the audience applauded

Just what I expected

Good concept, poorly executed.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

In 1951, two British diplomats who are actually Soviet spies escape to Moscow indicating British intelligence has been infiltrated at the highest level. Then it's 1961 Beriut. Leo Cauffield (Rupert Everett) and Sally (Sharon Stone) fall in love, and she would leave her husband for him. Four years later, Leo disappears and he's accused of being a Soviet spy. Then she is told that he has gone to Moscow freely.It's a small thing but the movie opening and subsequent text has this computer font. It indicates a 70s motif which clashes with the era of the movie. Then the movie takes too long to get going. This is based on a true story, and the story moves at a pedestrian pace. The dialog is uninspired. As for Sharon Stone, she is miscast in this role. Even thought she has dyed her hair dark, she can't hide her flashy Hollywood persona. The material is there for the taking, but this is not movie for it. The lack of style, ill-fitting acting, and weak dialog all add up to a weak production.

Someone -- director, writer, producer, perhaps all -- are caught with their dialectics down. But where did Sharon Stone fit into this turkey? That black wig was simply awful. The Sharon we love and admire is blonde, blonde, blonde. I got a huge laugh out of the critic who thought those black wigged shots were of different women. I think the wig must have slipped around here and there because she sure looked different from time to time. Sharon may be tired of her Basic Instict fame -- although for the life of me I can't figure out why -- but why on earth did she sign on for this one? And the propaganda! The kindly Soviet officials, the cold and calloused Brits, and the brutal Americans -- that beefy brute with his leather armpit holstered .45 reminded me of a "settler" the US Attorney in San Francisco used to terrify both lawyer and defendant into copping a plea. The guy looked like King Kong, and roared just about as loudly. My poor client visibly quailed. But I just marveled at his performance and said, "No deal. We're going to trial." So the guy went back into his cage. Sharon gets rescued from the CIA/FBI's Kong by his good-cop companion who was waiting just outside the room. Which was just about the only action in this boring mishmash of flash backs and forwards, with only the scantiest of love scenes to remind us that Sharon was once America's premier seductress. Alas.You have to be real old and know a little history to be able to figure out what this one is about but it really isn't worthwhile the struggle. The script was a mishmash, the actors' voices largely unintelligible, the camera work murky, the drama slight, and the entertainment value nil. One can only conclude that someone important in this production was in love with the subject matter.Well, as they say, love is blind.

What a disappointment! After watching the film, there is a very good reason that actual names were not used - other than general similarities to circumstance, this is entirely a work of fiction.Even a fictionalized account (inspired by the McClean story) could have been entertaining if had successfully delivered an historically accurate context (forget accuracy). There could have been a story of complex emotions, motivations and consequences but instead, you get a superficial drama that misses its mark or worse, doesn't even aim at the interesting targets.This is a true waste of talent for such a great cast.

For me, the biggest thing that can make or break a movie is it's characters. The characters in this film, however, had about as much depth as a Kleenex. For the first half hour or so of the film, I found myself thinking "Who cares?". Basically, we're introduced to two people who meet and fall madly in love....in the first 5 minutes of the movie. No character development to speak of, and they certainly didn't change or grow during the course of the movie. Everett and Stone had zero chemistry, so the love scenes just looked forced and awkward. On top of all this, the film had no flow to it what-so-ever; it cut back and forth so quick and so often it was hard to keep track. Somehow it did manage to keep my attention throughout, so I guess that buys it a few points....but in general, this is a very poor film. Don't bother wasting 100 minutes of your life, watch something else.2.5/10