AllMovie

Although it's an "issue film" of the type often tackled with neither skill nor subtlety by the purveyors of network-TV movies of the week, this intelligent cable outing skirts most of the material's temptation to press buttons and wring hands. Instead, screenwriters Walter Bernstein and Bryan Boluboff and director Paul Seed construct a thoughtful and well-acted meditation on injustice, respectability, and the unexpected nature of love. The use of Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit" as both a symbol of pre-1960s race relations and a conversation piece between the main characters is just one example of the economical writing on display. Courtney B. Vance and Kerry Fox are never less than compelling as their relationship shifts from delicate respect to surprising intimacy to something tragic, while a fine supporting cast -- especially Leland Gantt, Ciaran Hinds, and Beatie Edney -- invests the plot-heavy script with believable human faces and motivations. If the film ultimately descends into righteous indignation at the climax, at least the mournful epilogue marks a return to quiet dignity. Issue movie or not, The Affair proves truly moving.