IMDb > The First Wives Club (1996)
The First Wives Club
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The First Wives Club (1996) More at IMDbPro »

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The First Wives Club (1996) -- Reunited by the death of a college friend, three divorced women seek revenge on the husbands who left them for younger women.
The First Wives Club (1996) -- Sinematurk - Trailer (Flash)
The First Wives Club (1996) -- MovieMaze.de - Trailer (Quicktime)

Overview

User Rating:
5.6/10   13,741 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?

Up 52% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.

Director:

Hugh Wilson

Writers (WGA):

Olivia Goldsmith (novel)
Robert Harling (screenplay)

Contact:

View company contact information for The First Wives Club on IMDbPro.

Release Date:

20 September 1996 (USA) more

Genre:

Comedy more

Tagline:

Getting even... this fall. more

Plot:

Reunited by the death of a college friend, three divorced women seek revenge on the husbands who left them for younger women. full summary | add synopsis

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 3 wins & 3 nominations more

NewsDesk:
(22 articles)

Bronson Pinchot Gets Candid About Hollywood Stars
 (From Cinematical. 20 October 2009, 2:32 PM, PDT)

Meg Ryan in 'Serious Moonlight' trailer: Seriously?
 (From EW.com - PopWatch. 16 October 2009, 9:15 AM, PDT)

User Comments:

Instructive - maybe not; hilarious - definitely! more (104 total)

US TV Schedule:

Fri. Nov. 137:00 PMBRAVO   


Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Bette Midler ... Brenda Cushman

Goldie Hawn ... Elise Elliot

Diane Keaton ... Annie Paradis

Maggie Smith ... Gunilla Garson Goldberg

Dan Hedaya ... Morton Cushman

Sarah Jessica Parker ... Shelly Stewart

Stockard Channing ... Cynthia Swann Griffin

Victor Garber ... Bill Atchison

Stephen Collins ... Aaron Paradis

Elizabeth Berkley ... Phoebe LaVelle

Marcia Gay Harden ... Dr. Leslie Rosen

Bronson Pinchot ... Duarto Feliz
Jennifer Dundas ... Chris Paradis

Eileen Heckart ... Catherine MacDuggan
Philip Bosco ... Uncle Carmine Morelli
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic elements, some mild language and sensuality.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1 more

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital


Fun Stuff

Trivia:

In an interview, Bette Midler mentioned that all three main cast members wanted to make a sequel, but the studio was not agreeable, as they viewed the success of this film as a "fluke". Midler also said that just before the movie opened, she was told it would not do very well because the film was competing against action movies with male stars such as Bruce Willis. This film opened at number one and out-grossed those action movies. more

Goofs:

Continuity: After the funeral, when the waiter brings the ladies drinks, he sets down a vodka during "just fine, couldn't be better" (Brenda's drink is already on the table). In the next shot, he finishes placing Brenda's drink, then the vodka, then reaches for Annie's. The next shot shows that Annie magically has a drink and the waiter is gone. Also, both the Virgin Mary and the Bloody Mary have celery stalks though Brenda's disappears during the "seperated?" line. more

Quotes:

Bill: Nice car, used to have one myself.
Shelly: Thanks. So, what's going on in there? Is it just a lot of battered women dancing around or what?
Bill: Yeah, sort of. Not really my scene.
Shelly: Me neither.
Bill: So, are you here with anybody?
Shelly: Not really.
Bill: How old are you?
more

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Benchwarmers (2006) more

Soundtrack:

Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves more


FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
16 out of 22 people found the following comment useful.
Instructive - maybe not; hilarious - definitely!, 20 November 2001
Author: Geofbob from London, England

Like Nine to Five, First Wives Club purports to be making a statement - albeit in comedy mode - about a serious feminist issue, but like that movie is simply an opportunity to portray women getting back at men who have taken advantage of them - and why not?! While the film may have little practical application to the majority of women who are "traded in" for newer models, but whose men are not as well heeled as the husbands in this film, it does provide them with 100 minutes of escapist entertainment from three great American actresses - OK Bette Midler may not be the best actress in the world but she's certainly hugely entertaining.

Midler plays one of three 60s college friends, who meet 25 years later and find that they've each been deserted - her businessman ex-hubby keeps her short of cash while buying skimpy designer dresses for his skimpy girlfriend (Sarah Jessica Parker). The other two in the triumvirate are Diane Keaton as a diffident door-mat, and Goldie Hawn as an alcoholic and facelifted filmstar. But this is one movie where there is no doubt about the characters undergoing an "arc" during its course, and hardly anyone emerges unaltered. Along the way, there are lots of laughs, a few tears, and an unforgettable rendition of You Don't Own Me. Elsewhere on IMDb, some ungenerous souls have used the word hysterical to describe this movie; hysterically funny is nearer the mark.





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