The reputation of Welsh writer Dylan Thomas as a boozy, obnoxious ingrate will not be enhanced by this solid, if melodramatic account of his life during World War II when his relationships with two women were rudely interrupted when one of them decided to marry a soldier. Cillian Murphy ( The Wind That Shakes the Barley) is the standout here as the stiff army officer whose disdain for Thomas (Matthew Rhys) is only slightly overwhelmed by his love for gaunt club singer Vera Phillips (Keira Knightley).

Director John Maybury ( The Jacket, Love is the Devil) deserves a special award for managing to make the usually radiant Sienna Miller, who plays Thomas' other woman, Caitlin Macnamara, look like a frump.