David Gale has been on Death Row for six years. Convicted of the sadistic rape and murder of his friend and colleague, it is just three days before his execution and all appeals and stays are exhausted. In return for a payment of half a million dollars, he grants his first interviews – one two hour session for each of the three days – to "kiddie porn" investigative journalist Bitsey Bloom. Gale had been a successful college professor and – in a supreme irony - a committed campaigner against the death penalty in Texas. Some time ago, a drunken one-night-stand with a student who filed a rape charge against him had ruined Gale's career. Although the student dropped the charges eventually, mud had stuck as it always sticks. Gale's wife left him, taking their young son - and light of Gale's life - with her. He lost his job and sunk into depression and the bottle. When his friend, ex-colleague and fellow campaigner, Constance, was found raped and asphyxiated, Gale's name, unsurprisingly, fitted the frame. What he has to say to Bloom casts more than a reasonable doubt over his conviction, but Bloom has only three days before that lethal injection, three days to find the true culprit…

The Life of David Gale is, in many ways, a peculiar, even unsuccessful film. As a thriller, it falls down regularly. It is no Se7en, no Memento. There are many plot-holes, some rather ridiculous inconsistencies and Kate Winslett's Bitsey seems to rush about like mad, never getting anywhere. The film's three day countdown is nicely structured but director Alan Parker – surprisingly for the man who brought us such films as Midnight Express, Birdy and The Commitments - allows himself some dreadfully hackneyed directorial tricks – cars breaking down in the dark, shadowy men waiting in the fog, subliminal graffiti flash-ups marking chapter changes. Winslett's swift transformation from hard-nosed reporter to sensitive, scarred-forever, trembling girlie is just plain silly. The final twist is… expected. As a piece of political polemic against the death penalty, the film lacks the courage and the pain of work such as Dead Man Walking. Although Parker does not patronise us with dull character expositions of the arguments – aside from Gale's one [failed] television debate – he fights shy of asking us to face the most difficult principle of abolitionism. This is not the possibility of executing an innocent man. Parker never asks us if we are able to look guilt and evil in the face and STILL say, "I will not kill". So, The Life of David Gale is neither taut thriller nor agonising exploration of our own flawed humanity.

Ultimately, that I enjoyed a film that explored the issues surrounding capital punishment, that was directed by Alan Parker and that starred Kevin Spacey, is no surprise. I am a great fan of Alan Parker and although I have made some criticisms of him here, I still feel that a Parker off day is considerably better than a good day by many other directors. Kevin Spacey, for me, is one of the most reliable and understated actors in Hollywood currently, and he does not let me down here. I did enjoy The Life of David Gale, if enjoy is an appropriate word to use in writing about capital punishment. I thought it had some interesting comments to make on the death penalty and, better still, was a thought-provoking meditation on the perception of fear in our post 9-11 society. Despite its technical flaws, I thought that The Life of David Gale had "soul", if you like, and I am going to award it four Ciao stars. If you are looking for the ultimate thriller and if the combination of theme, director and leading man are not so a propos to your tastes though, you would probably give it three.