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Jimmy Erskine (McKellen) is the most feared theatre critic of the age. He lives as flamboyantly as he writes and takes pleasure in savagely taking down any actor who fails to meet his standards. When the owner of the Daily Chronicle newspaper dies, and his son David Brooke (Strong) takes over, Jimmy quickly finds himself at odds with his new boss and his position under threat. In an attempt to preserve the power and influence he holds so sacred, Jimmy strikes a Faustian pact with struggling actress Nina Land (Arterton), entangling them and Brooke in a thrilling but deadly web of desire, blackmail, and betrayal.

Set in 1934 London, Ian McKellen plays Jimmy Erskine, the city's most feared drama critic, and Gemma Arterton plays Nina Land, the actress determined to win his approval. Adversaries, forced to take desperate measures to save their careers, they become entangled in a dangerous web of blackmail, ambition, and deception when Jimmy finds himself in the crosshairs of his newspaper's new owner, David Brooke (Mark Strong).

A feared theater critic, a newspaper owner and an actress are all caught in a web of blackmail, deceit and murder.