Could have been much better

Rating: Null/10 (17 October 1998)

The directing was poor. Fiennes was strong, but the make-up severely detracted from the power of his performance. He looked stupid, almost like Freddy Kruger. They shouldn't have made the burns so bad, maybe on just part of his face. Or if its crucial that he is unrecognizable, put him behind a curtain, or have a cloth over his face, this would make things more mysterious, as was the premise of the movie. Fiennes has such a good voice, that they could easily pull that off and it would have been a much better movie, sometimes technology is worse. The musical score deserved an Oscar, but it was never used. The dramatic scenes in the cave and on the train seemed stale because there was no music riding your emotions. Best of all in movie was the only one not nominated for an Oscar, Willem Defoe. As Caravaggio, the spy whose thumbs were cut off, he brought the story back down to earth and let you know that Count Amasi sold out on the allies and a lot of people were hurt as a result. His performance was outstanding.