( CNN ) -- Remember when Lindsay Lohan was the next Ann-Margret ? Or Elizabeth Taylor ? Or even Marilyn Monroe ? While that last comparison is still being bandied about -- for better or for worse -- today there is more buzz about `` will she stay clean ? '' and `` can she stay out of trouble ? '' than her talent . Lohan 's latest 90-day rehab stint , which ended this week , was taken as an alternative to three months of jail time for two misdemeanor convictions and a shoplifting probation violation finding in March . Lindsay Lohan the actress seems to have been replaced by Lindsay Lohan the perpetual comeback kid . And although she has continued to work sporadically , those roles have mostly been of troubled women , not unlike Lohan herself . `` At this point , we 're not even sure she 's still an actress , '' said Noah Levy , co-host of Vh1 's `` The Gossip Table . '' `` Can Lindsay get sober and have a healthy and happy life ? Of course she can . But can she be believable as a character that is not like herself ? I do n't know . '' In `` The Canyons , '' the new film written by Bret Easton Ellis ( `` American Psycho '' ) and directed by Paul Schrader ( `` Taxi Driver , '' `` Raging Bull '' ) , Lohan plays Tara , a woman who has a lot going on -- not least of which is that her boyfriend ( played by porn star James Deen ) likes to invite other men and women home to have sex with them . The low-budget film had difficulties finding a distributor , and The New York Times documented Lohan 's on-set antics , which nearly got her fired from the film before shooting even began . `` The Canyons '' is set to be released this week via video on demand , and it has been savaged by critics for both the film and Lohan 's acting . `` Lohan 's performance is certainly terrible , but her steady slide started long ago , '' wrote IndieWire 's Eric Kohn. `` 'The Canyons ' has nothing on the awesomely horrendous 2007 ' I Know Who Killed Me , ' a ultra-campy fusion of art house and crime movie tropes that fell apart in several directions at once . '' Before that , Lohan made critics ' hit list for her turn as Elizabeth Taylor in the made-for-television movie `` Liz & Dick , '' about the late actress ' love affair with Richard Burton . `` Lohan , who has squandered years of promise and talent as a sullen-faced party girl and irregular arrestee , has been cut so many breaks , it 's difficult to root for her anymore , '' Ken Tucker wrote in Entertainment Weekly . While Lohan is reportedly doing well post-rehab , her biggest projects do n't quite reflect the work of someone who was once on track to become the greatest actress of her generation . Instead , Lohan is slated to open up to talk show queen Oprah Winfrey while also appearing on an eight part docu-series chronicling her comeback . She 's also guest-hosting for Chelsea Handler on `` Chelsea Lately . '' Lohan ca n't even lay claim anymore to the title of Hollywood 's most troubled ingenue , as that role has now been filled by Amanda Bynes . So where does that leave her ? Schrader wrote in an essay for Film Comment that he believes Lohan and the late Marilyn Monroe have a lot in common . `` I think Lohan has more natural acting talent than Monroe did , but , like Monroe , her weakness is her inability to fake it , '' he wrote . `` She feels she must be experiencing an emotion in order to play it . This leads to all sorts of emotional turmoil , not to mention on-set delays and melodrama . `` We call them `` troubled , '' `` tormented , '' `` train wrecks '' -- but we ca n't turn away . We ca n't stop watching . They get under our skin in a way that controlled performers ca n't . '' Her father , Michael Lohan , recently told E ! News he believes his daughter will be `` another Robert Downey Jr. , '' referencing the Academy Award-nominated actor who famously turned around his life and career after several arrests and rehabs . `` I 'm very , very proud of what she 's accomplished , how far she 's come and how seriously she 's taking her sobriety and her future , '' he said . So we 'll watch . And we 'll wait . But Lohan has been here before . In 2012 , a highly publicized guest appearance on `` Glee '' and shots of the actress dining with iconic director Woody Allen led to speculation that Lohan was on her way to a career resurgence . Then there was chatter that the actress was `` a diva '' on the `` Glee '' set , and nothing appeared to come of the chats with Allen . One year later , Lohan was back in rehab . All the public can count on is that Lohan is willing to take any shot given to her . `` She is great at making attempts at a comeback , '' Levy said . `` Is she great at having career longevity ? The jury is still out . ''
Lindsay Lohan has new projects lined up , but critics expect new ones . A film expert questions whether she can pull off diverse characters . Her ` ` ' '' ' suggests that she is more talented than Marilyn Monroe .