Dance With A Stranger

This riveting noir du jour is based on the true story of Ruth Ellis, who in 1955, murdered her lover in hot blood and was the last woman to be executed in England. The real crime though, was that the Motion Picture Academy of Arts & Sciences ignored the brassy, bravura performance of Miranda Richardson, who creates an unforgettable portrait of the platinum blonde femme fatale. Tracking the inevitable course of her volatile, doomed affair with a young, rich and spoiled racecar driver is not very pleasant. As the wastrel David, Rupert Everett is one of the screen's great louses, but after awhile, one becomes numb to his mental and physical brutality. The audience cannot help but lose patience watching this tough, intelligent woman reduced to a sniveling wretch by so obvious a scoundrel. Ian Holm gives yet another restrained, tortured performance as Ellis' loving, rich benefactor, who forgives all her indiscretions. Thankfully, video has given a second chance to this compelling adult drama which won at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival, but was unfortunately limited to art-house showings on its initial release. Recommended. (Donald Liebenson)