More epic than it needs to be and less profound than it should be, "Jolene" remains a watchable excursion into human frailty and foibles.

Chastain proves near-heroic embodying Jolene's innate strength and incremental wisdom. Yet she also makes us understand how the heroine's wobbly resistance to manipulative characters is overwhelmed time and again.

Jolene's main themes, including the manipulation of youth, the fragility of love, and the suppression of individuality, try to carry the wonky dialogue into complex territory.

It's a mediocre movie with a very nice central performance.