The Russia House
1990's THE RUSSIA HOUSE, an adaptation of John Le Carre's novel, is ultimately more interested in romance than espionage....and ends up less than satisfactory on both counts. Director Fred Schepisi's movie casts two leads with sex appeal, Sean Connery and Michelle Pfeifer, hoping their onscreen chemistry would thrill audiences from Moscow to Honolulu. A May-December love story to perhaps have a multi-generational draw. I guess it didn't work out that way, as the film was less than a box office juggernaut, not exactly critically acclaimed, and rarely mentioned these days. Did it even find its audience on cable or home video? The plot involves a crusty publisher called Barley (Connery) who finds himself interrogated by British Intelligence after they learn of a manuscript submitted to him by a shadowy figure called Dante (Klaus Maria Brandauer) via Russian secretary Katya (Pfeifer, sporting a unconvincing accent). Said document contains details of...
