One of the best films i have seen

hyped garbage

Excellent but underrated film

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

The premiss may be a bit far-fetched but this screen version of Paul Theroux's novel "Doctor Slaughter" is surprisingly robust and very enjoyable. Sigourney Weaver is the underpaid American working for the Middle East Institute in London who decides to supplement her income by working for an escort agency. However, things get murky when one of her clients turns out to be Michael Caine's diplomat charged with brokering an Israeli/Arab peace deal. Has Sigourney been set up and if so, by whom? It's hardly believable, of course, but the director, Bob Swaim, ensures it moves at a fair clip though he does play down the thriller aspect to beef up the love story that develops between Caine and Weaver. He also keeps you guessing as to who is doing what to whom. It wasn't a success but it's also a lot better than its critical reputation might suggest.

Pair perhaps the most obnoxious character in the history of movies (insulting, insufferably conceited, insistent on baring her near-anorexic body to everyone including landlord on a routine basis, incapable of human warmth, bossy, foul-mouthed, promiscuous, raunchy) ---- with a purportedly famous, successful, warm man who may soon be a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize - and what do you get?One of the worst movies I've ever seen. **** SPOILERS **** Little makes sense here as contradictions just fly - e.g., we hear that the man cannot go out with anyone other than prostitutes because he hasn't the time - and then watch him attend plays, go to the country for weekends, attend dog racing, and lie at home, bored with nothing to do.e.g., we hear the man say that the notion of security risk from sexual blackmail ceased to exist forty years before - so he has no problem inviting a prostitute repeatedly to his home - and then we hear him say that he cannot visit the upscale neighborhood in which the prostitute lives because it would be a security risk.e.g., we hear that the entire virtue of escort services is to assure sex to the busy man on the go. And then we see the prostitute arrogate to herself whether or not to have sex - and repeatedly refuse sex to men who have paid rather a lot for the presumed reliability. Nevertheless, we are told (unconvincingly) that the physically unattractive prostitute has become popular. e.g., we are told repeatedly of the charm of the prostitue - but she is as coarse as anyone the viewer has ever seen, deeply insulting to all.e.g., we are told of the astounding background in Middle Eastern affairs held by the prostitute - so why was she living in China "doing field work"?e.g., we are told of the social panache of the prostitute - yet she turns up at a posh country house wearing completely the wrong clothes.e.g., we are told that the reason the American woman is poverty-stricken is due to her "desire to live abroad" - since when are all positions overseas barred to those with doctorates from Harvard? e.g., we are told that the man is a great statesman who has unparallelled skill in the negotiation of agreements between other countries - so why does he have a photograph of himself with a tyrant on his table at home?**** SPOILERS END **** This is a wretched movie - in which you yearn for someone to kill the pprotagonist - yet somehow they vainly try to make this wretched preening creature the subject of a romance. Avoid this movie - it's just awful.

Before I give you my opinion of this movie, I must tell you that I bought it just for the fact that Sigourney Weaver was in it. Back in late '93 - early '94, I was just becoming one of Ms. Weaver's fans. I bought the video from a little video store close to my house. When I watched it, it was (and still is!) a real treat to see a topless Ms. Weaver. Not only is she topless in more than one place in the film, the whole "famous exercise bike" scene has to rank as one of the top ten seduction scenes in my book! That having been said, as the years have passed, I've grown to like the rest of the movie for what it is: a romance/political suspense movie. I have yet to read the book, but I hope to sometime. All in all, a great movie!

Even though their is a lot of people who say this and the book are dull, I disagree. Adapted from Dr. Slaughter, this is a fairly well written, well photographed, and very well acted movie. The premise is original and the film really does score (no pun intended). Respectable 8/10.