The First Wives Club (DVD)

...where each star vies for the best bits and laughs, or you could get one very clever piece of movie making that will keep you smiling from beginning to end. With the First Wives Club (FWC), we have thankfully been blessed with the latter.

The Story:
Simply stated, three old college mates get together after the fourth in their old gang (played by Stockard Channing) commits suicide when her husband tosses her over for a "newer ...
...their own cheating ex-spouses. The tag-line for this movie was "Don't get mad, Get everything!", oh, yeah!

The Cast:
This is one of those films where the cast really is the focus of the film, where the audience may be willing to overlook holes in the plot just because they've got someone to watch on-screen that they enjoy to see act. For this reason, I think I should put a bit more than usual detail about these actors ... more

What happens when you take three huge female stars of comedy and put them together in one film? There are two possibilities. Either you could end up with a total disaster, where each star vies for the best bits and laughs, or you could get one very clever piece of movie making that will keep you smiling from beginning to end. With the First Wives Club (FWC), we have thankfully been blessed with the latter.

The Story:
Simply stated, three old college mates get together after the fourth in their old gang (played by Stockard Channing) commits suicide when her husband tosses her over for a "newer model". As a result, they decide to join forces in order to get back at their own cheating ex-spouses. The tag-line for this movie was "Don't get mad, Get everything!", oh, yeah!

The Cast:
This is one of those films where the cast really is the focus of the film, where the audience may be willing to overlook holes in the plot just because they've got someone to watch on-screen that they enjoy to see act. For this reason, I think I should put a bit more than usual detail about these actors into this review.

As I mentioned above, this movie has three huge comedic stars getting top billing. To start with, we have the Devine Miss M - Bette Midler playing the part of Brenda Cushman. The only one of this group who doesn't have an Oscar on her shelf (but she did get nominated for best female actress in a leading role for the wonderful comedy/musical/drama movie "For the Boys"), she does have four Grammy Awards and a special Tony Award for one of her concerts. While most musicians don't have enough "show" in them to make their concerts exciting without extravagant pyrotechnics and scores of sweating dancers swarming around them to beef up their songs, Bette is a true performer in every sense of the word. Her gigantic talent as a singer only slightly surpasses her comic abilities, and while this movie doesn't show off much of her voice, she really brings the zing into the humour of this film, with her famous "Jewish shtick", bulldozer, no-nonsense, street-smart style.

Next in line is Goldie Hawn in the role of Elise Elliot. Her spoiled, rich-girl pouting act (think "Private Benjamin"), along with her blonde locks, pretty face, sexy body and swishy-bum walk (think she'd have trapped Kurt Russell without them?) have been her hallmark throughout her career. In fact, that last attribute certainly came into play when she got the part that won her an Oscar for "Cactus Flower" so early in her career. Her other specialty is the "smarter than she seems" hook, which she pulls off with aplomb.

The last of our trio is Diane Keaton as Annie Paradis. First discovered by Woody Allen, she shot to stardom with her Oscar winning performance in the title role of "Annie Hall". Best known for playing, bumbling intelligent women who have little to no self-confidence and are totally unaware of how strong they really are, and who make us laugh while they "discover" their true selves - often causing embarrassment and bodily injury (to themselves and others) along the way.

So here we have three strong actresses with very different comedy styles, and while one might think that this could lead to tension or even clashing, instead we've been treated to a very neatly cohesive package, where each of these styles (and looks) of these women compliments each other. Moreover, when different styles such as these are able to combine, we find that the characters can often enhance each other by playing off each other by contrast. Mind you, this doesn't always work, but this is a fine example of a time that it succeeds.

Let me note here that these women are far from the whole show in this movie. We have, of course, their ex-husbands played by Dan Hedaya (as Morton Cushman), Victor Garber (as Bill Atchison, Elise's ex) and Stephen Collins (as Aaron Paridis) not a list of very identifiable names, I know, but if you see their faces (click on their names on IMDb page http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116313/ for this film), you'll immediately see that you've seen these guys around quite a bit in both comedies and dramas.

