Maps to the Stars

Having waited almost a week to rank this, it’s stayed and rolled around in my mind to the point where my initial middling-to-dismissive opinion has coalesced into an intrigued mild recommendation – Cronenberg overtly mimics MULHOLLAND DRIVE here, but where Lynch was sincere and heart-felt, Cronenberg seems unwilling to fully embrace madness, or attempt to tell a straightforward story, which makes the film feel vague and uncertain in terms of what it is trying to do – hints at a broader, venal conspiracy, especially as we gradually uncover some quite sordid connections between the characters, are not developed well enough to move the film above seedy exploitation. I would still like to watch it again, if only to savour the performances – Moore, Wasikowska and Cusack are handed particularly difficult tasks which all three handle with aplomb.