A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Although best known for his blockbuster hits FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL and LOVE ACTUALLY, Mike Newell does a splendid job of bringing this tragic tale to the screen. The cinematography is lush and the recreation of London in the 1950's, both sets and costumes, is brilliantly realized. Obsession can be a difficult subject to tackle and yet one is compelled by the script, the visuals, and most of all the consummate acting, to see this affair through to it's conclusion. Miranda Richardson is the woman trapped by her need to make a good living and her inability to disentangle herself from the clutches of a destructive affair. An incredibly young Ruppert Everett and the redoubtable Ian Holm make up the other two sides of this twisted triangle. While all three actors shine, Richardson's portrayal is one of an individual tortured by a relationship that can never be and at a loss to explain why it endures to herself or anyone else. Not for the faint of heart but well worth the effort. Based on a true story.

I have seen some bad films in my lifetime, but this film literally takes the cake. Right after watching this film I went over to my wife and asked her if she knew what the film I just watched was all about. She told me that she didn't see it, and I proceeded with a "Well, you probably know more than I." What a horrible film!! I had no idea what was happening for any of this film. What was the relationship between Holm and Richardson all about? I thought that he was the father of her child, but then he isn't, but then maybe he is ... WE NEED SOME SORT OF CONSISTENCY HERE PEOPLE!!! I understand that this film has some respect to it because it was directed by Mike Newell (of Four Weddings and a Funeral fame), but this film really didn't make any sense to me. Now I watch movies very closely because I don't want to miss anything elaborate, but even if I watched this film for a second time I still think that I wouldn't catch half of it. This was Richardson's worst role ever. She screamed most of her lines urging me to almost want to use the subtitles. Everett tries too hard to be the clichéd "uncatchable" male figure in this film, but I just didn't see him as the part. Holm, well, if I knew what Holm's role in this film was I would be a better person. It was almost as if he stumbled onto the set by accident and just started acting in some scenes with Richardson and Newell didn't want to take it out. Nothing was coherent in this film. The acting was horrible, the story was boring, and there was no string tying this film together. Instead what you got was a 1000 piece puzzle where the pieces were all from other puzzles. Nothing seemed to match up. I understand that sometimes it is good to put into film some major events in our world's history, but I am not sure that the last few months of Ruth Ellis (the last woman hung in England) life was exactly what I needed to get through my life. This film was so bad that whenever my cat walked by the television his eyes would water and he would have to claw at his ears to make the vision and sound try to disappear. I have never ... I mean never experienced a film like this. I am going to end this review now because it is giving me a headache just thinking about it. This film should definitely have a Mr. Yuck sticker on it prior to renting. Also, if you get a petition in the mail shortly, it is going to be from me asking to eliminate weapons of mass destruction and replace them with Dance with a Stranger. It would cause the same amount of damage ... PEEE-EW!! In the words of Jay Sherman ... the God, the man, the myth ... "IT STINKS". Grade: * out of *****

When I saw this film nearly 15 years ago, I immediately became a fan of Miranda Richardson. Her unforgettable performance reminded me of a young Bette Davis in 'Of Human Bondage' (another story of a tragic, doomed woman). Few actresses could have matched the intensity of her Ruth.

I first heard of this movie at work in 1984 when I saw an engineer who had the movie ad pinned up in his cubicle. I'd had this movie in the back of my head and always meant to check it out, but I've never seen it for rental and didn't want to risk plunking down $20 to order it. It was worth the wait.Miranda Richardson, probably best known for The Crying Game and Sleepy Hollow (Now there's a combo!) stars as Ruth Ellis, a deluded romantic from 1950's England who managed to ride a sexual obsession to her own execution, the last on the books in the country's history. All this comes at the expense of a man who truly loves her, and a son who is not a priority in her life, to say the least. Ellis was adored, worshipped even, by clumsy businessman Ian Holm, but she only has eyes for Ruppert Everett. Everett's a hot shot car driver working on some new car design that's he convinced is going to revolutionize the auto industry. He exudes the confidence that Holm couldn't hope to possess. All three performances are outstanding.As the story unfolds, director Mike Newell seems to pull no punches. I don't know the how's or the who's of this case, but Newell gives this film an authenticity many strive for, but few attain. In essence, it's Holm's character that is hung out to dry. He has to stand by as Everett continually denigrates Richardson both physically (A few punches, a glass of booze in the face,etc.), and emotionally (Too many episodes to count). Holm could have been molded into a flawed hero, and perhaps he would have been in the hands of a director with eyes on receipts instead of craft. Everett's character could have slipped into melodrama, as well. He has a roguish charm, I suppose, but he's basically just a spoiled rich boy, the type to bring a low class Richardson too his parents estate, and be suprised when she is intimidated.At the center is Richardson, bringing Ruth Ellis back to life. It's disturbing how she can see what she's doing to her young son, truly care for him, but not let it effect her. Even more reprehensible is watching her use Holm to watch her child while she crawls back to Everett after another beating, to sneak a quickie in a fog-filled back alley.Mike Newell directed Donnie Brasco, an excellent film which took a similar, bleak look at the life of a policeman who set aside his family in the name of his job. Newell didn't flinch in painting Joseph Pistone (The real life cop), as an obsessed man who started to lose his own identity. Pistone's family pays a heavy price for his dedication (misplaced?), but Ruth Ellis' paid even more. She left a son alone, and it's not a stretch to infer that he led a desperate life, based on what we learn in the closing comments.Don't wait 16 years to see this film, like I did. Hunt it down on cable, or check out your local video store. This is a small story that gets big treatment.