Ladies in Black (film)

Ladies in Black
File:LadiesInBlackOfficialPoster.jpeg Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Bruce Beresford
Produced by	Sue Milliken Allanah Zitserman
Written by	Bruce Beresford Sue Milliken
Based on	The Women in Black by Madeleine St John
Starring	Angourie Rice Rachael Taylor Julia Ormond
Music by	Christopher Gordon
Cinematography	Peter James
Edited by	Mark Warner
Production company	Lumila Films Pty Ltd The Ruskin Company Ladies in Black SPV Pty Ltd
Distributed by	Sony Pictures Releasing International Stage 6 Films
Release dates	20 September 2018
Running time	109 minutes
Country	Australia
Language	English
Budget	$11 million
Box office	$9.6 million

Ladies in Black is a 2018 Australian comedy-drama film directed by Bruce Beresford. Starring Angourie Rice, Rachael Taylor, Julia Ormond, Ryan Corr and Shane Jacobson, the film is based on the 1993 novel The Women in Black by Madeleine St John, and tells the story of a group of department store employees in 1959 Sydney. The film was released on 20 September 2018.

Plot

Lisa is hired as a new assistant at Goode's department store in Sydney during the 1959 Christmas season. She makes friends with Fay, who is initially wary of immigrants, Patty, who seeks more attention from her husband, and Magda, an immigrant from Slovenia who introduces her to her other European friends. Patty buys a pink nightdress that gets her the attention from her husband that she seeks, but he believes that he has upset her with his attention and disappears for the season. Magda invites Lisa and Fay to a New Year's Eve party at Magda's house and introduces Fay to Rudi, a Hungarian immigrant who is looking for a wife. Lisa is introduced to Michael, the son of Hungarian immigrants to Australia. A dress Lisa wants to buy is marked down from 150 guineas to 75 guineas during the next summer sale, then later to 50 guineas.

Patty's husband returns and they reconcile when she explains that she wants his attention, and Patty soon becomes pregnant. Lisa gets honours on her school leaving exam and applies for a scholarship at Sydney University after getting the approval of her father. Rudi buys a new apartment and proposes to Fay in it. Lisa is upset that the dress she likes is no longer on display, but Magda has only hidden it away now that it has been reduced to 35 guineas, which Lisa can now afford. She buys the dress and wears it to a party celebrating her test scores. Magda says that she has picked out a location for a store where she will sell high-end fashion. Magda asks Lisa what she will do after finishing her studies at Sydney University and Lisa says that she wants to be an actress, or a poet, or a novelist, or maybe all three.

Cast

• Julia Ormond as Magda
• Angourie Rice as Lisa
• Rachael Taylor as Fay
• Ryan Corr as Rudi
• Susie Porter as Mrs. Miles
• Shane Jacobson as Mr. Miles
• Noni Hazlehurst as Miss Cartwright
• Genevieve Lemon as Mrs. Wentworth
• Nicholas Hammond as Mr. Ryder
• Alison McGirr as Patty
• Vincent Perez as Stefan

Production

The exterior of the former Mark Foy's Store, currently the Downing Centre, was used as "Goode's" department store

Ladies in Black was twenty years in the making, with writer-director Bruce Beresford attached to the project. Beresford and novelist Madeleine St John, who wrote the book of which the film is an adaptation, were university friends, and Beresford had promised to one day adapt her novel into film since first reading it around its original publication. In October 2017, the cast was announced, with principal production commencing that month in Sydney, Australia.

The exterior of the fictional "Goode's" department was the former Mark Foy's Store, currently the Downing Centre.

Release

Box office

Prior to release, Ladies in Black was projected to have "a sizable opening weekend and a long run sustained by word-of-mouth and repeat business." On its opening weekend, the film earned $1,865,134 in Australia, placing second behind Johnny English Strikes Again.

Critical response

Ladies in Black received generally positive reviews from critics. On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critics consensus reads: "Ladies in Black gleans socially relevant observations from Australian history with entertaining flair, embroidering a tale that touches on immigration and female empowerment with a fashionable pizazz [sic]."

Neil Young of The Hollywood Reporter said of the film, "Ladies in Black quietly but effectively points out the seldom-stressed positives of immigration and integration, and thus deserves attention far beyond its own native shores". Jake Wilson in The Sydney Morning Herald says the period details "carry the authority of first-hand experience". Australian film critic David Stratton, writing for The Australian, wrote "Ladies in Black may be seen mistakenly as lightweight or slight; it isn't. It brims with subtext and nuance and at the same time succeeds in being a thoroughly enjoyable entertainment."

Accolades

Award	Category	Subject	Result
AACTA Awards (8th)	Best Film	Sue Milliken	Nominated
		Allanah Zitserman	Nominated
	Best Direction	Bruce Beresford	Nominated
	Best Adapted Screenplay		Nominated
		Sue Milliken	Nominated
	Best Actress	Julia Ormond	Nominated
		Angourie Rice	Won
	Best Supporting Actress	Noni Hazlehurst	Nominated
	Best Cinematography	Peter James	Nominated
	Best Editing	Mark Warner	Nominated
	Best Original Music Score	Christopher Gordon	Won
	Best Costume Design	Wendy Cork	Won
	Best Hair and Makeup	Anna Gray	Won
		Beth Halsted	Won
		Jen Lamphee	Won

External links

• Ladies in Black at IMDb