A woman record producer should bring a feminine touch to the delicate task of coaxing out a sympathetic peformance from a sensitive Britpop band.

Or she could shock them out of their drug-addled stupor by lifting up her t-shirt and flashing her breasts. Not the sort of thing you'd get from George Martin.

Jane is a veteran knob twiddler (and record producer) in Laurel Canyon, a bohemian enclave that was once home to LA's porn industry and now plays host to new music.

She's uses the "boys out of the barracks" stimuli to try to conjure up an elusive hit single for British band with more than a passing resemblance to Coldplay.

Their lead singer Ian (Alessandro Nivola) is also enjoying Jane's hospitality rather more than the rest of his band and is a fixture in her bed.

Two cultures clash when Jane's trainee doctor son Sam (Bale) and his fiancee and fellow Harvard graduate Alex (Beckinsale) turn up poolside.

At first stand-offish, Alex gradually finds herself intrigued by the no holds barred approach of the musos drifting in and out of the house.

Things get even steamier when she joins Jane and Ian for whisky sours and a bit more beside in the pool when Sam is at work.

Not to be outdone, Sam, feeling neglected by his wife-to-be, finds himself vunlerable to the approach of fellow medical student Sara (McElhone).

This succeeds largely in part to the barnstorming performance of McDormand, whose spacier moments recall Ozzy Ozbourne in all his vague glory.

It's on less sure ground analysing the nature of relationships but does have a watchable quality, capturing the moral-lite world of major league rock succinctly.

Nothing of any consequence actually happens, but this is a character driven affair which doesn't rely on plot machinations. Tune in and turn on.

Tim Evans