Half Moon Street DVD with Sigourney Weaver, Michael Caine, Patrick Kavanagh (R) +Movie Reviews

Overlooked little gem

john wilkin | nashville, tn USA | 08/02/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"As a fan of the writings of Paul Theroux, I try to watch whatever of his works gets filmed. This film has a good story and a good cast but no big Hollywood hype, so it got overlooked. It was refreshing to see Miss Weaver in another role besides co-starring with the Alien monster. I have never seen a bad Michael Caine film; he's one of those actors for whom there are no small parts. As Lord Bulbeck, a semi-aristocratic British politician, he shows a sense of power and responsibility publicly, while he discretely slips into a romance with Sigorney Weaver's character Dr. Lauren Slaughter. She is a modern intellectual PhD working for a London based Middle Eastern think tank, earning so little money she resorts to hooking on the side. But she is funny, charming and practical in her approach. There is some delightful frontal nudity, perhaps her only appearance like this in film. There is intrigue and political perspective revealed through the many characters with diverse nationalities and agendas. This is a small film which shows the tensions and cultural differences between the Arab and British worlds of business and politics
that have become even more apparent lately. It should be available on DVD and cable."

A n excelant intrigue/spy/etc film

William Hare | 05/15/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Seems this one is somewhat unknown, but if you love Siggy, as I do, then it's a must have. Michael Cain plays oposite. She is a high priced call girl (escort) 'cause she can't make enough money at her real job at fellowship for "Middle Eastern Studies" He's a high ranking diplomat and needs some release from his high stress job. Lord Bobeck, or something. He gets his release from Siggy, and almost gets her killed. I don't want to spoil it by telling much more, but I can tell you I have most of Siggy's movies, and while I love 'em all, this is one of my favorites. And......you get to see her nude a lot! None of that in "Gorillas in the Mist" If you can find it, buy it."

For Sigourney Weaver & Michael Caine Fans

The JuRK | Our Vast, Cultural Desert | 05/17/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This movie got soundly trashed when it was released in 1986 but I really liked it for a couple reasons.The first, I loved the Paul Theroux book on which it's based. In the book, there are actually two stories. The movie takes its story from "Dr. Slaughter." (The other story, "Doctor DeMarr", is about a twin who foolishly resumes his brother's medical practice after finding him dead from a drug overdose).The second, I had been really wanting to see Sigourney Weaver in a sexy role after battling the ALIEN and evil spirits in GHOSTBUSTERS. (THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY, an excellent film from a few years before with Mel Gibson, was romantic(...)). HALF MOON STREET definitely turned more to the erotic and even scratched the surface of sordid.
That's my only disappointment with the film: the corrosive effects of her double-life are played more situational than emotional. She was smart (...) but the film jumps into suspense and intrigue at the point where she would really have to suffer the inner consequences of her lifestyle. Or lifestyles, as it they were.
Theroux's original story manages to capture it in the final line (not an easy thing to do!).I'd read an interview with Ms. Weaver and she said she'd wished the script had given her character more of a sense of humor. That would've been a great approach! I can see why they'd nix her idea (keep her character SMART!), but she would've come across less smug about being an escort. If you like intrigue with hints of eroticism--and Michael Caine, who's always great--then this movie is worth watching."

Not much of interest here

David Bonesteel | Fresno, CA United States | 08/22/2005

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Dr. Lauren Slaughter (Sigourney Weaver), an underpaid political analyst, turns to high-end prostitution in order to make ends meet, thereby encountering an influential British politician, Lord Bulbeck (Michael Caine), who is trying to broker a Middle East peace deal. Before long, she is imperiled by an attempt to assassinate Bulbeck and derail the negotiations.

This implausible film doesn't know what it wants to be. Its best moments are the scenes between Weaver and Caine, but unfortunately there's a lot of nonsense to clutter up the plot. Weaver's character is supposed to be intelligent and worldly, yet she hooks under her own name and appears to be surprised later when her unique choice of sideline costs her some credibility in intellectual circles. In addition, it seems unnecessary for the director/writer Bob Swaim and his co-writer Edward Behr to have made her a prostitute at all. Novelist Paul Theroux may have justified it thematically in the original novel, but on the screen it just plays out as a particularly implausible pretext for her to meet Lord Bulbeck. After spending most of the running time developing this relationship, the film concludes with a cliched 15 minutes or so of uninteresting violence, leaving the affair between the two main characters unresolved."

A Daring Intellectual Caught up in International Intrigue

William Hare | Seattle, Washington | 02/08/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Half Moon Street in London contains posh flats, many of which belong to prominent Arabs, and is situated near Piccadilly. It is close to Victoria Station, Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus.

Sigourney Weaver arrives in London to work for an Arab-Anglo institute. A brilliant intellectual with a doctorate at Harvard in the field of Chinese economics, having spent a good deal of time in China researching her subject, she is multi-lingual and has a sharp mind for movie details. She is able to readily recite dialogue from scores of films.

The think tank where Weaver works pays so little that she decides to do something daring to enhance her income. She goes to work for an escort service, but on independent terms. Sigourney explains that she will agree to a date at a restaurant, after which it is up to her if she will pursue matters further.

With her excellent pedigree Weaver is a natural to entertain the male economic elite from around the world in this most cosmopolitan of international cities. Her independence is revealed when she coolly tells one Japanese businessman that, despite his confident expectations, she has no desire to augment the evening's activities after dinner.

Weaver learns that the institute where she works is run by an international consortium containing, as one local investment banker tells her, the 5,000 people in international society that "really count."

On one of her eclectic evening excursions Weaver visits the flat of Michael Caine for dinner and prospective good times. A member of the House of Lords, Caine is also an international diplomat who is seeking to broker an international peace agreement between the Israeli and Arab political worlds.

The story ultimately assumes a duality of how Caine can keep the negotiations on track with Weaver caught in the midst of the intrigue. That flat on Half Moon Street that she was able to move into when the wealthy Arab who owned it said he did not need it that point perhaps will come at a stiff price after all. Time will tell.

As the intrigue continues Weaver becomes frustrated when Caine is compelled to break dates with her. When he is unable to keep an appointment in Geneva she is ready to leave him. In the process while in Geneva she has allowed another man to romance her.

In her anxiety to free herself from Caine, has Weaver somehow put herself in harm's way? How will it play out? Will she get back with Caine? Will Caine be able to broker the peace agreement despite possibly serious obstacles?

These are the points that play themselves out in the film."

Search - Half Moon Street on DVD

Movie Details

Similar Movies

Similarly Requested DVDs

Movie Reviews