I heard about this film when I saw Dennis Pennis describing the leading British actor as woody, and in this film he said it was like a chair being thrown into the room, so I was interested to see what I would think. Basically young Anglican priest reverend Anthony Campion (Hugh Grant) has been asked by the bishop to travel from England to Australia with his wife Estella (Brassed Off's Tara Fitzgerald) to visit the eccentric artist Norman Lindsay (Sam Neill). The reason for the visit is to try and stop his work getting out, he is prone to painting sexually controversial imagery, but specifically the work "Crucified Venus" is requested to be withdrawn from show. Anthony tries to stay composed about the opinions of the church, but staying in the artist's place he is shocked by it having no moral standards, especially when it comes to models like Sheela (Elle Macpherson) and Pru (Kate Fischer), and Lindsay's wife Rose (Pamela Rabe) not showing shame or embarrassment taking their clothes off to pose or have fun. But his wife Estella is having trouble also, she is sexually frustrated and has many urges she lusts to fulfil, trying to remain loyal to her husband she cannot help but be intrigued by the women who are free to be nude. By the end of the film Anthony realises that he can do nothing about the desire for Norman to release his latest work, especially as Estella is happy to be depicted in it, and she may have found some passion for her husband after all. Also starring Portia De Rossi as Giddy, Ben Mendelsohn as Lewis, John Polson as Tom and Mark Gerber as Devlin. Grant is indeed wooden and hardly contributes anything but smiling and being posh, Neill doesn't get much time on screen either, Fitzgerald is relatively good as the quietly lusting wife wanting to break free, and Macpherson is okay being naughty and getting her top off a lot. The story is pretty pointless, it seems like just an excuse to see women get their clothes off as often as possible, and if it is meant to make an audience laugh it doesn't do it very well, a silly and pretty boring erotic comedy. Adequate!

Shortly after arriving in Australia vicar Anthony Campion is asked by his Bishop to pay a visit to controversial artist Norman Lindsay whose works are considered vulgar at best, blasphemous at worst in order to persuade him to withdraw a particularly shocking picture from an upcoming exhibition. He is accompanied by his wife Estella to Lindsay's remote home; inevitably he and Lindsay don't see eye to eye on many things. They are only meant to be there for one night but after the next train is derailed they find themselves staying much longer than planned. Estella gets to know Lindsay's models and rather quickly the setting starts to have an effect on her; or lowers her sexual inhibitions to let her be who she really was.Given that this film only has a '15' certificate it is surprisingly erotic at times; it manages to avoid being sleazy though. The story is simple enough but well told. Hugh Grant is good as Anthony Campion, although it is a role like many he has played… the rather flustered Englishman. The best acting comes form Tara Fitzgerald; to my mind she is the real star of this film as it is far more about her character than that of her husband; her portrayal of Estella's gradually growing sexual feelings is done believably and her pale complexion stands in contrast to the tanned Australians. The rest of the cast are also pretty good; including Elle Macpherson who is obviously much better known for her modelling work. There is a quite a bit of full nudity, both female and male and a bit of swearing so if that bothers you then this isn't the film for you; if however it doesn't then this is well worth checking out.

While it takes some time to declare itself as the story of the sensual awakening of the Tara Fitzgerald character, the movie brilliantly captures the Anglo-Saxon tension that arises whenever faced with the erotic. Hugh Grant is winningly Hugh Grant, the other characters are fun and believable in a scenario that manages to be both realistic and whimsical. The dialog is funny, the Australian geography is stunning, as are the naked forms of the women, who together manage to achieve more sensual nudity than a years' worth of French movies. Rachel Portman's score is fantastic, wonderfully mirroring Tara Fitzgerald's liberation, an act achieved through her own risk-taking, and then mentoring another woman through the same process. Hugh Grant may fail in his paramount plot goal but his character is more than rewarded with a wife whose outlook on life promises a new kind of open relationship.

Oh, how I love this movie!It shows us how under the thin veneer of hypocrisy, religiousness, and enmity against all physical lies what God gave us to enjoy: a body to experience happiness, laughter, desire, sensuality, lust, and sexuality. And no institutions (like the Christian church in this film) have the right nor - in the long run - the capability to prevent people from finding out this fundamental truth.Watching this movie without an open mind towards sex or a joyful sense of humor surely will be annoying. So fundamentalist Christians and other prudes shouldn't bother. The rest of the audience (hopefully the majority) can expect a solid performance of the entire ensemble and many moments that make you smile and sometimes downright happy.