Being a big fan of Irish actor Ciaran Hinds, I got my hands on a copy of this BBC film. And was rather disappointed. What is supposed to be dark and mysterious turns out depressing, predictable and rather trashy.
Hinds plays the role of London solicitor Charlie Cross. He's used to being dragged out of his comfortable bed at all hours to bail out clients. He has a wife and teenage daughter. They live a comfortable life. No surprises. Everything, as he says, a man could want.
Everything changes when he's called upon to defend Edward Bosco, a rather diffident peculiar man accused of murdering prostitutes under the guise of being a photographer. He answers questions like, "Are you guilty?" with an enigmatic "Aren't we all?"
Cross is sent by Bosco to tell his girlfriend Viola, a waitress, what's happened. The usually unflappable cross is blown away by the mysterious Viola (played by Amanda Ooms) and gets lost in her dark eyes and pouty lips. Before long, the two are involved in a torrid affair despite that fact Charlie is representing Bosco and living a lie at home.
Well, mystery flies out the window when the crap hits the fan. Reality eventually intrudes and Charlie's not-so-carefully kept secrets start spilling out. The result is infinitely boring and you can see it coming about a mile away. The film seems more an excuse to see Hinds and Ooms cavorting in the sack than to build any suspense or tension.
I never pass up a chance to see Hinds act but this one is not worth seeing unless you're truly a fan.
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