This film is loosely based on The Roberto Calvi affair, England, 1982, where the Italian banker was found hanged at the base of The Thames River, London.

Suicide was the first thought, though later on it emerged that murder was the real reason behind his death, with a very complex conspiracy at foot.

Alan Terry (Rupert Graves), is a homeless man with a drink problem, his first scene is that of a drunk walking down a busy road, offering foul language at anyone who cares to listen.
As he beds down for the night, he witnesses the shocking murder. Although he has his own problems, Terry is basically a decent man, and attempts to report the crime to the police, soon realising however that the police (Michael Gambon) and others are actually involved in this sordid business.

Another alcoholic friend puts him into the care of a journalist, Billie Haymen, (Annabella Sciorra) who then attempts to bring all to justice.

There are some good bits in the film, a shocking scene when a tramps hang-out is set ablaze makes you wonder about man's cruelty in the face of greed, but in truth it must be said that only the acting talents of Graves in particular, and Sciorra and Gambon afterward, lift the film to any sort of height.
The film sometimes lacks the suspenseful moments that a thriller needs.
Mark Stevens.