- 'Philomena' is good, but ultimately what holds it back from being great is its own indecision as to what it is. Is it a history-hunting thriller? Is it an artsy tale of the unlikely kinship between two people worlds apart? Or is it period piece with a scathing message for how Irish nunneries conduct themselves? Trying to be all three, as Stephen Frears' latest film does, can only have so much success.