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IMDb > My First Wife (1984)

My First Wife (1984) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
6.9/10   81 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 23% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Paul Cox (written by)
Bob Ellis (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for My First Wife on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
13 September 1984 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
4 wins & 4 nominations more
User Reviews:
Real-life film with real-life characters more (3 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
John Hargreaves ... John
Wendy Hughes ... Helen
Lucy Angwin ... Lucy

David Cameron ... Tom
Anna Maria Monticelli ... Hilary
Betty Lucas ... Helen's Mother
Lucy Uralov ... John's Mother
Robin Lovejoy ... Helen's father
Charles 'Bud' Tingwell ... Helen's Father
Jon Finlayson ... Bernard
Julia Blake ... Kirstin
Ron Falk ... Psychiatrist
Xenia Groutas ... John's Sister
Reg Roddick ... Priest
Renée Geyer ... Barmaid
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Additional Details

Runtime:
USA:96 min
Country:
Language:
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4 out of 5 people found the following review useful.
Real-life film with real-life characters, 13 May 2002
7/10
Author: leask81 from adelaide, australia

John (Hargreaves), a self-centred, highly strung musician, is shattered when he learns that Helen (Hughes), to whom he had been married for ten years, is leaving him and taking their only daughter, after a string of extra-marital affairs with some of his closest acquaintances. This comes at a time when John is watching his father die a slow and agonising death in hospital. Genuine, heartfelt but obtrusive film, from some of Cox's own experiences, with classically flawed, indecisive characters and real human emotion. While it is difficult to objectively empathise with either John or Helen, comparisons to real-life situations, where compromise and tact are often lacking, are painfully obvious. Hargreaves is nothing short of brilliant in his depiction as a sulking shell of a man, slipping into a deep psychological depression as he fails to come to grips with a relatively common occurrence – in the western world, almost half of all marriages end in divorce, and sixty per cent of married people have affairs at some point. Not easy to watch (we are ‘treated' with graphic scenes of childbirth and delirium-inspired erotic dreams), it's a true study of human frailty, an impressive but daunting portrayal of married life, and dependence upon others. Interestingly, nominated twice for its cinematography at the 1984 AFI Awards.

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