the audience applauded

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Blistering performances.

While some may find the pace plodding and grow impatient, real enjoyment follows for those who focus on the subtleties of character development through facial gestures, incremental relationship growth between characters, and the economical dialogue. All the Jesse Stone movies provide refreshing change from movies relying excessively on frenetic car chases, lengthy foot pursuits, protracted shoot-outs, high body counts, sixteen camera views of the same explosion, badly contrived conflict between partners, and tiring vocabulary abuse (profanity). Watch these in order because there are larger story threads that connect from movie to movie especially concerning the central characters. When you find yourself able to relax and have a story with depth gradually and carefully laid out before you, you'll be in the right frame of mind to enjoy this. As a peripheral character in Sea Change tells Jesse, "listen to Brahms."

Robert Parker, like novelist Georges Simenon, was a master of his craft. Both men knew how to say just enough, and no more, allowing the reader to fill in the blanks. Parker's books are really acts of collaboration between writer and reader. It is rare for a film to capture the spirit of the book it sprang from, and rarer still for the film to be faithful to the writer's method. The Jesse Stone films are the wonderful exception. They are true to the books, and faithful to Parker's lean, spare style. Less is always more, like a Japanese line drawing. These films are beautifully crafted little gems. High marks to all who had a hand in their production.

The Jesse Stone movies are definitely among the best of made-for-television movies out there. "Night Passage" and "Death in Paradise" were both wonderful mystery movies and "Sea Change" is right up there on top with them. Here, Police Chief Jesse Stone (Tom Selleck) is trying to solve two cases at once. Both of which are not connected to one another. The town councilmen say he should try to solve a rape case, his mind tells him he should try to solve a murder case that occurred in Paradise fifteen years ago.Tom Selleck was born to play Jesse Stone. He has the overall weathered-down appearance for a cop who has gone through a lot of miseries and personal problems with life and continues to go through them. His voice and mannerism also has the laconic tone suitable for Jesse Stone that enhances the believability of his performance. Performances by the rest of the cast was very good and the show went to reintroduce some characters that had not been seen since the second movie "Night Passage".Like the others before it, "Sea Change" is a powerful mystery-drama. It appropriately keeps us guessing along with Stone until the end and just as I wanted to happen, something occurred in the movie that was both expected and unexpected at the same time. I will not give any hints as to what does happen or when it happens, for I don't want to ruin the surprise for anybody who hasn't seen this amazing television movie.

This is the fourth movie based on Robert B. Parker's best selling series of Jesse Stone books. Tom Selleck is once again Stone, the over qualified police chief of the tiny community of Paradise, Massachuesetts. Jesse, with his past and present demons...thoughts of his ex-wife and a bottle of Scotch needing to be emptied, realizes an understandable nightmare coming true: writing parking tickets is just not enough. His current small staff is taxed with one of his officers on maternity leave and one recovering from a near fatal wound. The restless chief immerses himself in the investigation of a case that went cold a dozen years ago. He is certain there is more to the robbery and murder of a bank teller that wasn't investigated very well. But there is a current case that needs attention; a young woman claims that she was raped aboard a yacht. Some things are important, while some things are made to be important. Chief Stone gets the action he needs for his own peace of mind. This CBS Television movie has a talented cast that includes: Sean Young, William Devane, Mika Boorem, Saul Rubinek, Kathy Baker, James Gammon and Joe the Dog.