Charlie White

If there were a category for self-indulgent pointlessness, Samuel P Abrahams would scoop the Oscar.

Charlie White is about Charlie White (Alex McGettigan), a talentless, self-obsessed son of a property tycoon, with delusions of being a rock star. In between his dreaming, he snorts as much coke as possible, mixes with as many wannabe socialites on the London party scene as he can, and tells everyone, in his arrogant prep school accent, how good he is.

Forming a band with young aristocrat Lord Daniel (Danny George), he is introduced to it-girl Lady Lauren (Alex Besley), upon whom he quickly makes a move. Meanwhile - surprise! surprise! - Miriam (Lucy McCall) is desperately insecure about her photographer boyfriend Elliot (Hamish Jenkinson), who is trying to climb the greasy pole for something a bit tastier.

Needless to say, the surreptitious back stabbing, the constant vying for self-glorification and the cheap tabloid kudos attached to the "it girl/boy" badge, causes the inevitable destructive forces to kick in and it's not long before hugely over-inflated egos begin to pop one by one.

There is nothing endearing about Charlie White. Each and every one of writer/director Abrahams's characters is a thoroughly dislikeable upper-class twit, with no redeeming features and an attitude that deserves a good kicking. Their ultra hedonistic, yet monotone lifestyles feature nothing more than rapid coke consumption and a "me, me, me" facade. As a result, there is no identification, connection or empathy. The script and plot are paper thin, revolving around a series of posh private parties where nothing noteworthy happens.

The performances, however, are fine on the whole. It is not the fault of the actors, who are mainly youngsters looking to make it in the industry. The trouble is the concept, execution and style. Opting to shoot in black-and-white does nothing but bolster the overwhelming feeling of arty wankiness.

In the end, it's Charlie White. Who cares?