At a certain point, all the tales of rich people misbehaving but showcasing strong actors start to blend together. Are The Perfect Couple, Nine Perfect Strangers, Apples Never Fall, The Undoing, and this latest, the Molly Smith Meltzer-created Sirens, the same show? Judging by plot, very much not. And yet, you’d be forgiven for confusing any number of them with any number of others.

Sirens is, broadly, a tale of two sisters. Devon DeWitt (Meghann Fahy), the eldest, is a recent reformed convict and addict in recovery living at home with her father Bruce (Bill Camp). He’s increasingly losing his battle with dementia, motivating Devon to track down her younger sister Simone (Milly Alcock). To that end, she ends up at Cliff House, a massive estate in a Martha’s Vineyard-like vacation town, to find Simone.

It only takes a few moments after arriving for the older DeWitt—the show’s actions never fully assert whether their last name should invoke The Wit or Dimwit—to decide sister’ser’s boss Michaela Kell (Juliane Moore) is a cult leader. Years earlier, Devon left her sister behind with their father, who was too consumed with grief to be an attentive parent. She quickly regretted and reversed course, but not before Simone ended up in foster care. Still gripped by the guilt of that brief absence, Devon decides she must rescue little sis. Over the course of five episodes, circumstances rapidly reveal a far more complex situation than Devon or viewers would first guess.

To frontload what works in Sirens, Fahy and Alcock both turn in strong performances. Fahy, ably assisted by makeup and some of the starkest lighting, brings Devon to difficult, bruised life. The sense of unarticulated guilt mixed with resentment is well delivered. Alcock provides a good contrast as someone seemingly hollowing herself out to fit in. The turn in her character that reveals even in selling out, she retains a brutal talent for self-preservation is one of the show’s true treats.

Sirens also feels more deliberate than many of its brethren regarding filming choices. So many “rich people in pretty places” shows appear to turn the camera on the landscape and let the natural beauty take over. While that certainly produces pretty images, it also tends to offer only a skin-deep kind of storytelling. In contrast, cinematographers Zoë White and Gregory Middleton have meaning in their shot compositions. For instance, the show shoots Moore in guazily lit soft focus. It creates a visual counterpoint to the already mentioned stark lighting of Fahy. Often, in the same scene, the entire composition of what’s in the lens will change depending on which character is the focus.

Unfortunately, the usually impeccable Moore’s performance is just as ill-defined. A switch about halfway through brings her Michaela a bit more in focus—no pun intended—but it is a bit of too little too late. The staff Simone helps oversee never get enough dimensions to give any class commentary any bite. The show even manages to render Josh Segarra, one of Devon’s two love interests, a bit bland. The only other actor on the ball here is Kevin Bacon as Micaela’s husband, Peter. Where his character stumbles are hiccups in the scripts by Meltzer (adapting her own play), Colin McKenna, and Bekah Brunstetter.

Sirens has some interesting ideas, especially regarding Simone as a portrait of go-for-broke ambition. Unfortunately, it too often feels like just another show about how rich people take their staff for granted and do bad things to one another. Against that sensation of sameness, Fahy and Alcott can only grit their teeth and push back with great acting. It’s enough to grab audiences’ attention but not enough to save Cliff House from tumbling into a sea of familiarity.

Sirens dashes you upon Netflix’s rocks starting May 22.

Sirens Trailer: