''An Ideal Husband'' is a 1999 British film based on the 1895 play ''

An Ideal Husband ''An Ideal Husband'' is a four-act play by Oscar Wilde that revolves around blackmail and political corruption, and touches on the themes of public and private honour. It was first produced at the Haymarket Theatre, London in 1895 and ran for ...

'' by

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

. The film stars

Cate Blanchett Catherine Elise Blanchett (; born 14 May 1969) is an Australian actor. Regarded as one of the finest performers of her generation, she is known for her versatile work across independent films, blockbusters, and the stage. She has received nu ...

Minnie Driver Amelia Fiona Jessica "Minnie" Driver (born 31 January 1970) is an English actress. She rose to prominence with her break-out role in 1995's '' Circle of Friends''. She went on to star in a wide range of films including the cult classic ''Grosse ...

Rupert Everett Rupert James Hector Everett (; born 29 May 1959) is an English actor, director and producer. Everett first came to public attention in 1981 when he was cast in Julian Mitchell's play and subsequent film '' Another Country'' (1984) as a gay pupil ...

Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is particularly known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent films, a ...

and

Jeremy Northam Jeremy Philip Northam (born 1 December 1961) is an English actor and singer. After a number of television roles, he earned attention as Mr. Knightley in the 1996 film adaptation of Jane Austen's '' Emma''. He has appeared in the films ''An Ideal ...

. It was directed by

Oliver Parker Oliver Parker (born 6 September 1960) is a British film director, screenwriter and former actor. He is known for writing and directing the film adaptations of Shakespeare's ''Othello (1995 film), Othello'' (1995) and Oscar Wilde, Wilde's ''The Im ...

. It was selected as the

1999 Cannes Film Festival The 52nd Cannes Film Festival was held from 12 to 23 May 1999. Canadian filmmaker, actor and author David Cronenberg was the Jury President. The Palme d'Or went to the French–Belgian film ''Rosetta'' by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne. The festiv ...

's closing film.

Plot

Sir Robert Chiltern is a successful government minister, well-off and with a loving wife. All this is threatened when Mrs Cheveley appears in London with damning evidence of a past misdeed. Sir Robert turns to his friend Lord Goring for help, an apparently idle philanderer and the despair of his father. Goring knows the lady of old and the plot to help his friend has

unintended consequence In the social sciences, unintended consequences (sometimes unanticipated consequences or unforeseen consequences) are outcomes of a purposeful action that are not intended or foreseen. The term was popularised in the twentieth century by Ameri ...

s. The plot of the film differs from the original Wilde play in a number of key respects. The episode of Mrs Cheveley's lost bracelet was removed, and the twists at the end are made more complex by the introduction of a bet between Lord Goring and Mrs Cheveley, and Lord Goring's need to ask the permission of Sir Robert Chiltern to marry his sister, Miss Mabel Chiltern.

Cast

as Lady Gertrude Chiltern *

as Miss Mabel Chiltern *

as Lord Arthur Goring *

as Mrs. Laura Cheveley *

as Sir Robert Chiltern * John Wood as Lord Caversham *

Peter Vaughan Peter Vaughan (born Peter Ewart Ohm; 4 April 1923 – 6 December 2016) was an English character actor known for many supporting roles in British film and television productions. He also acted extensively on the stage. He is perhaps best known ...

as Phipps *

Ben Pullen Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he, � ...

as Tommy Trafford *

Marsha Fitzalan Lady Marcia Mary Josephine Fitzalan-Howard (born 10 March 1953), known as Marsha Fitzalan, is an English actress. Personal life Born in 1953, Marcia FitzAlan-Howard was the third daughter of Major Miles Fitzalan-Howard, 17th Duke of Norfolk a ...

as Countess *

Lindsay Duncan Lindsay Vere Duncan (born 7 November 1950) is a Scottish actress. On stage, she has won two Olivier Awards (for ''Les Liaisons Dangereuses'' and ''Private Lives'') and a Tony Award (for ''Private Lives''). She has starred in several plays by H ...

as Lady Markby *

Neville Phillips Neville may refer to: Places *Neville, New South Wales, Australia *Neville, Saskatchewan, Canada *Néville, in the Seine-Maritime department, France *Néville-sur-Mer, in the Manche department, France *Neville, Ohio, USA *Neville Township, Penns ...

as Mason *

Nickolas Grace Nickolas Andrew Halliwell Grace (born 21 November 1947) is an English actor known for his roles on television, including Anthony Blanche in the acclaimed ITV adaptation of ''Brideshead Revisited'', and the Sheriff of Nottingham in the 1980s seri ...

as Vicomte de Nanjac *

Simon Russell Beale Sir Simon Russell Beale (born 12 January 1961) is an English actor. He is known for his appearances in film, television and theatre, and work on radio, on audiobooks and as a narrator. For his services to drama, he was knighted by Queen Elizabe ...

as Sir Edward *

Anna Patrick Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...

as Miss Danvers *

Delia Lindsay Delia Lindsay (born 19 September 1945, Sudan) is an English film, stage and television actress. Background Delia Lindsay was married to actor Jeremy Sinden from 1978 until his death in 1996. The couple had two children, Kezia and Harriet.Walker, ...

as Lady Basildon

Reception

The film received positive reviews from critics. Paper Magazine called it a "Witty comedy". It received a positive review from Roger Ebert. Entertainment Weekly called it "Delightful". The New York Observer said it was "Immensely entertaining". On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

it has a positive review rating of 86% Fresh, based on 65 critics.

Awards

Julianne Moore was nominated for the Chicago Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress, a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical, and a Golden Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical. Moore won the National Board of Review award for Supporting Actress for her performance. Everett received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. The film was nominated for awards in three BAFTA categories: Oliver Parker for Best Adapted Screenplay, Caroline Harris for Best Costume Design, and Peter King for Best Make-up and Hair.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ideal Husband, An 1999 comedy films British comedy films British films based on plays Films based on works by Oscar Wilde Films directed by Oliver Parker Films produced by Bruce Davey Icon Productions films Films set in London 1990s English-language films 1990s British films