Close My Eyes

A minor success du scandal upon its release in 1991, this superbly-acted adult drama stars Clive Owen and Saskia Reeves as Natalie and Richard, an upscale London brother and sister who, starting as young adults, cultivate a madly passionate, consensual incestuous relationship. When Natalie marries a charming businessman (Alan Rickman), however, Richard's jealously boils over. Writer-director Stephen Poliakoff takes an unflinching approach to a taboo lifestyle choice, but may throw some viewers off with a subplot about greedy developers failing to preserve grand old London architecture—a seemingly arbitrary narrative thread here, although the city's changing environment is a running theme in Poliakoff's work for cinema and TV. Close My Eyes won Best Film at the Evening Standard British Film Awards, while Rickman was honored for Best Actor. Making its U.S. DVD debut, this is recommended. (C. Cassady)