Being Julia, based on a W. Somerset Maugham novel, is a wonderfully funny and droll farce starring Annette Bening as fiery diva Julia Lambert who rules the stage in 1930s London. Though she implores her husband/manager Michael (Jeremy Irons) to give her a rest and put her current play on hiatus, her cries fall on deaf ears.

She continues wearily along her way until she crosses paths with Tom (Shaun Evans), a fresh-faced American admirer. This eager fan idolizes her and his fawning turns into an intense May-December fling that energizes her work and brings new vitality to her stage performances.

Bening is absolutely marvelous in a role that lets her play her age as a forty-something actress trying to come to terms with her age and herself. The movie takes on more than a bit of an All About Eve flavor as Julia finds herself battling ambitious ingénues and an increasingly fickle fandom.

Although Bening shines in the central role, she also elevates the work of her co-stars, including Jeremy Irons, who shows a flair for comedy he has rarely displayed of late, and Michael Gambon, who has a pivotal role as Julia’s influential acting coach.

Whereas Being Julia is a light, laugh-filled viewing experience, Vera Drake is an absorbing, somber drama that tackles a very difficult subject with sensitivity and thereby avoids pandering to the audience or becoming a polemic in its approach. The movie, set in 1950s London, is led by the award-nominated performance of Imelda Staunton as Vera Drake, a loving wife and mother who works as a housekeeper by day and takes care of her family at night. She is quick to offer a spot of tea, spout words of encouragement and is supportive of her husband and two grown children.

But there’s something else going on as well. Behind her warm smile and humming countenance, Vera is also involved in performing illegal abortions, or as she puts it, in a key phrase, “helping girls in trouble.”

Vera Drake is an unassuming, compassionately told drama that lets audiences think for themselves. The performances are heartbreaking and affecting, and director Mike Leigh, also Oscar nominated last year, displays a masterful hand as he lets his performers tell the tale and makes great use of long close-ups and stunningly silent pauses that tell volumes more than any dialogue could convey.

Granted, there are probably many viewers who will find this topic uncomfortable and may want to bypass this offering, but you might be depriving yourself of a thoughtful, touching and flawlessly-performed drama that will leave you thinking long after the final credits.

Being Julia is rated R for language and some sexuality. Vera Drake is rated R for its strong thematic material.