Publicly shamed and relentlessly objectified, Pamela Anderson must be one of the most unfairly treated stars of the modern age, so her second act has been welcome. Following a run on-stage in Chicago and an illuminating Netflix documentary, the actress confounds her critics with a sincere and likeable turn in a film set amidst the bright lights and dashed dreams of Vegas. Gia Coppola (Palo Alto, Mainstream) directs, from a script by Kate Gersten.

The Last Showgirl sees Anderson’s long-term Las Vegas showgirl Shelly thrown into crisis when her show is axed after three decades. Dave Bautista plays her boss Eddie, who she has a romantic past with, Brenda Song and Kiernan Shipka are Shelly’s young colleagues, and Billie Lourd is her estranged daughter Hannah. A BAFTA-nominated Jamie Lee Curtis provides stellar support as former showgirl Annette, whose career as a poorly paid, scantily clad cocktail waitress on the slot-machine floor offers a depressing vision of Shelly’s potential future.

Nominated for a Golden Globe at this year’s ceremony, Anderson shines in a role that plays poignantly on her faded glamour-puss image. She’s a relaxed yet radiant screen presence who combines naturalism with cute, Marilyn Monroe-esque affectations more familiar from her TV work. Anderson is adoringly directed by Coppola who shows sensitivity to all her characters, adopting a Magic Mike-style combination of freewheeling indie interrogation and in-your-face sexuality. However, the slightness of the story lets things down; The Last Showgirl is an intimate, endearing piece that nevertheless feels like it’s skirting on the surface of its issues rather than digging especially deep.

The Last Showgirl is in cinemas from Friday 28 February.