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Shrewdly adapted from Zoë Heller's best-selling novel, Notes On A Scandal grabs your attention with a gentle touch and refuses to let go. Judi Dench is truly spellbinding as the dumpy schoolteacher hiding an iron fist in a velvet glove to wheedle her way into the confidence of a younger colleague with a terrible secret (Cate Blanchett). Around these formidable women, director Richard Eyre (Iris) and writer Patrick Marber (Closer) craft a psychological thriller of rare delicacy.

Essentially, this is a story of loneliness. Barbara (Dench) only has her pet cat to fuss over and Sheba (sensitively played by Blanchett) feels lost in a marriage to an older man (the charismatic Bill Nighy). Both inspire sympathy, even in their most wicked moments, yet Marber cleverly accentuates facets of Heller's book to emphasise Barbara's predatory nature. When she discovers Sheba's affair with a pupil (Andrew Simpson), it provides her with the hook to reel in this exotic creature and cage her in so-called friendship.

"OESTROGEN-FUELLED POWER STRUGGLE"

Imposing spaces, muted colours and a spine-tingling score heighten the journey into the dark recesses of Barbara's mind. With every manipulation, it becomes creepier and more compelling. There are even shades of Baby Jane (1962) in the oestrogen-fuelled power struggle and frequent flashes of sardonic humour; Barbara pours scorn on those she deems beneath her, ie virtually everyone, but especially the liberal-minded headmaster (Philip Davis) who frowns on her 'war-is-hell' classroom philosophy... It's a shame that some punches are pulled in an altered ending, nevertheless, Barbara holds you captive till the curtain falls.

Notes On A Scandal is released in UK cinemas on Friday 2nd February 2007.