And how lucky we are that the well-deserved reviews from the Toronto Film Festival led to its opening in the U.S., because Philip Noyce's adaptation of Graham Greene's slim but powerful novel provides not only an eye-catching probe of French and American foreign policy during the early 1950's but provides a platform for the superb talent of Michael Caine in the role of a British journalist covering the war.

To this day, even Americans who are aware of U.S. involvement in Vietnam may know only vaguely that the French were there before, seeking to maintain their hold on that poverty-stricken nation for no other reason, one would guess, than maintaining the prestige of colonial expansion. As Britain was neutral, the coverage of the war provided by English journalist Thomas Fowler (Michael Caine), seemed secure enough but his position in spacious housing depended on continued financial support from London. Fowler may not have grown to love his assignment, but he was in no mood to return to his unhappy marriage in London now that he enjoys the love of his beautiful mistress, Phuong (Hai Yen. Trouble arises when an idealistic American Aid worker, Alden Pyle (Brendan Fraser), introduced himself to the reporter, and falls in love at first sight with Fowler's girlfriend-who to Fowler's joy rejects the younger man's proposal of marriage.

Things are not what they seem in love and war, however, and the romantic triangle and the political and military activities in Saigon and in neighboring villages will lead to revelations of secrets, betrayals, and murder.

If Mr. Fraser seems ill-at-ease and stiff, his style may be what attracted director Philip Noyce to the engaging American actor since, after all, Fraser's character must convey what was then America's naive optimism about world affairs. Though Pyle is a more dangerous fellow than he seems, he exudes silliness more than arrogance when he proposes to Phuong while standing inches away from his older, wiser rival. Michael Caine delivers his signature cynicism with a twinkle in his eye when, observing the proposal of the young man asks him, "Shouldn't you be down on one knee?" Christopher Hampton and Robert Schenkkan's literate script takes us beyond the dumbed-down version of "The Quiet American" from its 1958 adaptation into a thoroughly three- dimensional portrait of the land as it fought the French fifty years ago, right up to America's increasing involvement even before the French were finally defeated at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954.

This is, as the production notes state, the Vietnam movie that has not been made, a now subtle, now explosive struggle for power in both the sexual domain and the political arena.