'The Walker' takes you behind the closed doors of upper-class Washington DC society, where a game of canasta is all about political wrangling and insidious pandering.

Carter Page III (Woody Harrelson) is the black sheep of his family. Wealthy through his family's Southern plantation, the homosexual Car is stuck in the larger-than-life shadow of his late father who rose to fame through the Watergate scandal.

Fastidious about his appearance and manners — 'I'm not naïve, just superficial' — he bides his time as a Walker. Escorting highbrow society ladies to functions when their husbands are otherwise engaged, Car mingles with the cream of the political crop, discretely garnering gossip and political savvy.

Among his favourite ladies is his weekly canasta group — Lynn Lockner (Kristin Scott Thomas), Natalie van Miter (Lauren Bacall) and Abigail DeLorean (Lily Tomlin). Perfectly groomed, polite and witty, Car entertains the women, helps them pick out fabrics and guards their little secrets.

When his closet friend Lynn turns to him for help in the face of a scandal, he obliges. As he becomes a suspect in a high-profile murder case that has nothing to do with him, he is faced with closed doors, the violence of ambition and an opportunity to discover whether or not he measures up to the legend of his father.

Harrelson is sublime in the role — verging, but not descending into a caricature with his Southern drawl, carefully arranged wig and immaculate suits. Pre-occupied with appearances, Car's polished façade cracks only in the company of his lover photographer Emek Yoglu (Moritz Bleibtreu).

As always Scott Thomas is pitch perfect, while the delightful Bacall prowls the corridors of the rich and powerful with her deep voice and quizzical expression.

As a thriller, this is a slow and at times plodding offering from writer/director Paul Schrader ('American Gigolo' and 'Light Sleeper'); but as a character study and a glimpse into the twisted morality of power, it is more than diverting.