Mélodie pour un meurtre

My review was written in August 1989 after watching the film at Universal screening room in Manhattan.

Hot summer box office should continue into autumn with Universal's "Sea of Love", a suspenseful film noir boasting a superlative performance by Al Pacino as a burned-out Gotham cop.

Handsomely mounted Martin Bregman production benefits from a witty screenplay by Richard Price ("The Color of Money" scripter), limning the bittersweet tale of a 20-year veteran NYC cop (Pacino) assigned to a case tracking down the serial killer of men who've made dates through the personal columns.

He teams up with fellow cop John Goodman to set a trap for the murderer by matching fingerprints with those found at the crime scenes. Clue point to a woman being the killer, placing rhyming romantically inclined ads in the personals and leaving a 45 rpm disk of '50s hit "Sea of Love" on the record player. Using a romantic poem of his mother's, Pacino places an ad and with Goodman they take turns interviewing femme suspects at dinner trysts to get their fingerprints on the wine glass for matching.

Early on, Ellen Barkin appears as one of the suspects, but after an initial rebuff Pacino is smitten with her and crucially decides not to get her fingerprints for analysis. Pic builds some hair-raising twists and turns as the evidence mounts pointing to her guilt, climaxing in a very surprising revelation.

Thankfully closer in character to "Serpico", his previous Bregman-produced hit policier by Sidney Lumet, than his morbid Jerry Weintraub flop, William Friedkin's "Cruising", Pacino here brings great depth to the central role. A loner with retirement after 20 years facing him, this cop is a sympathetic, self-divided individual and Pacino makes his clutching at a second chance with femme fatale Barkin believable. It's a significant screen comebak after four years' absence following Pacino's disastrous msicasting (in period dress) in the Irwin Winkler pic, Hugh Hudson's "Revolution".

Chemistry between the two stars is palpable in the modern "Body Heat" vein and Barkin's unconventional (in a movie star sense) good looks add to the credibility of her key role. Goodman provides solid comedy relief, while Patricia Barry stands out in a well-chosen supporting cast as an older woman who heartbreakingly picks up the wrong vibes at dinner after answering Pacino's phony personals ad.

Director Harold Becker, known for his series of thrillers starring James Woods, puts his own stamp on the picture with tight control of several explosive scenes. Price's script is both edgy and funny, balancing solid entertainment values with the dark, obsessive strains of the genre.

Tech contributions are excellent, especially British lenser Ronnie Taylor's atmospheric photography of familiar Manhattan locales (interiors were shot in Toronto). Besides a punchy score by Trevor Jones, title song by George Khoury and Phillip Baptiste is repeated endlessly on the soundtrack inits 1959 hit version of Phil Phillips & the Twilights with a hypnotic effect; Tom Waits warbles a new version over the end credits.

Frank Keller is a New York detective investigating the murder of a man who was found naked, shot in the back of his head, with the song 'Sea of Love' playing on the record player. It is suspected that the killer may be a woman. This theory is reinforced when it there is a similar killing in Queens. Both victims had placed poetic ads in a lonely hearts column. Keller teams up with Detective Sherman Touhey, from Queens, and place their own advert. They meet various women and Keller ends up going out with one Helen Cruger; unfortunately it is possible that she is the killer; if so he could be in real danger.

This might not be one of the '80s most memorable films but it is well worth watching if you enjoy cop movies. Al Pacino does a fine job as Keller and has a good chemistry with John Goodman, who plays Touhey. He also has a believable chemistry with Ellen Barkin's Helen... simultaneously falling in love and occasionally fearing she could kill him. Barkin is really good as Helen; sexy but slightly ambiguous. Inevitably there are some twists along the way before we finally learn who the killer is. The story has a good neo-noir feel with plenty of tension and ambiguous characters while managing to avoid some clichés I'd expected. Overall a solid film that I'd recommend to fans of the genre; a must see for Pacino's fans.

I've watched it many times and never get tired of it. "Sea of Love" is one of few films where Al Pacino is very sexy, and it is adds to the film's many pleasures. The rest of them are - well constructed story of a New York Homicide cop (Pacino) attracted to a mysterious blond woman with a charming crooked grin (Ellen Barkin - talented, sexy and underrated actress) who may or may not be a serial killer. The chemistry between Pacino and Barkin is powerful and undeniable and the love scenes between them are among the best and most memorable ever filmed. John Goodman is very good as Pacino's partner and friend and yes I love the soundtrack and the title song.

Men who've answered personal ads in the lonely hearts column featuring poetry are being found naked, face down on their beds. There are cigarette butts with lipstick on them in their ashtrays. Detective Frank Keller (Al Pacino), along with his sidekick Sherman (John Goodman), decide to enter their own ad in the lonely hearts column, and try to match the killer's fingerprints.

A great premise that definitely justifies making yet another police procedural, this Al Pacino vehicle won this reviewer over, which is hard to do these days with cop thrillers - once you see enough they all start to look the same.

But here we've got a great script, with some terrific wisecracking cop lines, great actors, especially Pacino, Goodman and sexy Ellen Barkin - which make for a very enjoyable ride. Sure the score is a little 80's, and Ellen Barkin may look back and regret that hair-do, but otherwise this is a very successful piece of film.

This is largely due to the terrific screen presence of Al Pacino - he's such a firecracker! And the hugely enjoyable chemistry between partners Pacino and John Goodman. They play off each other so well. The dating scenes are particularly fun - personal highlights for me. And, of course, Ellen Barkin exudes sensuality. Its incredible.

The title may sound pulpy and cheap - but its for good cause. We find out in the first few minutes that its the name of the song the killer was playing when the first murder of the film occured. Its also ironic - the crime-ridden world of this film is anything but a sea of love.

7/10. Must-see for Pacino fans and fans of cop thrillers. For everyone else, not essential, but great saturday night fair.

Within a kind of light and shadow there's almost a trademark photography for a film noir movie, and "Sea of Love" is a film that takes place in the shadows…

Al Pacino plays Frank Teller, a self-conscious detective—in search of a serial killer—drawn into a torrid sexual relationship with an attractive young woman he met in a super market when all the good citizens of the city are asleep and the people who are walking around are the ones who are leading the most solitary lives…

Helen Barkin is just so right for the part… You can believe her when you see her dressed in her red leather jacket and tight jeans… She's a lady of the night, sexy as hell, and a woman who can take care of herself… Between her and Pacino, there were enough attraction that's deep but also there were feelings of vulnerability and suspicion