UK: PREMIER OF THE FILM "AN IDEAL HUSBAND"

Record ID: 388296

  • Title: UK: PREMIER OF THE FILM "AN IDEAL HUSBAND"
  • Date: 16th April 1999
  • Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (RECENT) (REUTERS) OLIVER PARKER TALKING ABOUT WILDE SAYING "He was asked what the play was about and the next day talking to a journalist he explained that it was about women's passions for creating ideals and men's weaknesses for not daring to reveal their imperfections to those they love and I find that incredibly relevant in virtually e
  • Embargoed: 1st May 1999 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Communications
  • Reuters ID: LVA6QPZJTEJ8PJ6ET4Z07U2V8VFA
  • Story Text: Oscar Wilde's play "An Ideal Husband" had surprisingly been filmed only once - in 1947 by Alexander Korda - until last year when two rival screen adaptations of Wilde's stage classic went into film production.
    British director Oliver Parker's 1895 version, with its stellar cast including Rupert Everett, Minnie Driver, Cate Blanchett and Julianne Moore is the first to hit our cinema screens.Minnie Driver attended its premiere in London's West End on Monday (April 12).
    The year 2000 will not only be an opportunity for us to celebrate the dawning of a new millenium, it will also mark the 100th anniversary of the death of one of Britain's most acclaimed playwrights, Oscar Wilde.
    "An Ideal Husband" first opened on January 3, 1895 at the Haymarket theatre in London.It closed three months later, following the arrest and impending trial for homosexuality of Wilde.This resulted in a two-year prison sentence, with hard labour for Wilde and the play was never again staged in his lifetime.
    Although the play has been running in London for more than five years and recently ran in New York for three years, the only version of "An Ideal Husband" to be filmed was by Alexander Korda in 1947, until last year, when two rival versions - one set in present day and Oliver Parker's version set in the 1890's.Wilde's comedy is the story of a successful politician (Jeremy Northam), a perfect gentleman who is the ideal husband for the captivating Lady Chiltern (Cate Blanchett).Admired by all of their friends and colleagues as the perfect couple, they present a picture of wedded bliss and harmony until that is Mrs Cheveley (Julian Moore) arrives in town.She threatens to reveal a dark secret from Sir Robert's past which could shake the very foundations of his career and marriage unless he publicly supports a shady business venture Mrs Cheveley is involved in.Cornered, Sir Robert turns to his lifelong friend, devoted womaniser and tireless party-goer Arthur Goring (Rupert Everett).Lord Goring is famed throughout London for his joie de vivre and refusal to take anything too seriously.
    Lord Goring soon finds himself caught up in a tangled web of lies and temptations and while he excels at manipulating the affairs of others, his own prove infinitely more challenging.The persistent charms of Sir Robert's sister (Minnie Driver) and the constant badgering of his own father (John Wood) pose a significant threat to Arthur's blissful, responsibility-free lifestyle.If ever an actor was born for the role of Lord Goring, it was Rupert Everett.Another passionate follower of Wilde's work, he says the reason he opted for the role was because he thought he could do it justice."The reason I actually got involved in the project was because I felt I had known so much about Oscar Wilde, I'd done so much Oscar Wilde that it's the kind of acting that if you kind of learn the knack it's like riding a bicycle then you can do it quite well so my main reason was because I was very familiar with it and it was an area that I felt I knew I could really do well in,"
    Everett said.Northam fell in love with the script."I like its complexity, it's got a lightness of touch as well.It's got a number of things which are difficult to do.I don't think necessarily an audience will go 'ooh that's tricky', hopefully it's effortless, hopefully it's seamless and amusing and entertaining and thought provoking at the same time," he said.
    Oliver Parker, a great fan of Wilde wrote the screenplay a couple of years ago and says that although it was written almost a century ago, it's a very contemporary story.
    "It was about women's passions for creating ideals and men's weaknesses for not daring to reveal their imperfections to those they love and I find that incredibly relevant in virtually every man and woman I know and very excitingly so and I think we seem to be obsessed with this sort of judgmentalism at the moment of our public figures and our partners.When one looks at the divorce rate, people find it quite hard to tolerate one another's inadequacies if they are seen that way whereas Wilde is always demanding that you take them on board and often recognize them for the strengths rather than weaknesses that they think they are," he said.
    The film goes on release in the UK on 16 April and is due to open in cinemas in the United States in June.
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