Conor Nolan reviews the new film Easy Virtue

EASY Virtue wins by a whisker thanks largely to the performance of American actress Jessica Biel and her supporting cast members Kirstin Scott Thomas, Colin Firth and that bloke from the BT adverts, Kris Marshall.

From the producers of St Trinian's and the director of Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert comes the second movie adaptation of Noel Coward's lesser known play, dissecting and savaging the English upper classes in the 1920s.

John Whittaker (Ben Barnes) falls madly in love with Larita (Ms Biel), a very glamorous American woman and they marry impetuously.

When the couple returns to the family home, however, his mother (Scott Thomas) has an instant 'allergic reaction' to her new daughter-in-law.

Larita tries her best to fit in but fails to manoeuvre her way through the etiquette minefield laid by her mother-in-law.

She quickly realises the game and sees that she must fight back if she's not going to lose her husband.

A battle of wits ensues and sparks soon fly.

Mrs Whittaker manipulates every situation to undermine her, while Larita remains frustratingly calm and engineers increasingly funny counter attacks.

Before long, however, Mrs Whittaker's manipulation starts to work on John and Larita feels their love is in danger of slipping away.

In a grand finale, where the secrets from Larita's past are revealed, she finally flees the suffocating household with a surprising companion!

The sheer delight in this movie is Jessica Biel, who is a revelation, and she displays a deft comic touch, handling her sparkling lines with utter aplomb – and it also helps that she looks devastatingly beautiful in every frame.

The supporting cast is also the movie's joy, particularly Ms Scott Thomas who is simply brilliant as the utterly glacial mother-in-law; Colin Firth is sublime as the long suffering father and Kris Marshall is hilarious as the butler.

Although based on a very old and obscure Coward play, producer Barnaby Thompson said it is an equally relevant tale today.

"It's a story about a guy who meets a beautiful woman, they fall in love and marry and he brings her home to meet the family.

"So far so good you think, but the mother-in-law takes an instant dislike to the girl, and then it is about the sparks that fly thereafter… and we all have mothers-in-law."

The script is littered with fabulous quips and lines. When Scott Thomas asks Firth: "What am I supposed to do with that bauble of a woman?" he quickly retorts: "Hang her."

One word of warning, though – Ben Barnes (Prince Caspian) is beyond wooden in his role as John and he has the charisma of a scallop!

This is nothing more than a jolly good romp that will leave a smile on your face long after you leave the cinema.

Rating: 5 stars

Cert: PG

Web: www.easyvirtuethemovie.co.uk

Duration: 96 mins