John Moore I enjoyed this 90-minute movie. Although its plot was pretty basic and the acting not the best, I really loved the setting and imagery of a late 80s northern English seaport. You feel the decay of English manufacturing and a sense of being adrift and lonely; the American/English angle was well-done and fits the Reagan-Thatcher years. The soundtrack also matches the mood, at first being smooth, then irritated, and then chaotic. The couple were easy to root for, especially Sean Bean - who I'd like to have a little more backstory for.Normally, a movie like this would get 5 or 6 out of 10, but that well- done atmosphere makes this good.

smatysia Not much to say that wasn't said below, but I guess I need ten lines. Kudos to the cinematographer photographing the setting, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. This film was near the height of Melanie Griffith's career, and I have to say that the short, reddish, hairstyle is not particularly flattering to her. But it is always nice to hear her soft dulcet voice, musically feminine, even when she's being tough. Sting's acting was just fine, which makes me think that it isn't that hard, since so many non-actors are able to do decent work at it. I am unfamiliar with Sean Bean, who seemed to be the main character. I found this film to be okay, but nothing really to write home about.

Michael Neumann These days a romantic thriller usually means sex, violence, and lots of neon lights, but underneath the typically sultry mood of this latter-day film noir there's a cool intelligence at work. Writer director Mike Figgis combines several strands of plot which otherwise have little in common, involving a moody nightclub owner, a dangerous American entrepreneur, his part-time mistress, and her new, younger boyfriend, all of them in an industrial British seaport dressed up for a hands-across-the-water civic promotion. A movie so self-absorbed with mood and imagery shouldn't work as well as this, but what sets the film apart from other neo-noir facsimiles is the unusual trans-Atlantic blend of talent and the emphasis on cross-cultural confusion, best expressed by a free-jazz rendition (by the Krakow Jazz Ensemble) of the Star Spangled Banner. The atmospheric visual style isn't enough to camouflage the shortcomings of the script, but Figgis maintains the drama at an admirably low-key level, and the location photography in the city of Newcastle takes excellent advantage of an appropriately gritty urban environment.

JoeytheBrit This is quite an atmospheric noir-thriller that moves at its own sedate pace, telling a story that could probably be told in a fraction of the time it takes here. That isn't intended as a criticism: it's a shame more films don't take time to take a look around and soak up the atmosphere a little instead of dashing toward its conclusion.An incredibly skinny Sean Bean plays Brendan, an unemployed youngster who finds employment at a jazz club run by Finney (Sting). Finney is being pressured by thugs in the employ of American businessman Cosmo (Tommy Lee Jones) into selling his clubs so that the properties can be redeveloped. Getting this redevelopment accomplished requires the greasing of a few palms – and other bodily parts – which is where American waitress (and part-time hooker) Kate (Melanie Griffiths) enters the story. The lives of all four characters converge over a short period of time as the two businessmen clash and Brendan and Kate strike up a relationship.Perhaps the film's main drawback is the way in which it relies too heavily on coincidence to get things moving: Brendan repeatedly running into Kate,for example, then sitting at the next table to a couple of heavies planning to 'hit' his new boss, Finney, etc. As we all know life doesn't work like that – and, when it does occur so smoothly in a film, it tends to jar.Actually, I'm wrong – that's not the main drawback at all. The film's biggest flaw comes in a couple of the performances. Jones is as good as he always is, and Griffiths is passable, if nothing special, but the other two – Bean and Sting - are pretty woeful. I've never been a fan of Bean, although I can't really pinpoint why. His performances are always workmanlike and uninspiring, but there are worse actors around who don't irritate me the way Bean does. It would be interesting to see how I felt about him if he ever delivered a performance worth writing positively about – but then, that's probably not something I have to worry about. As for Sting, if his singing was as bad as his acting he'd still be playing the Geordie pub scene. I mean, I love the guy's music, but he's a Geordie who can't do the accent. It's no wonder his acting career stalled so long ago