The Painted Veil

(Image credit: Snap Stills/REX/Shutterstock)

In rural 1925 China, English expats Naomi Watts and Edward Norton are trapped in a loveless marriage

In rural 1925 China, English expats Naomi Watts and Edward Norton are trapped in a loveless marriage.

Discovering Watts' affair with a diplomat (Live Schreiber), Norton makes her risk her life by hauling her off to a cholera-ridden village.

Based on a W Somerset Maugham story, which was previously filmed in 1934 with Greta Garbo and Herbert Marshall, this is a sumptuous looking drama with grand costumes and locations.

However, the stars' characters are difficult to like and there's not nearly enough drama in their relationship to sustain such an uneventful film, which only really livens up in its last half hour.