Chloe

Director: Atom Egoyan
Starring: Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore, Amanda Seyfried
Time Out rating:

Atom Egoyan only directs – not writes – this more slick, less subtle but still enjoyably barmy remake of Nathalie, the 2003 film which saw a middle-aged Parisian (Fanny Ardant) employ a hooker (Emmanuelle Béart) to seduce her philandering husband (Gérard Depardieu) and report on the details.

There was something so French about the original (the implicit acceptance of adultery, for one) that it’s not surprising that the emphasis has changed so that the affairs of the husband (Liam Neeson) are less certain and more of a possibility that prompts the hiring of Chloe (Amanda Seyfried) by his wife (Julianne Moore).

But there’s a literalism that disappoints: just when you’re enjoying the suggestion that the entire set-up is reflective of the wife’s turmoil or, at least, her mid-life crisis, the story takes a silly turn into stalker-thriller territory. Egoyan’s style is strictly arthouse-accessible: soft colours and dark shadows; modern architecture; a hint of erotica and the odd nipple shot.

Chloe opens in Japan on May 28