A Line in the Sand (2001)

Absorbing overall

This is a well-paced and absorbing movie based on the novel by Gerald Seymour. Ross Kemp, best known in the US for playing Grant Mitchell in British series "EastEnders", puts in a worthy performance as agricultural equipment salesman Gavin Hughes, who is pressed by the British government into spying on his contacts in Iran in exchange for keeping out of prison. His information leads to the deaths of 24 Iranian weapons scientists, and for his own safety he is forced to abandon his family and change his identity. Years later, as he enjoys an idyllic new life as 'Frank Perry' on the Suffolk coast with new love Meryl (Saskia Reeves) and her young son, his cover is blown and an Iranian assassin tracks him down. This time Gavin/Frank refuses to run, and as the authorities scramble to protect him, the hitman closes in.

I don't really understand the R rating as the violence is pretty minimal. I withheld a star only because the ending had a few disappointing aspects, but the cast is great, the pacing is good and the movie sustains itself without resorting to over-the-top gimmicks. June 8, 2003

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