She’s had little success as an actress, but tonight Madonna is hoping to impress critics with her directing skills.

Her first feature film is to screen at the Berlin Film Festival, and while she may have made a fortune producing mainstream pop music, her directional debut is far from middle-of-the-road.

Filth and Wisdom is the story of a Ukrainian immigrant who hungers after stardom but pays the bills by dressing in women’s clothing for straight, married men.

The movie stars Eugene Hutz, the singer of gypsy punk band Gorgol Bodello, and cult British actor Richard E Grant, best known for his performance in the 1987 film Withnail & I.

If the film is well-received, it will be the London-based musician's first movie success in a decade.

She was lauded for her acting debut in the 1985 movie Desperately Seeking Susan but, other than a turn in Evita in 1996, her subsequent film projects have been widely panned.

Her starring role in the 2002 film Swept Away, directed by her husband Guy Ritchie, earned her the Worst Actress Razzie award, so feared by thespians, while the once-revered Ritchie took home the Worst Director dishonour.

The film bombed at the box office and Ritchie, who produced the 1998 hit Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels before meeting The Material Girl, has failed to produce a hit movie since.

Madonna went on to earn another Razzie for her role in James Bond film Die Another Die and has since steered clear of acting roles, focusing on her highly-successful pop career.

More is as at stake for Madonna tonight. Not only has she directed Filth and Wisdom, she is also the executive producer.

The film must also follow Shine A Light, Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Stones documentary that opened the festival last week to widespread praise.

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