The Wife (1995 film)

The Wife
The Wife
	Movie Poster
Directed by	Tom Noonan
Written by	Tom Noonan
Produced by	Michael D. Aglion; Scott Macaulay; Robin O'Hara;
Starring	Tom Noonan; Wallace Shawn; Karen Young; Julie Hagerty;
Cinematography	Joe DeSalvo
Edited by	Tom Noonan (as Richmond Arrley)
Music by	Tom Noonan (as Ludovico Sorret)
Distributed by	Artistic License
Release date	August 16, 1995;
Running time	119 min.
Country	United States
Language	English

The Wife is a 1995 film written and directed by Tom Noonan, based on his play Wifey. The film was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival, after Noonan had won the Grand Prize the previous year with What Happened Was.^[1]

Plot

Jack and his wife Rita, both professional therapists, live and work in virtual isolation in a remote Vermont cottage. One night, one of Jack's patients, Cosmo, unexpectedly turns up with young wife Arlie in tow. And the more the couples talk and drink, the more tension builds over what personal issues are being shared in analysis, as well as the private troubles of the therapists themselves.

Cast

Tom Noonan as Jack
Wallace Shawn as Cosmo
Karen Young as Arlie
Julie Hagerty as Rita
Danny Darrow as The Tailor (uncredited)

Critical reception

Stephen Holden of The New York Times gave the film a mixed review:

The Wife begins promisingly, but once Mr. Noonan's screenplay lurches into comic caricature, the movie loses its psychological authority... You are more inclined to laugh derisively at the characters than to sympathize with them... The detailed ensemble acting goes a long way toward covering up some of the screenplay's holes.^[2]