Rent My Brilliant Career (1979)
3.6 of 5 from 110 ratings
1h 35min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- Sybylla Melvyn (Judy Davis) is the eldest daughter of an impoverished New South Wales farming family. Bold and determined, Sybylla dreams of succeeding as an acclaimed writer. But in a time of sexist ignorance and bigotry Sybylla has frequent clashes with procrustean conformists. Though it is her love for the dashing Harry Beacham (Sam Neill) that will truly test her desire to succeed as a writer. As events twist and turn, Sybylla is painfully forced to realise the emotional cost of putting her career over love. 'My Brilliant Career' is a delicate parable of one woman's fight for independence, and the sacrifices of the heart that must be made along the way.
- Actors:
- Judy Davis, Sam Neill, Wendy Hughes, Robert Grubb, Max Cullen, Aileen Britton, Peter Whitford, Patricia Kennedy, Alan Hopgood, Julia Blake, David Franklin, Marion Shad, Arron Wood, Sue Davies, Gordon Piper, James Moss, Bill Charlton, Suzanne Roylance, Zelda Smyth, Bobbie Ward
- Directors:
- Gillian Armstrong
- Producers:
- Margaret Fink
- Writers:
- Eleanor Witcombe, Miles Franklin
- Others:
- Anna Senior
- Studio:
- Cinema Club
- Genres:
- Drama, Romance
- Collections:
- Award Winners, The Biggest Oscar Snubs: Part 2, Top 10 Award Winners at the London Film Festival, Top 10 Films By Year, Top 10 Films of 1979, Top Films
- Countries:
- Australia
- Awards:
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 27/05/2019
- Run Time:
- 100 minutes
- Languages:
- English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.85:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Audio commentary from 2009 featuring Armstrong
- New interview with Armstrong
- Interview from 1980 with actor Judy Davis
- New interview with production designer Luciana Arrighi
- One Hundred a Day (1973), a student short film by Armstrong
- Trailer
- An essay by critic Carrie Rickey
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Reviews (1) of My Brilliant Career
Classic Australian movie - My Brilliant Career review by AER
This film was a mould-breaker with a strong female character to root for. Inspired by Little Women, no doubt, Sybilla (JUDY DAVIS) defies society's need to get her married, by falling in love with neighbour Harry (SAM NEILL) but rebuffing his marriage proposals to purse a career as a writer.Set at the turn of the 20th century in rural NSW, this is a spirited and funny tale of adversity in the face of stuffy convention. Nowadays, films like this are envogue and being made regularly, bearing in mind that this was released in the late 1970s this must have been a game changer. It certainly helped to launch the international film careers of Judy Davis and Sam Neill. This paved the way for The Piano, Portrait of a Woman on Fire,Pride & Prejudice and other Austen/Bronte adaptations, Little Women remakes and so many more.
If you love Australian cinema, then this is an enduring classic. I've been meaning to see it for years and years to see whether it lived up to its fine reputation, and it certainly does. It's a shame the DVD transfer is quite poor (and there's no subtitles) (not Cinema Paradiso's fault as this movie is hard to come by streaming so at least they've kept it available!) - I will keep an eye for a restored version or a blu-ray.
Engrossing, funny and ahead of its time.
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