GRADE: A-

By all appearances, Harry and Pat Allen have been happily married for 16 years. Now Harry has fallen in love with the young widow Kay, and wants to leave Pat. But he can’t stand the thought of hurting his wonderful wife, so it seems the only kind thing for Harry to do is kill her.

Whether or not he goes through with it is but one of the many delectable intrigues found in director Ira Sachs’ “Married Life,” a sly, subtle and wickedly serpentine adult conglomeration of black comedy, domestic farce and film noir. The result is a unique and satisfying chamber piece; a murder mystery wrapped in a valentine, acted to near perfection by a talented quartet of performers in peak form.

That quartet includes Chris Cooper as Harry, Patricia Clarkson as Pat, Rachel McAdams as Kay, and Pierce Brosnan as Harry’s best friend, Richard, the narrator of the story. It’s a beautiful, funny and insightful narration, Brosnan delivering each word with the authority and regret of experience; his calm and measured manner of speech giving weight and substance to his words. It’s a terrific vocal performance; one that matches the caliber of his on-screen portrayal.

Set in 1949 and told as reminiscence, it isn’t long after Richard’s preamble (following a striking opening title sequence) that we discover Harry’s not the only one with plans. While Richard knows Harry is seeing Kay and wants to leave Pat, he knows nothing of his intention to kill Pat. Yet Harry doesn’t know that Richard’s been thunderstruck by Kay and is determined to have her, rationalizing his caddishness by reminding himself that Harry is, after all, a married man in love with his wife, even if he’s temporarily forgotten the fact.

These two plotlines would be enough for a well-executed exercise like this, but Sachs isn’t finished yet, stashing a few more scintillating surprises and one big bombshell along the way to keep the atmosphere anxious and on the edge from beginning to end, the truth lingering like a cloud over ever scene.

By the time the night of the big event rolls around, audiences will be experiencing the same nervous tension as the characters onscreen, increasing in velocity as the disconnected plot threads converge in a climax of unexpected encounters that send everyone reeling.

When it’s over, on the heels of another beautifully composed sequence thoughtfully narrated, viewers will have witnessed not only a highly original seriocomic concoction, but a shrewd and intuitive investigation into the outer limits of love, life and marriage.

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