November 1980. Bob Hoskins channels the spirit of Edward G. Robinson in this engrossing British crime drama about an ambitious Cockney gangster who's preparing to take his business international with the help of his savvy mistress (Helen Mirren), only to have his organization start to crumble beneath him at the worst possible moment, for reasons he doesn't understand until it's far too late.

Flavorful, tough, and dynamic, anchored by the charismatic performances of Hoskins and Mirren. Among the cast of familiar British character players, watch for a young Pierce Brosnan in a small but very significant supporting role. (The American gangster with whom Harold and Victoria are trying to do a deal is played by Eddie Constantine, a one-time crooner who became famous for starring as Peter Cheyney's hardboiled detective Lemmy Caution in a series of French films of the fifties and sixties, and in Godard's ALPHAVILLE.) CONTAINS LESBIANS? No, although Harold is surprisingly open-minded about his gay associates. VERDICT: Satisfyingly solid, and one of Hoskins' best.