''Half Moon Street'' is a 1986 American

erotic thriller The erotic thriller is a film subgenre defined as a thriller with a thematic basis in illicit romance or sexual fantasy. Though exact definitions of the erotic thriller can vary, it is generally agreed "bodily danger and pleasure must remain i ...

film directed by

Bob Swaim Robert Frank "Bob" Swaim, Jr. (born November 2, 1943) is an American film director. Life and career Swaim was born in Evanston, Illinois, and was the son of Eleanor (Connor) and Robert Frank Swaim. He grew up in the Reseda area of Los Angeles and ...

and starring

Sigourney Weaver Susan Alexandra ( ; born October 8, 1949), better known by her stage name Sigourney Weaver, is an American actress. Prolific in film since the late 1970s, she is known for her pioneering portrayals of action heroines in Blockbuster (entertainme ...

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...

Keith Buckley Keith Buckley (born November 19, 1979) is an American singer, best known as the vocalist and lyricist of Many Eyes, the now defunct metalcore band Every Time I Die and the heavy metal supergroup The Damned Things. He is also a published aut ...

, and P. J. Kavanagh. The film is about an American woman working at a foreign research and policy institute in London who moonlights for a British

escort service An escort agency is a company that provides escorts for clients, usually for sexual services. The agency typically arranges a meeting between one of its escorts and the client at the customer's house or hotel room (outcall), or at the escort' ...

, becoming involved in the political intrigues surrounding one of her clients. The film was based on the 1984 novel '' Doctor Slaughter'' by

Paul Theroux Paul Edward Theroux ( ; born April 10, 1941) is an American novelist and travel writer who has written numerous books, including the travelogue '' The Great Railway Bazaar'' (1975). Some of his works of fiction have been adapted as feature films ...

. Despite the source material, the film and book have distinct endings. ''Half Moon Street'' was the first

RKO Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the major film studios, "Big Five" film studios of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood's Clas ...

solo

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

produced in almost a quarter-century. The previous one was '' Jet Pilot'', which had been released in 1957.

Plot

Dr. Lauren Slaughter, Ph.D., is an American academic living in London, where she holds a prestigious but low-paid job at a

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

policy institute A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-gov ...

. Her superiors take credit for her work and she struggles to pay the rent on her dilapidated flat. After an anonymous individual mails her a video tape promoting the financial rewards of working as an escort, Slaughter signs up with the high-end Jasmine

Escort Agency An escort agency is a company that provides escorts for clients, usually for sexual services. The agency typically arranges a meeting between one of its escorts and the client at the customer's house or hotel room (outcall), or at the escort' ...

and begins moonlighting as a paid escort to rich men. These include a

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

businessman called Karim, who gifts her the lease on his rented apartment on Half Moon Street, and Lord Bulbeck, a trusted member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

with a key role in international diplomacy and national defense. Slaughter and Bulbeck strike up a relationship that goes beyond sex, each enjoying the other's conversation and intelligence. However, Bulbeck's work on a delicate Middle East

peace process A peace process is the set of political sociology, sociopolitical negotiations, agreements and actions that aim to solve a specific armed conflict. Definitions Prior to an armed conflict occurring, peace processes can include the prevention of ...

forces him to miss a series of dates, causing Slaughter to feel rejected. Slaughter briefly takes up with a

playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

called Sonny, who later shows up at her apartment. He attacks her and threatens her with a gun, but she tricks and kills him. Karim arrives and also holds her at gunpoint, revealing that he was the one who sent her the video tape. Karim and Sonny are part of a conspiracy to destroy the peace process by murdering Bulbeck while he is in the company of a prostitute, thus killing both the man and his reputation. A

special forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

team storms the apartment and kills Karim. Slaughter and Bulbeck rekindle their romance.

Cast

Reception

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

gave ''Half Moon Street'' three out of four stars, concluding that the film "is interesting primarily because of the interaction between Weaver and Caine. Swaim deserves credit for the intelligence and wit of the first 80 or 90 minutes, but must also take the blame for the ending, which is a complete surrender to generic conventions."

References

External links

* * *
''Half Moon Street''
at

AllMovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, television series, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was ...

1980s American films 1980s English-language films 1980s erotic thriller films 1986 drama films 1986 films American erotic thriller films English-language erotic thriller films Films about prostitution in the United Kingdom Films based on American novels Films directed by Bob Swaim Films scored by Richard Harvey (composer) Films set in London Films shot at EMI-Elstree Studios Paul Theroux RKO Pictures films {{erotic-thriller-film-stub

Plot

Cast

Reception

See also

References

External links