New York psychiatrist Dr. Nathan Conrad (Douglas) doesn't so much as raise an eyebrow when confronted with the prospect that one of his patients, a 15-year-old boy, may be over-sexed.

But then Douglas himself was reported to have spent some quality time lying on a couch and emptying his heart to a shrink in an attempt to quell an "addiction to sex".

Apart from providing a couple of chuckles, the opening scene introduces Conrad as a nice enough man - deserving of his successful practice, beautiful wife and charming daughter.

The tone changes dramatically, however, when, on his way home to begin preparations for the Thanksgiving holiday, Conrad is summoned by Dr Sachs (Platt) to examine a young woman.

Elisabeth Burrows (Murphy) presents a history of failed treatments and misdiagnoses and Nathan is the only thing standing between her and a life of state institutionalisation.

His skill as a doctor is apparent when, within five minutes of their first meeting, he manages to make physical contact with the traumatised girl.

He also gets her speaking and his curiosity is aroused by her mysterious first words to him: "You want what they want, don't you?" followed by a singsong delivery of the film's tagline - "I'll never tell..."

Arriving home late again, Nathan has time to put the little one to bed and give a superfluous sponge bath to his wife, Aggie (Janssen), who's confined to bed with a broken leg.

Morning comes, the holiday starts and the fun begins. The Thanksgiving Day Parade gets going with everyone from Bart Simpson to the marching band in attendance, but something's missing...

Nathan's daughter has been kidnapped overnight by a band of ruthless thieves led by Patrick Koster (Bean).

To save her, he must find that which Elisabeth won't tell - a six-digit number locked away in the teen's troubled mind.

Nathan has less than 12 hours to retrieve the number, which holds the key to the location to a stolen jewel and, if he ever wants to see his daughter again, he mustn't say a word to anyone - especially not the police.

There's clever use of the city location by Gary Fleder, who creates an eerie sense of claustrophobia and, when the action moves to a cemetery on a nearby island, the film gains considerable tension.

Murphy is perfect as the deranged Elisabeth; she proves her substantial talent as she unfurls a whirlwind of emotions. Both unpredictable and bristling with untapped passions, she makes a vivid impression.

A strong cast effortlessly propels this superior thriller along... even if the ending (as is often the way in Hollywood) leaves little to the imagination.

Dominic Bloch