STYLES MUTES THE CHARISMA BUTTON IN 'MY POLICEMAN'

Even if, like me, you’ve never been to a Harry Styles concert, it’s hardly difficult to comprehend his huge appeal. He’s ... Harry Styles.

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Also huge, to his many fans: the very news of Styles starring in a movie. (Or, did you happen to miss the circus surrounding his appearance in “Don’t Worry Darling”?)

But “huge” is not the word to describe Styles’ performance in “My Policeman,” a deliberately paced, melancholy period piece about love, loss, pain, prejudice and the danger of living inauthentically. The biggest challenge for Styles, and for the studio that lists him as one of a six-actor ensemble — albeit at the top of the list, they’re not stupid! — is to mute the confident pop-star magnetism, in service of the story. This he does. At times, though, it seems he’s pressing too hard on that mute button, erasing personality from his portrayal.

To be fair, much of this may stem from choices by director Michael Grandage and screenwriter Ron Nyswaner, who fashion Styles’ character, Tom, a working-class policeman who hides his gay relationship while in a heterosexual marriage, as a blank canvas onto whom others project their desires. There’s been criticism that Styles gives an underdeveloped performance, but that ignores the fact that his very character IS underdeveloped, and that’s perhaps the point. How can we know him if he does not know himself?

Still, it’s a striking contrast with a sharply drawn portrayal like that of David Dawson as Patrick, Tom’s lover. Or that of Rupert Everett, who plays older Patrick without benefit of language, in the aftermath of a serious stroke.