Two out of
Five stars
Running time:
98 mins
The decent cast do their best, but this is fatally hamstrung by a lacklustre script and an unconvincing central romance.
What’s it all about?
Familiar TV face Zoe Tapper (from Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky) plays Diana Shaw, an aspiring actress in 1930s London, who hopes to follow in her famous mother’s footsteps. After an unsuccessful audition she meets and falls for struggling playwright Robin (David Leon), but before you can say love triangle, she also finds her head turned by nice-guy theatre director Christopher Lovell (Andrew Lincoln). Meanwhile, the spectre of WWII looms ever closer.
The Good
Tapper makes a likeable heroine but her character just barely clings onto our sympathy, due to her lack of decision-making skills. Lincoln’s character is likeable too, but he’s in serious danger of being out-acted by his own moustache.
Luckily, there’s strong support from the likes of Huston, Lauren Bacall and Terence Stamp, who steals every scene as a cantankerous, crockery-shooting major duomo who seems to act as an unofficial chorus.
The Bad
The main problem is that the story just isn’t strong enough to sustain our interest - as a result, the central romance fails to convince and the supposedly emotional climax feels unearned. In addition, the lacklustre script never yields anything with any dramatic impact and the
evil characters border uncomfortably on caricature.
Worth seeing?
In short, These Foolish Things is watchable enough thanks to its entertaining supporting cast, but it’s the sort of thing that would probably work better on Sunday afternoon TV.