We first meet mercenary Mrs Erlynne (Hunt) when she runs out of credit at a New York hotel under the poisonous gaze of a gaggle of society women she's cuckolded.

Undaunted, she books a passage on a steamer to Italy and sets about snaring a rich man who might even install her in a villa for the season.

The ideal target proves to be Robert Windermere (Umbers), a well-connected American socialite who is entranced by her predatory flirtation in an antiques shop.

However, he also happens to be married to devoted young wife Meg (Johansson), an ingenue who doesn't realise that she is attracting the attention of notorious playboy Lord Darlington (Stephen Campbell Moore).

Spicing up the mix of sun-dappled intrigue and gossip is Lord "Tuppy" Augustus (Wilkinson), a twice-married divorcee who has cheerfully low expectations of real love but a yearning for companionship - Mrs Erlynne's companionship to be precise.

Director Mike Barker has taken one of Wilde's lesser known plays and tweaked it into an absorbing romantic comedy touching on how you are perceived against the reality of who you really are.

He is particularly strong on the social manners and etiquette of the period masking seething emotions and emotional duplicity set against the gorgeous backdrop of the Amalfi coastline.

Hunt is inspired casting as the femme fatale who turns out to be the most honest character in the story while Wilkinson is a delight as the world-weary yet cagily optimistic reluctant singleton.

Johannson continues her upward career trajectory with a luminous portrayal of the innocent abroad, torn apart by her adored husband's perceived betrayal.

Barker has tacked on a different ending and drafted in some Churchillian bon mots to complement Wilde's dialogue and the whole thing comes together as a civilised treat.

Tim Evans