Stars: Archie Panjabi, Shahid Ahmed, Steve Jackson, Syed Ahmed

Director: Kenny Glenaan

Summary: Yasmin, the daughter of a Pakistani family living in northern England attempts to please both her family and still enjoy a western way of life. But she finds herself agreeing to marry a cousin to please her father. With her life changed forever Yasmin becomes even more isolated when the September 11th tragedy brings new anti-terrorism laws.

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Any film aiming to be Hitchcockian has a lot to live up to: with its blonde heroine, eerie atmosphere and sweeping score, Killing Me Softlysets itself up for a fall even before the plot kicks in. Stylishly filmed by Chen Kaige (the Chinese director's first English feature), this London-set thriller is based on Nicci French's novel about a young American woman, Alice (Heather Graham), and her passionate affair with the mysterious stranger Adam (Joseph Fiennes). Leaving her partner and surrendering herself to Adam's sexual experimentation, Alice only begins to suspect something's not quite right once she's married him and a series of ominous notes arrive through the post. Add to this Adam's mysterious first marriage, an intriguing locked cupboard and enigmatic sister (Natasha McElhone), and Alice begins to look for a way out, in fear of her life.

The fact that Alice sleeps with a stranger at the drop of a hat makes for a shaky premise, but what ensues can only be described as complete nonsense, with the plot twisting its way to a ludicrous climax. Smirking his way through the film, Fiennes is as miscast as Graham, who's clearly there for the soft porn love scenes and not the ones where she's a reporter replete with big spectacles. Graham in the buff is certainly going to attract a few viewers, but for the rest of us Killing Me Softlyis just too plain daft to bother with.

On the DVD:Killing Me Softlyoffers a sparse set of extras, including a featurette that repeats most of the footage seen in the trailer, also included. Short interviews with cast members Graham, Fiennes and McElhone can be found here alongside comments from director Kaige and some footage of the shoot itself, all of which add little to the overall package. --Laura Bushell

Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 0
Special Features:	Cast Interviews, Photo Gallery
Release Date:	February 14, 2005
Runtime:	81 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	F H E D 1876
Keywords:	General, Drama, Yasmin
Genre:	Drama