And what would a movie about first wives be without the actors who play the new wives? Here we have an interesting group. Mr. Atchison (Garber) is bedding a new scarlet, the pretty Phoebe LaVelle - played by the greatly underrated Elizabeth Berkley, who I remember well from the 90s TV series "Saved by the Bell". I have to say that she did a great job with this small part, and I plan to keep an eye out for her in the future. Mr. Cushman (Hedaya) has a new trophy bride-to-be, the sparkly Shelly Stewart, played by the one and only, Sarah Jessica Parker (do I have to mention "Sex & the City"?). Sarah took this and proved that there really is no such thing as small parts, only small actors, by giving it all she had. Mind you, some might say she was a bit over the top, but I say she never became annoying - which turns me off to many a performance. Finally, I think its been a tad too long since I saw this film because I couldn't correctly remember who Mr. Paridis (Collins) took up with. Thankfully, I have been reminded (in the comments here) that it is with his wife's analyst, Dr. Leslie Rosen, played by Marcia Gay Harden (who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 2001 for her performance in Pollock). Note here that Harden was only a few years short of her 40th birthday in this film, so this is the only 2nd wife in this movie that isn't a 20- something airhead. I suppose a husband with a very neurotic wife could fall for his (somewhat) less neurotic analyst, especially if she looks as sleek as Harden.

I should also mention some really wonderful cameo roles that were included in this film. For instance, as I hinted above, Stockard Channing shows up for only moments here, but if you've seen this film, you'll never forget her suicide scene - a classic! Bronson Pinchot hands us one of his famous accented homosexual bits that even Robin Williams would be envious of. And when Maggie Smith shows up in a comedy, you know you're going to enjoy her performance, and she didn't disappoint us here. All in all, the whole cast, from the stars all the way down to the cameos and extras, give us a full 110% and I could find nothing to fault with any of them.

The Direction:
The true beauty of the cast, in all its talented splendor, is that not only do they each give great individual performances, but that they all work together so well. Its one of those films where you get the distinct impression that the cast was having a real blast doing the film, which can only add to the viewer's enjoyment. This, I believe, is something that must be attributed to the director. Funny thing is that the director of this movie, Hugh Wilson, doesn't seem to have all that great of a directing resume (Dudley Do-Right, Blast from the Past). So while he succeeded with this film, it seems to be his most shining effort to date - aside from his contribution to one of my favorite American TV comedy series, WKRP in Cincinnati. Still, credit where credit is due - he pulled this one off with charm and grace.

The Script:
So I'm thinking, perhaps the director wasn't as instrumental in making this film work so well as the cast itself. Perhaps the script was more influential here. The screenplay for this film was written by Robert Harling, who also wrote the screenplay for Steel Magnolias (good, if a tad slow in spots, and not a comedy) and the new comedy Laws of Attraction, which I haven't seen yet (despite my adoration for both of the staring actors), so I can't really compare it with anything else of his. But he based this movie on a book by Olivia Goldsmith, who I understand was quite a dab hand at comic novels that focus on problematic relationships, cheating husbands with a bit of revenge on the side. This makes me believe that with the right basis, a screenwriter's job can be much easier.

This script just bubbles with wit and humour. The wise cracks, one liners and double entendres just never seem to quit. Moreover, even when we can easily figure out how a scene is going to play out, there's always something unexpected that's been added in to put us off guard and make us laugh. One of my favorite scenes is when the three stars get together to reminisce and start to break into song, when Keaton's character begins to beg off in embarrassment. The other two convince her to join them and promise to not leave her singing solo. Of course, you know that as she gets into it, the other two are going step back and let her at it alone. But rather than get angry with them for dropping out, and running away in shame - as you might expect - she only pauses for a moment and then she's the one pulling them back into the song. Its those little things in the script that really keep the pace of this movie running at a good even keel, never dropping for too long, and with just enough pauses for the audience to catch their breath.

I do have to say that as the movie comes close to a conclusion - or should I say, its three conclusions, one for each first wife - that some of the action gets a little far-fetched in spots. For example, there's a bit where the three women buy a building and decide to renovate it. Well, from the original condition the building was in, and its size, it seems unlikely that they would have succeeded so easily and so quickly with what seemed like hardly any outside help. Now, I understand that it would have been superfluous to go too much into the details of the renovation, but they really should have put some more of the extras into that part. I'm reminded of a similar scene in "[Life and Loves of a] She Devil" that was far more effective in that respect (too bad they moved Fay Weldon's novel from the UK to the US, but that's another movie review). Also too bad they didn't watch that movie for tips on how to properly pull off that particular scene.

