On the plus side, it’s beautifully shot and paced. The lighting and presentation is strong and each scene is well put together. Simple ideas (such as Julia’s clothing changing as she becomes more focused on revenge) are exaggerated and telegraphed throughout, as if the feature is desperate to tell you how clever it is. There are no plot twists here; everything is explained in advance (sometimes literally) and this is a surprisingly effective (if easy) form of storytelling. It’s just a pity that it’s so boring. Williams’s performance is very good and she injects genuine pathos and emotion into what is basically a Z-lister exploitation flick with no original content or ideas.

Julia is a good reminder that excellent actors and solid direction can only take a production so far, and if the central premise of your movie is unpleasant and poorly thought-out, no amount of skill will save it.

JULIA / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: MATTHEW A. BROWN / SCREENPLAY: MATTHEW A. BROWN / STARRING: ASHLEY C. WILLIAMS, TAHYNA TOZZI, JACK NOSEWORTHY, JOEL DE LA FUENTE / RELEASE DATE: SEPTEMBER 7TH