Grade: C- | Genre: Drama Summary: As the curtains close, this movie is pretty much only for the dedicated Annette Bening fan. I really wish this movie had surrounded her with more substance to bounce her talents off of.

What must it be like roaming around in Annette Bening's skin (and I'm not saying that in a Silence of the Lambs kind of way for that one sicko whose mind went that direction)? You are one of the most acclaimed actresses of your generation, yet young and feisty Hillary Swank shuts you out of two Oscars in a row. With age and maturity, Bening brings a greater range to her work though our glance still settles on the women vying to dethrone her from the mantle of Hollywood's great. Isn't it bad enough that there just aren't roles for older actresses anymore, outside of playing insignificant parts as someone's mother or (gasp!) grandmother, but we exacerbate the problem by glossing over their achievements as we scour the celluloid for that potential someone who is to be the next Annette Bening. Who knows perhaps these younger actresses are shooting past their idols? Being Julia seems to be a commentary on the state of the aging actress and the challenges she faces as her beauty dims and the lines of age settle.

Julia Lambert (Bening) is an actress at the pinnacle of her form in the British theatre of the 1930s. She is an aging star that has somehow stepped her way into a very mundane existence. Her marriage has evolved into one of lazy convenience, dosed of the passion long ago. Her son is ambivalent towards her as he feels like she is playing a part when talking to him. She is fawned over by her adoring public that has fostered a diva streak in her that would make JLo proud. Every promising actress on the rise desperately wants to work with her only to edge her out of the spotlight long enough so they can shine. In short, her existence has become rather bland and tastes about as appetizing as tearing into a bag of rice cakes.

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Tom's innocent facade begins to flake as he bleeds Julia's generosity for all its worth, while sleeping around with other younger women. Once the truth rears its ugly head, that he has fallen in love with someone else, he convinces Julia to give this girl a part in her next play that Julia gladly does. Not only does she give her a key part, but also she goes out of her way to ensure that the role will be a launching pad for this new starlet's success even at the expense of her own. Factor in that this young vixen is now having an affair with Julia's husband (Irons) and you've got a rather explosive situation ticking away here. Julia is a crafty one though and when she turns the tables you know it's going to be worth forking over the cash for a front row seat.

Like Julia's life upon introduction, the story is as dry as Saltines. I think period pieces have to take extra steps to keep the audience engaged otherwise you run the risk of having the theatre filled with obnoxious snoring. Nobody likes that and I know because I always wake up to people rudely pelting me with Jujubes. The script meanders along very aimlessly without much direction or purpose and once the film makes its concluding push, you are left feeling rather unsatisfied. How has Julia grown? How has her life progressed?

This film has one thing going for it -- Annette Bening. She is vibrant as Julia and really finds this character's soul. Julia has a problem with the line separating reality from the stage. Several times throughout the film, we see her giving a speech in her personal life that she perfected on the stage. It's almost as if Julia can't detach her characters from herself. She is so well trained and fully immersed that her actual life seems like a boring charade that she gladly escapes from. She also continually sees her dead acting coach nudging her performance on as she walks through her off stage life. It's very odd and strangely compelling.

Although Swank is still my pick for last year's best actress accolade, Bening definitely made a strong case to the contrary here. If Bening had a stronger script and a more able cast supporting her, like Swank did with Million Dollar Baby, who knows the heights she could have scaled in this role. As the curtains close, this movie is pretty much only for the dedicated Annette Bening fan. She continues to show why all the new actresses are gunning for her because she is still one of the best. I really wish this movie had surrounded her with more substance to bounce her talents off of.