The Aside - Comparing FWC to She Devil:
Since I mentioned She Devil, I really should expand briefly on how these two films rate against each other.

One can draw lots of parallels between these two films. Both involve jilted wives and taking revenge on their husbands and using elaborate schemes to reach those ends. However, I found FWC to be quite a bit more subtle, with a more clever script and, for the most part, a more plausible story line. I think also that the cast worked better together in FWC than they did in She Devil, and certainly played it straighter without the over-the-top camp and mugging that you see in almost every scene in She Devil. Now I like She Devil's star, Roseanne Barr, but she just can't match up to the talented trio that make up FWC's starting line-up. Sorry, but if you want a quality female revenge comedy, pass on She Devil and take a look at FWC.

The Costumes Make-up, Settings, Special Effects & Cinematography:
Here's a movie that has no reason to push the envelope in any of these areas, and nor should it. A modern comedy which has only short dated scenes of the 60s when the girls are in college, needs only a small bit of creativity to get the costumes and make-up to look right. The settings are mostly on location in New York, and since there are no creepy creatures or blood and guts or acrobatic fight scenes, the special effects - if there were any - were totally realistic and seamlessly incorporated into the filming. Finally, this isn't a high-brow artsy film, so don't expect any fancy camera angles, filters or lenses. All in all, there's nothing here that will make you sit up and say "wow, look at that", but hey, it's a simple comedy, so why should it?

The Music:
While this isn't a musical, I really believe this film deserves my touching on this aspect separately. First of all, Bette Midler is in the cast, and she has a very hard time resisting her natural urge to belt one out in front of the camera. Unfortunately, she only gets two chances in this film, and both are with her co-stars singing along with her in the highly feminist Lesley Gore 1964 hit song "You Don't Own Me". I do believe that Bette actually recorded this song by herself, but I haven't figured out what album its on. All I can find is the recording of the three of them from the soundtrack album.

Aside from this song, this film is filled with a lovely collection of 60s songs - not all of them big hits, like Think by Aretha Franklin (which probably is better known for Ms Franklin's own rendition in the movie, The Blues Brothers), Beautiful Morning by the Rascals and I'm Still Standing, by Martha Wash. Still, it's a fun set of songs that highly compliments the movie and when you hear them, they will also add a smile to your face in addition to the action. Moreover, the songs don't overpower the movie itself, so all told, I'd say that we have a perfect marriage here between soundtrack and film. Of course, this is the only perfect marriage you'll experience with this film, but hey, that's what this movie is all about, isn't it?

Bottom Line:
While some people might say that this is a "chick-flick" or perhaps even think it's a tad "anti-male", I really have to disagree. I think blokes will enjoy this no less than the women in the audience, mostly because its more fun than nasty. I find this film to be well written, marvelously directed, with a fun and complimentary soundtrack, and most of all, superbly acted. Does this film deserve a full five stars? You know, I just can't think why not. So there you have it - highly recommended, without reservation.

Thanks for reading!

(PS: For those who have read my Personal Homepage here, you'll know I wrote this after having a bad accident with my hand. So if there are any bad mistakes here, please let me know so I can fix them. Thanks for your patience.)

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Technical Stuff:
This is a review of the film only, as per the criteria below.

FYI: Olivia Goldsmith, author of the book that this film was based upon, died this past January - I understand it was because of complications from cosmetic surgery.

You can get this on DVD via Amazon for £6.97 ASIN: B00004WCMU, Catalogue Number: PHE8026, Release Information: Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment (UK) DVD Release Date: October 2, 2000, Run Time: 98 minutes. Since Ciao has this listed at PriceStorm from £7.99, I think you're all better off going to Amazon to get this one.

On VHS this only costs £5.99 on Amazon, ASIN: B00004CUH9, Catalogue Number: BRP0124.

The soundtrack doesn't seem to be available new on Amazon's UK site - only in the US for $14.99.

IMDb has more details on this movie at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116313/

Words to "You Don't Own Me" can be found at: http://www.niehs.nih.gov/kids/lyrics/youdont.htm

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