A Hollywood, the lives of an actress in decline, a limousine chauffeur looking for fame and a child star are thrown into turmoil.

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Hollywood, that refuge for all lost beings in search of power, fame and love. Among them: Havana Segrand, a star on her way down desperately looking for a role to expunge the trauma she suffered at the hands of her actress mother; Benjie Weiss, a 13-year-old teen star pushed by his merciless mother Christina; his father Sanford, successful author and celebrity coach; and Jerôme Fontana, who dreams of being an actor and screenwriter as he chauffeurs limousines through Los Angeles. The arrival of the mysterious Agatha brings these people together, setting their lives aflame.

For the last ten years, David Cronenberg has traded in his visceral slaughter-fests for a butchering of the mind. In the wake of the cerebral Cosmopolis, which was sinister to the point of no return, Maps to the Stars is like a false cure: less gossipy, less elaborate, but also less hard-hitting. With a stellar cast, including Julianne Moore as a wash-up star, the director’s film is much less corrosive than expected, but nevertheless overlaid by a odd strangeness and a handful of insane scenes.