The film was directed by the Australian Phillip Noyce, who made the fine Dead Calm (1989) in his homeland, went onto banal American mainstream efforts such as The Saint (1997) and The Bone Collector (1999), before finding critical acceptance with the later likes of Rabbit Proof Fence (2001) and The Quiet American (2002). It it is a slickly made film but one that seems indifferently executed. The plot – adapted from a 1991 novel by Ira Levin, author of works like Rosemary’s Baby (1967), The Stepford Wives (1972) and The Boys from Brazil (1976) – lacks a real tightness as a thriller. It does pick up briefly towards the end when Stone becomes drawn into William Baldwin’s voyeurism and we too feel some of the fascination with what he describes as a ‘real-life soap opera’. The video scenes themselves look slickly exciting through the hi-tech finish given to the video room sets and, if nothing else, the marvellous flickering, changing and zooming tv console.

Sharon Stone Undressed has been made a big selling point of the film and what little interest there is comes from the admittedly heated and steamy sex scenes. But in the American cinematic release most of these were cut – although even with these in in the international print, the film generated little interest. Stone’s playing here is neurotic and barely adequate, she only ever at all coming to life in (surprise! surprise!) the sex scenes. The one person who does unexpectedly come to the fore in the film is Baldwin who comes across with quite strikingly dark and handsome sexual charisma.