The plot of Émile Zola’s Thérèse Raquin – two lovers joining forces to off an inconvenient partner – has supplied the template for any number of noirs, not least The Postman Always Rings Twice .
There’s logic, then, to casting Jessica Lange as the suspicious mother-in-law powerless to stop bored beauty Thérèse (Elizabeth Olsen) scheme with her fancy man (Oscar Isaac) to send sickly wimp Camille (Tom Felton) to a watery grave.
Director Charlie Stratton makes a decent fist of the ensuing intrigue, while Budapest fills in for 1860s Paris. Sadly, the result is more glum than gripping.
