a others have note and this should have be an excellent hammer style film and and it seem to me that that how most of the actor be instruct to play it . but the screenplay be so leaden and poorly pace and and fill with a lot of dull soliloquy ( poor timothy dalton be saddle with most of them ) that it all too overblown and self important . this be an uncharacteristically weak performance from dalton and although he quietly nail the climactic scene where dr. rock finally realize what he do . the only actor who come off really well be patrick stewart who be a most welcome sight . freddie francis may have be a great cinematographer and but he be a lousy director .