Adapted by Tom Stoppard from John le Carré's novel, this espionage thriller is a class act in every respect, not least in its clever use of authentic Russian locations. Sean Connery - who never once alludes to the irony of his Bond background - plays a tweedy, irascible British publisher and reluctant spy who goes to Russia to check out the truth behind a potentially explosive manuscript. Michelle Pfeiffer is his contact and her moving performance is simply astonishing, with a wholly convincing accent that never comes across as studied. It's a tense, often puzzling picture, subtly directed by Fred Schepisi and with a great supporting cast - Roy Scheider, Klaus Maria Brandauer and, representing the British intelligence community, James Fox and the very weird Ken Russell.

Barley Scott Blair, a Lisbon-based editor of Russian literature who unexpectedly begins working for British intelligence, is commissioned to investigate the purposes of Dante, a dissident scientist trapped in the decaying Soviet Union that is crumbling under the new open-minded policies.