MartinHafer Sybylla Melvyn (Judy Davis) is a very odd woman who just doesn't fit in to the times in which she lives. The film is set in Australia around 1890 and Sybylla has all sorts of very modern feminist notions...which weren't exactly practical or expected back in the day. Unlike the average lady who was looking to snag a good husband, Sybylla wants to be independent...to write and see the world. But she isn't rich nor is she particularly attractive and her family urges her to accept the marriage offers she's received. She, on the other hand, doesn't mind telling these men 'no'. What's to become of Sybylla and her notions of life?This is a lovely film to look at with the lovely costumes and outdoor settings. However, it's also a bit slower paced and deliberate than many films...so you might want to consider this when you think about watching the movie. It also is quite melancholy and if you expect a nice, happy ending...you'll likely be disappointed. Still, I enjoyed the film and its message of a woman desperately wanting more out of life is striking to watch.

Jackson Booth-Millard I spotted this title in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, and then I spotted that it starred the lead actor for Jurassic Park, so I was intrigued to see what it involved, from director Gillian Armstrong (Little Women, Charlotte Gray). Basically, set in 1890's Australia, Sybylla Melvyn (A Passage to India's twice BAFTA winning Judy Davis) is the headstrong free spirited heroine, her family have had some ups and downs with poor business decisions and her father drinking heavily. She is relieved to be sent to live with her grandmother on her property where things become more comfortable, and there she meets young wealthy Harry Beecham (Sam Neill), who at first she finds a little annoying. But he falls in love with her and eventually proposes marriage, but she is convinced she is ugly and too tomboyish, therefore she does not believe that he truly loves her. After dismissing the proposal Sybylla's father's drinking has caused them to become caught up in debt, so she goes to work for an almost illiterate neighbour and family they owe money to as a housekeeper. She becomes accustomed to this job to the point where she doesn't mind doing it, but she is relieved to be sent home and kept away from the son of the family who apparently was falling for her. Then Harry returns to ask her to marry him again, but she once again dismisses him saying that she will make him unhappy, and wants to continue her writing and successful, which of course she did and wasn't afraid to brag about in her text at the beginning of the film. The film ends with her concluding the book she started in the opening, and we see her posting the manuscript, this is the conclusion and seemingly a suggestion that the film is about her brilliant career, or rather how it starts. Also starring Wendy Hughes as Aunt Helen, Robert Grubb as Frank Hawdon, Max Cullen as Mr. McSwatt, Patricia Kennedy as Aunt Gussie, Aileen Britton as Grandma Bossier, Peter Whitford as Uncle Julius, Alan Hopgood as Father and Julia Blake as Mother. Young Davis gives a well assured performance as the leading female character, and Neill is pleasantly cool and relatively charming as the possible love interest for her, I will admit I may not have caught up with everything going, but from what I gathered it is a pretty watchable period drama. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Costume Design, and it was nominated the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film. Very good!

Rubberbandgirl I first saw "My Brilliant Career" in the early eighties while I full of teen angst. At the time I related so closely to Sybylla not only in her unfortunate looks, but desire to break away from my hometown, and be creative. I recently re-watched the movie with my teenage son, and had a totally different experience.First of all, the cinematography is stunning. The movie captures the immense beauty of Australia. Judy Davis at times is dreadful to look at, and then classically beautiful. I notice how similar Judy Davis's acting is to Nicole Kidman's, and I wonder if Kidman considers Davis to be a role model.But the plot rang hollow with me, this time round. It did not sit well with me. Sybylla found a good man who truly loved her, and waited for her, and he was good looking and wealthy. She seemed to love him. It hung on me, why could Sybylla not have her brilliant career and the man? Sybylla was a tease. She wanted the attention, but was disgusted when she got it.I was further confused when I realized the director Gillian Armstrong also directed "Little Women" (another one of my favorite movies). Jo/Louisa May had a brilliant career, and was married, some fifty years earlier, and yet Sybylla/Miles felt she could not have the career and the marriage. My 14 year old son said…"the answer is easy mom, she was a lesbian"! LOL I nearly fell out of my chair. At that point I HAD to look up to see if Miles Franklin was indeed a lesbian, and I think it is agreed upon that she did have a lesbian affair. It seemed to me to that the career was the excuse she used to not marry.If you like romantic period pieces you will like this movie. I am glad I saw it as an idealist young girl.

smith-684 The previous comment suggested fast-forwarding through the movie to the denouement. If you do this you will lack a true understanding of just how important the choices made in the end are to the character Sybylla.Unless you watch a movie in its entirety you cannot say you have truly seen the movie. A movie may also move at a pace that you are not used to and the pace of a specific film is chosen for a reason. If the viewer stops to think about just why the final cut moved at that pace he or she may glean something quite important about that particular film.Beauty is in the eye of beholder. Australia does not possess (in the area where this movie was filmed) bold colors and subtlety was what was wont for this film.I rated it quite highly for many reasons including Judy Davis' acting, the strength with which the director was able to convey its message, the strong supporting cast, the exquisite shots (particularly in their composition) often lengthy in duration that so wonderfully show what action/adventure films cannot including again subtlety, nuance and the ability to make the viewer actually think-both during and for long after the film is viewed