Three-quarters of a thundering good thriller about a dangerous German spy (Donald Sutherland) at large in Britain between 1940 and 1944. The threads of the plot dictate that he'll meet up with the wife of an embittered disabled man on a remote Scottish island and enjoy a passionate affair with her. The majority of the story is handled with great pace and skill by director Richard Marquand and it's only in the last quarter of the film that he seems to be asking for more than the plot actually has to give. Sutherland bulges with sinister charm as the man who won't hesitate to kill on any occasion, while Kate Nelligan is superb in the scene where they initially talk by the fire, if a little less convincing in the scenes that call for anguished action. Christopher Cazenove does extremely well with the rather clichéd role of the husband. Miklos Rosza's music reminds us of what film scores used to be like when the music actually helped to heighten the mood the director was trying to convey. Look for Rik Mayall in a tiny role as a sailor.

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