The great Sarah Bernhardt said all women are actresses in one way or another, and "Being Julia" explores every facet of that quote.
Set in late 1930s London, it's based on a much-loved Somerset Maugham novella ("Theater") and revolves around Julia Lambert (Annette Benning), a celebrated stage actress at the pinnacle of her long and successful career. Having reached her late 40s, however, Julia finds herself exhausted and bored. Her life consists of lunches with her producer husband Michael (portrayed by a dead-on Jeremy Irons), platonic dinners with her longtime admirer Sir Charles (Bruce Greenwood), work, and a strict regimen of body maintenance and dieting. ("I have no life!" she moans.)
Where ordinary femmes have long retreated quite comfortably from the front lines of "femme-dom," Julia has it tough: If she's to continue working she must remain romantic and beautiful, but her staid, well-ordered life wasn't likely to provide inspiration for beauty or romance. ("How am I supposed to perform when my own life is just dust and ashes!")