Defence Of The Realm Details

Conspiracy Theories

The Kelly Affair. The Hutton Report - faceless men in Pinstripe suits and Club ties running the country from behind closed doors. The recent goings on at the heart of Government make Defence of the Realm as fresh and as gripping now as when I first saw it back in '85. A fine array of acting talent topped of by a bravura performance from Denholm Elliott. The hard-drinking, bitchy, back-stabbing world of Fleet Street comes to life as Gabriel Byrne struggles to dig out the real facts behind a seemingly straightforward political sex scandal. If you like a grown-up film that's strong on plot and light on special effects, you won't be dissapointed.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Quite ordinary

I'm afraid I found this film quite ordinary, although when it was released it probably seemed more potent in that it dealt with cover-ups and corruption in government, which now of course we're all very much used to hearing about. The acting was first class, particularly from Denholm Elliott and Gabriel Byrne, although the beautiful Greta Scacchi was a little below par. Also the copy of the film seemed rather dark, perhaps intentionally so, and the plot sprung too many loose ends which somehow got lost in the end.