Thank God He Met Lizzie

A very good portrayal of life. Regular life and the choices we make, and the normal looking back on it and wondering what if... excellent acting, plot and dialogue, true ending.

We are all searching for something, and we are all looking in the wrong places: in our past and in our future. What about today? Is happiness something you feel or something you remember?

They don't make movies like this anymore! Thank so much to Alexandra Long for sharing your insight into life and relationships. The first time I watched it in February 2000 I cried for 1 hour after watching it. I blamed Guy for getting over Jenny too quickly. Last week when I watched it again - Sept 2000, I saw things differently. They had hit a brick wall in their relationship and didn't know how to fix things. That's life - If only they went to a marriage counsellor! All principle characters I thought were superb in their translation of their parts - Richard, Jenny and Cate - they might have been my neighbours across the street. Real people, with real reactions and emotions.

It has always perplexed me why this film remains largely unheard of, whilst other, lesser Australian productions before it (e.g. "Strictly Ballroom", "Muriel's Wedding") went on to gain lasting international acclaim. The basic plot of "Thank god he met Lizzie" is deceptively simple - Guy (Richard Roxburgh) meets Lizzie (Cate Blanchett); they have a whirlwind romance and are married within six months, two people seemingly made for each other. But nothing in this film is as straightforward as it first seems, and - as the wedding night slowly unfolds - we learn that Guy has had a past relationship in his life with Jenny (Frances O'Connor) that haunts him still. As we discover more and more about Guy, Lizzie and Jenny, this film looks at what it means to be happy - and asks whether we can ever recognise happiness until it's gone.

The three leads, O'Connor, Roxburgh and Blanchett all give strong and credible performances. Roxburgh and O'Connor especially create an amazing dramatic tension as their relationship unfolds in flashbacks, and credit must be given to O'Connor for her reading of Jenny, a character who gradually moves from simple naivety to heartbreaking sensibility. The other minor characters are perhaps a who's who of Australian cinema in the '90s, but there a few if any stock caricatures here, and all provide strong support. The direction by first-time director Cherie Nowlan is brilliant, making subtle use of hand-held camera work for the most intimate moments of Guy and Jenny's failed relationship in a way that is astonishingly sympathetic and tender.

This is a film that is at times humorous, at times thoughtful, at times shocking but always powerful. Nothing is quite resolved until the final lines, and there is a poignancy that envelopes it which lasts long after the final scene has faded away. Highly recommended.

Richard Roxburgh, Cate Blanchett and Frances O'Connor are all good in this sometimes comic, sometimes poignant film about a man's remembrance of his previous lover on his wedding day, but O'Connor is the most memorable as the witty, affectionate ex-lover who is changed by the loss of her relationship.

The film has a lot to say about loss, luck, mistakes and regret in relationships. The film also shows parts of Sydney not often seen on film. Cate Blanchett won an AFI award for best supporting actress.

Guy meets Lizzie and in a mad rush they marry. During the wedding, Guy's memories float to the turbulent relationship with the other woman - Jenny. Alexandra Long's script delivers the goods but let down by poor quality production values. The other saviour comes from O'Conner's performance as the manic Jenny.