This is the most difficult movie review I've had to write in recent memory. By that, I mean there is a surprise that is essential to the film, and it occurs about two-thirds of the way in. To reveal or even hint at this twist would be a gross disservice to the moviegoer, yet there are some audience members who may want to know that this particular moment is potentially quite offensive.
That's all the warning you get. Beyond that, let it be said that the R rating here is earned.
Despite certain reservations, however, it must be said that Neil Jordan's "The Crying Game" is a remarkable film. Jordan, a writer-director who dazzled critics with "Mona Lisa," then had an unfortunate outing in Hollywood with "High Spirits" and "We're No Angels," seems to have returned to form.
"The Crying Game" begins as if it is merely a standard IRA/British army thriller, with Jody (Forest Whitaker), an English soldier stationed in Northern Ireland, drunkenly picking up Jude (Miranda Richardson), a blonde tart in a tight dress. She is really one of a small band of desperate Irish Republican Army terrorists, led by Maguire (Adrian Dunbar, of "Hear My Song"). And the next thing Jody knows, he's in an abandoned greenhouse with a sack over his head, being held hostage in a prisoner-exchange demand.
But Fergus (Stephen Rea), the IRA soldier assigned to watch him, is too soft-hearted for the job. He befriends Jody, compromises himself with his comrades and promises Jody that if anything happens he'll look up his girlfriend.
Something does happen, of course — though not what you think. The IRA soldiers split up and Fergus heads for London on the lam.
While there, his conscience bothers him and he looks up Jody's girlfriend, Dil (Jaye Davidson). With an uneasy mix of attraction and guilt, Fergus tentatively befriends her. Then Maguire and Jude show up to further complicate these already complicated matters.
I will chip away no further at Jordan's twisting, turning narrative, which is just off-center enough to be intriguing all on its own, even without all the surprises he throws at us. Suffice it to say that this is a dark, disturbing, funny and insightful piece of work. Hold on to your expectations, folks, because you will be taken aback, no matter how much you know about this film ahead of time.
In the lead role, Rea is subtly good, allowing his charm to creep up on the audience gradually, and Davidson, who has never acted before, is startling, to say the least.
But if ever there was a director's film, this is it. And Jordan proves to have a boundless imagination.
"The Crying Game" is rated R for violence nudity, profanity, vulgarity and sex.