Indecent assault on the fairer sex

INDECENT PROPOSAL, starring Robert Redford, Demi Moore and Woody Harrelson. Directed by Adrian Lyne. At the Ocean, Majestic 1, New York 1 and Panasia circuit.

INDECENT Proposal is an expensive version of that most cliched of bar-room conversations: ''How much money would it take for you to sleep with someone.'' This conversation has done the rounds on so many occasions that it seems remarkable that a movie should be made around it.

The major problem with basing a film on the indecent proposal ''I will pay you a million dollars to have sex with your wife'' is that it will contain only one significant moment, the moment the decision is made.

Once ''will she or won't she?'' becomes ''she has'', the next step is ''so what?'' - especially when the characters involved are as badly defined and as absurdly cliched as those in Indecent Proposal.

David Murphy (Woody Harrelson) and his wife Diana (Demi Moore) were sweethearts at school and enjoy the yuppie life, he working as an architect, she as a real-estate agent.

They are perfect together and have lots of perfect on-screen sex. But, as the perfect couple, they instantly become unbelievable, and it is difficult to have sympathy with unbelievable characters - even when the recession comes and wrecks their lives.

The suspension of disbelief is further tested when David and Diana, in an attempt to pay off mounting debts, borrow US$5,000 and head off to Vegas in their Citroen 2CV in an attempt to gamble their way out of trouble.