When Nicole (Geneviève Bujold), a Canadian TV reporter, travels to Moscow to interview the Russian premier she finds she must juggle her friendship with the press attaché (Michael York) with her desire to help a dissident scientist aiming to expose unethical research.
The full-screen NTSC transfer on this Region 0 DVD looks and sounds terrible; the original print is clearly in poor condition and no efforts have been made to clean it up. Nevertheless, the case is proudly emblazoned "Dolby Digital". There are serious drop-outs on the soundtrack, but far worse, large chunks of the film appear to have vanished as well, as, although sources quote between 92 and 98 minutes, the DVD runs a mere 79! The end credits just cut off part-way through and a couple of reels end abruptly. Given this, it is difficult to properly assess the film.
We never learn anything about the mysterious research "that is using children as its test subjects", other than a reference during Nicole's interview with the premier to "steroid experiments". Similarly, the scientist's desire to smuggle her granddaughter out of the Soviet Union comes out of nowhere. For that matter, we never learn the significance of the title.
On the plus side, Bujold (the director's ex-wife) is always worth watching and she creates an appealing heroine, whilst York makes a credible Russian; the two play well together, in fact, and their relationship is plausibly developed. Burgess Meredith, playing a fur trader, is always good value, though it is a shame we do not see him more (who knows, perhaps there is more somewhere). The smuggling operation is handled impressively, with York's ambivalence adding to the tension. Sadly, the ending is botched, the audience's sympathies being betrayed in a manner gratuitous and wretched. A shame.