The only reason I watched The Crying Game was because I had heard it was pretty good and it is from the same director as The Interview with the Vampire. Plus it was on TV. The film really surprised me. It was wonderfully made and had a great twist. The performances were real and profound. The writing was some of the best in years. And the direction was outstanding. And the costume design, art direction, makeup, and score were all amazing. The song The Crying Game also caught me as particularly wonderful. The Crying Game is a classic in every way. It makes a lasting impression and should be viewed many times. It is a true classic.

This wonderful movie is even better on the repeat viewing after the secret was out because you'd pay more attention to the smallest details and enjoy the brilliant storytelling and acting by everyone. Besides Rea, Whitaker, and Miranda Richardson, I'd like to mention Jim Broadbent as a sympathetic bartender Col. For me, though, the absolutely stunning, one of the very best debuts in the movie history was Jaye Davidson who had no movie experience. You know, there are not many characters that I keep thinking about after the movie is over - where did they come from, how their life would turn after the final credits, how would this cruel world treat them, would they be happy? And I want them to be happy. Dil (Davidson) is one of them - what a marvelous creature, how vulnerable yet dignified she is, what a combination of dry remote coolness and quiet tenderness. No wonder, Fergus (Rea) (as Whitaker's Jody before him) fell under her spell even after he found out that nothing is what it seems. Great movie - makes you think, makes you feel, makes you talk about it, makes you want to see it again.

9.5/10

THE CRYING GAME is one of director Neil Jordan's most engrossing and involving movies, made with depth and mature skill throughout. It's a small scale and simple story in which an IRA member, played in a hugely sympathetic way by Stephen Rea in his best role, gradually befriends a captured British soldier, as played by Forest Whitaker (who understandably struggles with his accent). After a lengthy introduction the story shifts to London, where Rea becomes infatuated with a mysterious hairdresser, as played by Jaye Davidson. It's a film I came to already knowing the plot twist - how could I not? It's one of the most famous of the 1990s - but this didn't stop the film being engaging. I found the romantic aspect handled in a particularly sensitive way, with Davidson thoroughly deserving his Oscar nomination in a difficult role. Ralph Brown and Tony Slattery are also welcome in smaller roles.