A liberal Australian artist, Norman Lindsay angers an Anglican bishop and Sydney's religious establishment when he paints an erotic portrait that finds its way into an major exhibition. When Anthony Campion, a young British minister, and his wife, Estella, arrive from Britain to take an Australian parish, the bishop asks him to visit Lindsay and request that he voluntarily withdraw a controversial work call "Crucified Venus" from his show. The minister, who considers himself a progressive, is shocked at the amoral atmosphere surrounding the painter, his wife, and the three models living at his estate.
His wife is attracted to the paradisaical aspects of the place where Lindsay, his family, and his models live and work together. They become drawn into the seductive world of the Lindsay family and their provocative models who are, posing for a portrait of the mythological Greek sirens who lured men to their doom. The sensuous models Sheela, Giddy , and Pru captivate the very proper Estella and lead her on a journey of sexual awakening amidst the erotically charged, guilt-free environment. Estella struggles to make her husband comprehend her newfound sexuality
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Hugh Grant............ Rev. Anthony Campion
Tara Fitzgerald....... Estella Campion
Sam Neill............. Norman Lindsay
Elle Macpherson....... Sheela
Portia de Rossi....... Giddy
Kate Fischer.......... Pru
Pamela Rabe........... Rose Lindsay
Ben Mendelsohn........ Lewis
John Polson........... Tom
Mark Gerber........... Devlin
Julia Stone........... Jane Lindsay
Ellie MacCarthy....... Honey Lindsay
Vincent Ball.......... Bishop of Sydney
John Duigan........... Earnest Minister
Lexy Murphy........... British Bulldog Girl
Scott Lowe............ Station Master
Bryan Davies.......... Barman
Lynne Emanuel......... Barmaid
Kitty Silver.......... Pub Woman 1
Carolyn Devlin........ Pub Woman 2
Peter Campbell........ Articulate Drunk
Production
Produced by: Justin Ackerman/Hans Brockmann/
Micheline Garant/Robert Jones/Sue Milliken/Sarah Radclyffe
Directed by: John Duigan
Written by: John Duigan
Year: 1994
Pictures (click to enlarge)
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