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# REVIEW BY TAYLOR V A NARS DALE NEWRELEASES ‘Flawless’ lacks real thrills
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/r-e-v-i-e-w-b-y-t-a-y-l-o-r-v-a-n-a-r-s-d-a-l-e-newreleases-flawless-lacks-real-thrills/
- Published: 2008-03-28T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T19:03:05.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Entertainment, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*By TAYLOR VAN ARSDALE Special to the Daily Press*

“Flawless,” director Michael Radford’s crime-drama set in 1960’s London’s diamond district, is beset with inclusions. The film follows frustrated London Diamonds executive Laura Quinn (Demi Moore) who, continually passed over by her male cohorts, struggles to come to grips with the fact that she may never get ahead in the male dominated field, despite her obvious experience. When Hobbs (Michael Caine) the night janitor, approaches her with a scheme to steal a meager handful of diamonds, Quinn’s interest is piqued and the two set out to pull off a “modest” heist. Hobbs of course, has ulterior designs and the “foolproof” plan quickly unravels into a heist of enormous proportions.

While the premise sounds exciting, there are no real thrills here. You’re never scared for Moore, even when she’s “hiding out” in her boss’s study, trying to obtain the codes that will enable Caine to crack open the vault, nor do you worry as to the outcome of Moore’s actions, since the film (essentially one big snore of a flashback) listlessly begins in present day; with an “older Moore” being interviewed by a reporter.

Moore’s performance is lackluster, as is the plot, which struggles desperately to find its pace — slow, being the operative word. Moore spends most of her screen time strolling to and from her mundane job, clad in the rigid formality of a tight gray suit, clicking her high-heeled, black pumps against a white marble floor while chain-smoking more cigarettes than Meryl Streep and Cher’s combined nicotine drags in Mike Nichol’s “Silkwood.”

The outstanding gem here is Caine, who shines brilliantly as the disgruntled janitor with a revenge motive. But aside from Caine’s acting, never have I been so bored in a heist film. Appraisal: Don’t rent it, steal it — you’ll feel better knowing you saw this one for free.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/032808-16_01.jpg)

PAIR OF HEAVY HITTERS: Michael Caine (left) and Demi Moore star in 'Flawless.' ‘The Dead’ is a lively musical (Photo: Photo courtesy Magnolia Pictures)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 28, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/032808.pdf?ref=smdp.com)