Ostensibly the story of a 1930s actress seeking to follow in her dead mother’s footsteps, writer-director Julia Taylor-Stanley’s soggy tale trails abandoned plot threads in its wake.
A potentially interesting brainwashing idea vanishes without explanation, while creaky love stories keep being thrust into the foreground. This isn’t helped by an utterly unsympathetic trio of leads: Zoe Tapper, in particular, shows all the charisma of a Cabbage Patch Doll. Stupid details creep in throughout (like the theatre director who reveals hitherto unmentioned piloting skills) and occasional scenes sparkle suspiciously, as if another writer has sneaked them in while Taylor-Stanley isn’t looking.
Out-of-place stars Anjelica Huston and Lauren Bacall do the best they can with the mess on offer, but it just isn’t enough.