Teddy Barnes is a conflicted lawyer, still reeling from the dubious methods of a colleague, she takes on the defence of Jack Forrester, who is accused of murdering his wife with a jagged edged knife. Gradually falling for Jack's seductive powers, Teddy falls in love with the man she now has to defend, her problems it seems, are about to become far far worse.

Jagged Edge, directed by Richard Marquand, starring Glenn Close (Teddy),Jeff Bridges (Jack),Robert Loggia (Sam Ransom) and Peter Coyote (Thomas Krasny),is bringing nothing new to the table of a much replicated genre. It does however boast brilliant acting, a tremendous screenplay (Joe Eszterhas) and a production value that demands it be viewed with less than cynical eyes. That it is written by Eszterhas is obvious when looking at the structure of the picture, death, sex, troubled romance, greed and that old devil called obsession (Basic Instinct anyone?),yet aided by a competent director and an exemplary cast, Jagged Edge shines brighter than most other films of its ilk.

It looks a little frayed (not jagged) around the edges now, but that is purely because of the advent of time and the ream of thrillers using this format that have followed this piece. If one (such as I) can transport oneself back to the 80s and view Jagged Edge on its original terms, then its easy to recognise just what a well put together picture it is. Close and Bridges are superb, whilst Robert Loggia steals the picture from under their noses, his interplay with Close is a particular highlight. In spite of some less than great twists and unsubtle scapegoat placings, Jagged Edge succeeds because you are there at the finale, and because its held you in its grip all along, you (hopefully) have invested yourself with these characters, you simply just have to know, for better or worse!

The ending was cause for much discussion back in the day, and viewing it now it still feels like a moment of cheek mixed in with some form of clarity, but rest assured it works well, as does, funnily enough, the whole film. No world beater here, but highly accomplished and worth the time of any thriller obsessed movie fan. 7/10

San Francisco heiress Forrester is cruelly killed by a black suit clad murderer . Her husband Jack (Jeff Bridges) , a known publishing magnate , is convicted for cold blooded murder . He contracts an advocate-in-law , Teddy Barnes (Glenn Close) , former prosecutor , and now at charge of the criminal defense , in spite of the fact she has not taken a criminal case long time . The widower is allegedly considered guilt , though freed by means a bail until trial celebration presided by an expeditious judge (John Dhener) . Then they fall in love and she's defending the man she loves . The trial takes place and there appears an accusation lawyer (Peter Coyote) , an ambitious district attorney who previously worked for her ...

This court-room drama is a Neo-noir movie with tension , mystery , surprises and , of course , a suspenseful twist in the end . Despite of the fashion-able sex and violence , this is a satisfyingly old-fashioned sort of film that avid fans of the genre will love . Jeff Bridges and Glenn Close are frankly well , there's enjoyable chemical between them . Interesting writing credits by Joe Eszterhas , a successful screenwriter (Basic instinct , Jade , Sliver , Showgirls). The flick is rated ¨R¨ for sexual scenes and some violence . Colorful cinematography by Matthew F. Leonetti and sensitive musical score by John Barry . The motion picture was professionally directed by Richard Marquand . He was hired by George Lucas after seeing ¨Eye of the needle¨ and only non-American to direct a Star Wars film: ¨The return of the Jedi¨, though his career failed with flops such as , ¨Until September¨ and ¨Hearts of fire¨ until his early death.

JAGGED EDGE is a pretty decent '80s thriller that mixes two genres to good effect. The film kicks off with a nastily memorable opening sequence in which a woman is knifed and murdered on her bed by a masked psychopath. From this point in, we're in BASIC INSTINCT territory, as a defence lawyer grows close to the murder suspect while detectives strive to make sense of the crime.

The second half of the production moves into courtroom drama territory and at this point it really picks up with some quietly gripping scenes. It's not as gripping as the classics of old (for instance, BOOMERANG!, a film noir starring Dana Andrews that I recently watched) but it certainly does the job in keeping you watching.

The film is well cast, with Glenn Close as the protagonist and not the bunny boiler (FATAL ATTRACTION did typecast her in the eyes of the public). Jeff Bridges plays it mysteriously, but it's the supporting cast where this really shines: Robert Loggia steals every scene as the foul-mouthed ally, Peter Coyote is a hard-headed rival, and there are minor roles for '80s favourites James Karen and Lance Henriksen. JAGGED EDGE manages to keep the tension going right until the final, fumbled reveal.