The Thomas Crown Affair

This remake of the 1968 Steve McQueen thriller is ten times more involving than I'd dared to bargain for, given the presence of Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo.

While Brosnan is not exactly the most charismatic screen star of his generation, his Bond performances have undoubtedly demonstrated an appreciable flair for action high-jinks, and his general air of smooth, unflappable serenity fits his character like a glove here.

He plays Thomas Crown, a self-made billionaire playboy whose only problem is a very low boredom threshold, which he attempts to combat by stealing priceless paintings, flying all over the shop in a private jet, and successfully seducing every woman he takes a shine to. He manages to liberate a massively expensive Monet painting from a museum in the film's first few minutes, and the rest of the action details his attempts to evade detection.

Rene Russo plays a sharp-witted private investigator who is convinced of Crown's guilt but realises that nailing him will be extremely difficult, and the film turns into something of a psychological chess-match, with the pair embarking on a marathon battle of wits.

Romantic complications inevitably ensue as well, which enables Russo to treat our male viewers to some surprisingly enthusiastic kit-shedding. Faye Dunaway, McQueen's co-star in the original, turns up in a minor role as Brosnan's shrink (as if I've ever seen a character less in need of one), while Denis Leary acquits himself extremely well as one of the cops on Crown's case.

Essentially a Bond movie without the breakneck pace, Thomas Crown is no classic and it ain't exactly art, but for a Friday night crowd-pleaser, it fits the bill almost perfectly.