cannes Film Festival.

The film's critical reaction was mixed. Janet Maslin of The New York Times praised the film, saying "Basic Instinct transfers Mr. Verhoeven's flair for action-oriented material to the realm of Hitchcockian intrigue, and the results are viscerally effective even when they don't make sense." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone also praised the film, saying it was a guilty pleasure film; he also expressed admiration for Verhoeven's direction, saying " cinematic wet dream delivers the goods, especially when Sharon Stone struts on with enough come-on carnality to singe the screen," and praised Stone's performance: "Stone, a former model, is a knockout; she even got a rise out of Ah-nold in Verhoeven's Total Recall. But being the bright spot in too many dull movies (He Said, She Said; Irreconcilable Differences) stalled her career. Though Basic Instinct establishes Stone as a bombshell for the Nineties, it also shows she can nail a laugh or shade an emotion with equal aplomb."

The film was not without its detractors. Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun-Times dismissed the film, giving it two out of four stars, stating that the film is well crafted, yet dies down in the last half hour: "The film is like a crossword puzzle. It keeps your interest until you solve it, by the ending. Then it's just a worthless scrap with the spaces filled in." On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a score of 63%.

The international critical reception was favorable, with Australian critic Shannon J. Harvey of the Sunday Times calling it one of the "1990s finest productions, doing more for female empowerment than any feminist rally. Stone – in her star-making performance – is as hot and sexy as she is ice-pick cold."

The film was nominated for two Academy Awards and two Golden Globes. Jerry Goldsmith, the composer, was nominated for both awards for his original score. It was also nominated for an Edgar Award. Frank Urioste was nominated for an Academy Award for film editing and Sharon Stone was nominated for a Golden Globe as Best Actress for her performance as Tramell. It was also nominated for three Razzie Awards including Worst Actor (Douglas), Worst Supporting Actress (Tripplehorn) and Worst New Star (Sharon Stone's "Tribute to Theodore Cleaver", AKA her vagina).

The film was widely criticized for glamorizing cigarette smoking. Screenwriter Joe Eszterhas was later diagnosed with throat cancer and publicly apologized for glamorizing smoking in his films.

Character Catherine Tramell (played by Sharon Stone) was a nominated villain for the AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains of the American Film Institute.