Al Pacino returns to the big screen after a four year hiatus in "Sea Of Love". His last film prior to this was the ill-fated American War Of Independence disaster "Revolution", but in this one he's back in more familiar territory as a troubled New York cop working on a triple homicide case. The break seems to have done Pacino good – he is absolutely riveting in this film, oozing charisma on the one hand, while sharing a very real sexual chemistry with his co-star Ellen Barkin on the other.<br /><br />A naked corpse with a bullet in the head turns up in a New York apartment. The victim: James Mackay, a middle-aged guy who had spent his last living months looking for love in the lonely hearts column of a magazine. Two more men are soon found dead, both naked, both shot in the head, and both lonely hearts advertisers. Divorced, hard-drinking New York cop Frank Keller (Al Pacino) investigates the killings along with colleague Sherman Touhey (John Goodman). They figure out pretty quickly that all the victims' lonely hearts ads were presented in poem form; they also believe the clues point to a female killer. The two cops hit upon the idea of placing their own poetic ad in the lonely hearts section of the magazine. Then, they wine and dine the women who respond, hoping that eventually one of them will turn out to be the killer. Things start to get complicated when Keller meets beautiful shoe-store worker Helen (Ellen Barkin). She responds to his ad and, after an initial rebuff, an increasing attraction between them begins to take shape. In next to no time, Keller is in too deep – he finds himself falling in love with a suspect, playing a dangerous game with his own life, so obsessed with the thought that he may have found love after his marital failure that he cannot face the possibility his new lover might be the very murderer he is out to catch….<br /><br />"Sea Of Love" is quite cleverly written, with scripter Richard Price keeping his cards very close to his chest throughout regarding the killer's identity. This adds genuine tension to the film's sex scenes – as Frank and Helen get all hot and steamy, we in the audience are drawn to the edge of our seat in anticipation. Are we watching a passionate couple falling in love? Or are we watching a foolish cop play straight into the hands of a cunning killer? Pacino registers brilliantly as the tormented hero, while Barkin is thoroughly convincing as the sexpot whose beauty and allure are enough to make a man risk his life for them. Harold Becker directs the film smartly, keeping all the elements moving smoothly and creating a moody urban style which harks back to the film noir heyday of the '40s and '50s. If there is a weakness with "Sea Of Love", it is the way that the romantic/erotic aspects begin to take precedence about halfway through. The first hour shapes up like a mystery thriller – a 'whodunit', for want of a better expression – but the second hour focuses more on the sexual paranoia between Pacino and Barkin. While both halves are undeniably absorbing, the sharp contrast between them results in inevitable unevenness for the film as a whole. Also the score by Trevor Jones sounds like it's come from the "straight-to-video-erotic-thriller" stable, and fails in my opinion to create the intended noirish feel. On the whole, though, "Sea Of Love" is a solid and admirably crafted film, well worth your time.