Sea of Love (1989)

I’m a big Al Pacino fan and yet this gem had escaped me until now. He plays a troubled detective (sound familiar?) investigating a serial killer, who appears to be finding victims by using a personal advert in the lonely hearts dating section of a newspaper. Frank (Pacino) teams up with a hugely enjoyable John Goodman to track down the killer, and they decide to place their own adverts to entice the would-be killer to meet up for a date. The plan backfires spectacularly when Frank falls in love with Helen, who may well be the prime suspect in the case. It sounds like a set up that we’ve all seen, even though I couldn’t put my finger on anything specific. The most obvious comparison is probably Fatal Attraction (1987) but this is far less hysterical than Glenn Close’s bunny boiling (although I do think Fatal Attraction is great) and despite the fact that Frank has less to lose than Michael Douglas’ character I felt myself believing in the central relationship completely, and the calmness and collectiveness with which Helen (a terrific Ellen Barkin) holds herself throughout the film really keeps you on edge as to whether she is guilty or not. This is less an erotic thriller and more of a neo-noir crime tale, complete with shots of bright neon lightning against low-key lit cityscapes. I have to say I thought this was terrific, and certainly made me at least look at director Harold Becker’s Imdb page, although I wasn’t overwhelmed with what the general view on his other feature films opined. If anyone else has thoughts on Becker’s other output, get in touch. 7.9/10