With a driver protagonist, trying to reintegrate with the rougher parts of his home city, forming a connection with a woman way out of his league, Soho-based Mona Lisa has spawned comparisons to the New York-classic Taxi Driver (1976), but this British neo-noir has a completely different tone and spirit, with a completely different conclusion. Mona Lisa has, of course, Nat King Cole crooning the similarly named tune, and as George gets enamored with Simone, both roles played fantastically by Bob Hoskins and Cathy Tyson respectively, they both keep their cards to their chest, as if similar to the famous painted smile. The ending may be a tad abrupt, but Mona Lisa has a lot of compassion and hope for these two trying to make a better life for themselves, a lot more than expected from the genre.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Romance, Thriller
Actor: Bob Hoskins, Cathy Tyson, Clarke Peters, David Halliwell, Dawn Archibald, Gary Cady, Hossein Karimbeik, Jack Purvis, Joe Brown, Kate Hardie, Kenny Baker, Maggie O'Neill, Michael Caine, Pauline Melville, Perry Fenwick, Raad Rawi, Richard Strange, Robbie Coltrane, Rod Bedall, Sammi Davis, Zoë Nathenson
Director: Neil Jordan
Rating: R
