Le club des ex

THE FIRST WIVES CLUB is a sparkling all-star comedy that hits all the right notes and makes you want to cheer out loud while you're watching. This is the story of three former college girlfriends (Diane Keaton, Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler) who are reunited after many years due to the suicide of a mutual friend (Stockard Channing) and all learn that they have been dumped by their husbands for younger women. They bond and not only plan revenge on their husbands but take their revenge to another unexpected level that is curiously refreshing for a comedy of this type. Keaton, Hawn, and Midler are marvelous as the women out for their ex-husbands'blood. Stephen Collins, Victor Garber, and Dan Hedaya are all on the mark as the scummy ex-husbands. There are funny bits contributed along the way by Rob Reiner as Hawn's plastic surgeon, Sarah Jessica Parker as Hedaya's mistress, Maggie Smith as a wealthy divorcée, Bronson Pinchot as a faux designer, Eileen Heckart as Keaton's mother, and Marcia Gay Harden as Collins'therapist/mistress. A wonderful script is smartly mounted by director Hugh Wilson with an energetic cast to produce a terrific film comedy which can easily be watched several times and discover new pleasures on each viewing.

I came into this film with fairly low expectations as I wasn't sure that it would be my sort of thing. However, I must admit that I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would.

The premise is rather simple and focuses on 3 old college friends who end up re-united due to the death of their old college friend Cynthia (Stockard Channing). The 3 college friends are Elise Elliot (Goldie Hawn), Brenda Cushman (Bette Midler) and Annie Paradis (Diane Keaton). Whilst, the circumstances surrounding their reunion are unfortunate, the 3 women use this opportunity to catch up. Whilst, it is clear that they have lived rather different lives since they left college, they find that they all have one thing in common; their husband's have left them for/cheated on them with young women. With the 3 protagonists feeling disgruntled about the way they've been treated, they decide to set up the First Wives Club and take revenge on their cheating husbands;

Whilst, the film is rather slow to get moving, I did find that this to be an enjoyable film. This film was a lot of fun with plenty of laughs. The 3 protagonists characters were all well developed and some of the schemes they come up with to get their own back on their respective partners were rather clever. I felt that Goldie Hawn gave the stand out performance, but that's not to discredit Midler and Keaton who were also fantastic.

What really impressed me about the First Wives Club was the ending (which I won't give away), but let's just say that there was slightly more to it than meets the eye.

All in all, this was a fun ride with plenty of laughs. The plot summary will suggest that it is geared more towards women and if I'm honest I think that more women will enjoy this than men. Having said that I'm a man and I still enjoyed it. Give it a try!

I really like this film. Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler, Diane Keaton, and Stockard Channing have been friends for years and all have something in common - cheating, flaky husbands. So far, so cliché.

But the 'First Wives Club' is an inspired bit of fluff, fun, perceptive, and full of high spirits. These forty-something ladies replaced by younger models aren't going to take their fate lying down, and what a hoot it is watching them set up their outfit to take fickle men to the cleaners.

OK, the film is a little sexist, with a one-dimensional view of both men and women; but it succeeds as entertainment. Some of the supporting caricatures are simply hideous, but work well. You can also spot stars of the future such as Sarah Jessica Parker in smaller roles.

If you take this film for what it is, you'll probably enjoy it. It's one of those films that you'll either love or hate - but with this calibre of cast it's worth a look.

I found this movie frustrating. I read Olivia Goldsmith's novel and found it deep, emotional, and justified in its revenge. The novel involves much deeper issues, like a father taking money from his retarded daughter, a man who beat his wife and forced her to allow their daughter to die following an accident, a man who refuses to support his children, et cetera.

This movie focuses on petty revenge because they are not happy with being discarded for twenty year olds. It has NONE of the book's depth, characters, or deep emotional satisfaction in revenge. It has nothing more than cheap satisfaction and cheap revenge. I watched it once and would never look at it again.

If you watch "The First Wives Club" because you need a good laugh, perhaps you should try another film. Yes, it clearly has some funny moments but it also is filled with dark ones--and a message you wouldn't expect to find in a simple comedy. You KNOW it's going to be a dark film at the beginning, as a lady whose husband has left her takes her own life. This horrible event brings some of her old friends to the funeral--and there they compare notes and see that they, too, were used and cast aside by their husbands--husbands who have no replaced them with trophy wives. So, the three friends (Bette Midler, Diane Keaton and Goldie Hawn) concoct a plan--a plan that involves fleecing their unfaithful ex-husbands and creating a club for wives going through the same sort of situations they have.

As I said, there are some dark moments and some funny ones. But the film never falls to the level of slapstick or becomes mostly comedy--but a mix. Some may not like this and the film is a bit heavy-handed at times, but the overall film is well worth seeing and has a decent feminist message. Worth seeing.