It may take patience to get into this psychological study of one man's journey downward, a spiral caused by his realization that his place in the world is not as necessary as he once thought it was. Ben Kingsley is very good in the title role as a man quiet on the surface whose secret life as a spy for who it turns out to be the last emperor of the Ottomans has always given him a cushy life. But the world was changing in the early 20th century, and empires were fading faster than the seasons. Kingsley's character is responsible for getting information to the emperor in regards to situations going on that may be threatening or new arrivals whose intentions are unknown. When he meets handsome Englishman Charles Dance he offers him the opportunity to be his guide and translator, and quickly becomes envious of him when the alluring Helen Mirren, whom Kingsley is obviously in love with, ends up as Dance's lover. A quick but curious scene has Kingsley entering into a Turkish bath where he is greeted by a young Greek boy, and the presumptions are pretty obvious as to what he is there for, having just seen Dance and Mirren swimming naked together in the sea.
With unrequited love bringing him down and the uncertainty of his future, it becomes obvious that the desperation of Pascali is the steps down towards his own fall, and these desperations have him becoming careless especially when Dance discovers just by chance through a vicious fall down a hill a long unseen ancient Greek statue. Their partnership is obviously filled with mistrust on both sides, and that is where the film begins to become stronger and its conflict, previously with the plot going in uncertain directions. This film is gorgeous to watch of course, and Kingsley never makes you see deep into this character which adds to the strength of the performance because he basically has no outward personality with his lack of verbal skills and an uncertainty of how to deal with situations he hasn't encountered before. It's complex and often perplexing and aggravating, but if you stick with it with a patient mind, little bits of it will come together here and there as the film goes on. Certainly this is going to be compared to Merchant Ivory films of the same time, but it is quite different in many ways. As an artistic film, it's great. But as a piece of entertainment, there's a lot to be desired even though with the sum of all of its parts, the rewards come when you least expect them.
With unrequited love bringing him down and the uncertainty of his future, it becomes obvious that the desperation of Pascali is the steps down towards his own fall, and these desperations have him becoming careless especially when Dance discovers just by chance through a vicious fall down a hill a long unseen ancient Greek statue. Their partnership is obviously filled with mistrust on both sides, and that is where the film begins to become stronger and its conflict, previously with the plot going in uncertain directions. This film is gorgeous to watch of course, and Kingsley never makes you see deep into this character which adds to the strength of the performance because he basically has no outward personality with his lack of verbal skills and an uncertainty of how to deal with situations he hasn't encountered before. It's complex and often perplexing and aggravating, but if you stick with it with a patient mind, little bits of it will come together here and there as the film goes on. Certainly this is going to be compared to Merchant Ivory films of the same time, but it is quite different in many ways. As an artistic film, it's great. But as a piece of entertainment, there's a lot to be desired even though with the sum of all of its parts, the rewards come when you least expect them.