Eye of the Needle is a engrossing, old-fashioned WWII spy thriller with a romantic subplot. Faber, (Donald Sutherland) is a Nazi spy stationed in Britain who uncovers the Allies' plans to invade Normandy. His cover is blown when his landlady catches him using a shortwave radio and he is forced to kill her. Trusting no one, her murders several people as he flees, trying to escape from Britain and pass on his information to his Nazi superiors. Faber steals a fishing boat intending to rendezvous with a U-boat at a remote island. However, the boat sinks during a violent storm and Faber is stranded and forced to seek shelter with Lucy (Kate Nelligan), the lonely, sexually frustrated wife of a paraplegic ex-fighter pilot (Christopher Cazenove). A love affair between Lucy and Faber complicates his plans and the film draws to an dramatic, surprising climax as Lucy discovers Faber's true identity. Directed with considerable flair by Richard Marquand, this adaptation of Ken Follett's best-selling novel the film is both an effective thriller and a touching, highly erotic love story. The sexual encounters between Lucy and Faber are sensual, beautifully photographed and romantic. Eye of the Needle also includes one of Sutherland's best performances cold-blooded spy who who falls in love. Kate Nelligan is beautiful and touchingly vulnerable as a woman in love who has faced a difficult and lonely life with determination and resourcefulness.