AllMovie

Scripted by the always intriguing Dennis Potter, Brimstone and Treacle offers a disturbing look at what guilt and repression can do to a man, a marriage, and a family. It also offers the best acting work of Sting's movie career. Director Richard Loncraine does a fine job of recognizing the solid script he has been given, yet still manages to find appropriate moments to take some flights of visual fancy. The film plays out in mostly two and three shots allowing the audience to see how the psychopath con man Martin (Sting) is manipulating both Denholm Elliot's guilt-ridden husband as well as Joan Plowright's emotionally exhausted wife. They believably embody long-time married couple who, when faced with the adversity of caring for an invalid daughter, sink deeper into their resentments. Sting, obviously inspired by the work of Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange, seems to be having a marvelous time playing such an unrelenting hedonistic conman. He is equally charming and frightening. And in the few moments where one might find him less than believable, his expert co-stars are there to sell the performance to us. With a running time of less than 90 minutes, Brimstone and Treacle efficiently delivers a parable about honesty with more than a few wicked laughs.