Mistery

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.

Dr Lauren Slaughter is an American academic who comes to London to work for a foreign-affairs think-tank. Her work is prestigious but badly paid, and Lauren decides to supplement her income by moonlighting for an upmarket escort agency, mostly catering for the needs of wealthy foreign businessmen. The set-up is not officially a prostitution ring, but sails fairly close to being one; the idea is that the man pays for the girl's company and it is then up to her whether she goes to bed with him. Lauren proves a success in her new line of work and is able to leave her downmarket flat for a much more exclusive residence in the Half Moon Street of the title. The film explores what happens when she falls in love with one of her clients, Lord Bulbeck, a Government foreign office minister involved in negotiations towards a Middle East peace settlement.

This is not really one of Michael Caine's best films. Most of his best performances have come in films where he has played characters who are, in one sense or another, outsiders or rebels against the system- the down-at-heel spy in "The Ipcress File", the Cockney womaniser in "Alfie", the gangster in "Get Carter", the cynical, disillusioned academic in "Educating Rita" or the drunken minor diplomat in "The Honorary Consul". Admittedly, his first starring role was in "Zulu", where he played the upper-class Lieutenant Bromhead, but I have never thought he was the best thing about that film. Here he plays a high-ranking establishment figure, but never seems completely convincing in the role, even though Bulbeck, a working-class trade union official raised to the peerage, is a co-opted member of the British establishment rather than one born to the purple.

Sigourney Weaver, however, is better as the heroine. She was, along with the likes of Meryl Streep, Kim Basinger, Jessica Lange and Michelle Pfeiffer, one of the bright new generation of Hollywood actresses who came to prominence in the late seventies and eighties, and gave some great performances in films like "Alien", "Gorillas in the Mist" and "Working Girl". Here she captures the various, often conflicting, aspects of Lauren's personality,- her intelligence, her outgoing nature and a hint of an underlying mercenary ruthlessness, which nevertheless co-exists with a genuine capacity for love.

For most of its length the film is a psychological romantic drama, like a romantic comedy without the jokes, and as such it works reasonably well. Towards the end, however, it morphs into a political thriller as Lauren discovers that she has become embroiled in a conspiracy by opponents of the Middle East peace process to assassinate Bulbeck, and as a thriller it does not work well at all, failing to generate any real tension. Despite a promising beginning, this sudden switch from one genre to another means that "Half Moon Street" is one of those films that fall between two stools. 6/10

The film talks about a young woman called Lauren Slaughter (Sigourney Weaver) who works as a lecturer and researcher at the Arab-Anglo Institute in London during day and sophisticated escort serving to VIPS by night at the Jasmine Escort Service . To supplement her income , she has a special client to British diplomatic (Michael Caine) who is acting as ambassador in the conflict amongst Jews and Palestines . He's trying to create an important peace treaty but the various confronted factions want to shatter the pacification project .

The plot isn't narrated with agility and seems to be a little forced and artificial . It's quite unsuccessful but there're pretty dialog and not much action with exception on the final reel that's fast movement and is funniest . The picture obtained lukewarm reception by the public in spite of the magnificent starring duo and was a flop and barely made monetary box office . Although technically well realized is mediocre and doesn't offer surprises . The motion picture is classified ¨R¨ as abounds the nudism in charge of Sigourney Weaver as an escort becomes a pawn in some very dark politics , violence when the murders happen , sexual themes and profanity . The support cast though unknown is very secondary , the film is mainly interpreted by two exceptional actors : Weaver and Caine . The movie was regularly directed by Bob Swaim . The film will appeal to excellent protagonist pair fans . Rating : Mediocre and entertaining .

It's the classic "girl is too poor to pay her bills so she becomes a hooker" story in Half Moon Street. Sigourney Weaver is a highly respected researcher with a low-paying job, but instead of getting an extra roommate or applying for another research position, she gets in touch with an agency and becomes a high-class call girl. Since a lot of her clients are dignitaries, and a lot of them know each other, she also furthers her legitimate career with her contacts.

While Sigourney Weaver might not be the first actress who comes to mind that you would cast as a prostitute, her cool, detached attitude works for the character. During her first appointment, she gets all dolled up, only to look at herself in the mirror, realize she's not being herself, and scrub her makeup off. She shows up in a skirt-suit, glasses, and no make-up. She doesn't use a fake name and actually tells all her clients who she is and where she works during the daytime. It's a very unusual story, since all the other hooker movies you'll watch will feature a completely different character in the lead. If this sort of interpretation appeals to you, you might like Half Moon Street.

Also, while there are quite a few topless scenes, there are no sex scenes. It doesn't glamorize prostitution, but it also doesn't really portray it accurately. Sigourney is never in any danger, or afraid that she might be, and she never alludes to being abused or degraded by her clients. She says to Michael Caine, one of her regulars, that she likes casual sex so she doesn't mind her night job. It's a bit of an offensive statement, since that's never the reason women resort to prostitution. Still, if you like political conspiracy movies, with a bit of sex thrown in, give Half Moon Street a try and see what you think.

The original story, a novella by Paul Theroux, was turned into a screenplay, also by Theroux (he wrote several). It was terrific. You couldn't put it down. It was a highly-atmospheric work with complex characters. We struggled to find the right director, who could give it the right kind of film noir look at which Theroux was clearly aiming. We ran into early problems when few actors we approached for the female lead were willing to play this kind of a role. The nudity was not an issue; they just didn't "identify" with Dr. Slaughter.

Signing Sigourney Weaver was a blessing but also a problem since she's taller than most leading men but fortunately, so is Michael Caine. We got lucky in that combination. We had long conferences with the director, who seemed to understand exactly what Theroux's concept was all about.

During shooting in London, the RKO team (in New York and Los Angeles; our post-production group was based in London) kept asking the head of production how things were going, how the dailies looked, etc. He told us they were on time and under budget, which was true.

When the film was finished, I went to London with the President of RKO Pictures to look at an assemble edit. It was almost unwatchable. I began to wonder if there was a good way to edit around the female lead. But it wasn't really her fault. Who could possibly undress Sigourney Weaver and make her look unsexy? That took a special kind of talent. We walked out of the screening room into the daylight of Dolphin Square and contemplated the end of our careers.

Fortunately we were able to make other pictures and have the time to spend the rest of our lives wondering exactly how to apologize for this one.