THE GOOD WIFE: SYNOPSIS THE GOOD WIFE is the story of a woman discovering the true nature of her sexual identity, breaking with conventions and defying the traditional rules of society. It is 1939. Australia is poised between the Great Depression and the onset of World War 11. Marge (Rachel Ward) lives in a small New South Wales timber town. She is the daughter of Daisy (Jennifer Claire), a hedonisitic, promiscuous woman who has been scorned by the disapproving townspeople. Revolted and shamed by her mother's behavior, Marge has become the town’s do-gooder, hoping to deny her upbringing and win the town’s respect and affection. She marries Sonny (Bryan Brown), a well- liked timber-cutter and newcomer to town. A solid, warmhearted man, unconcerned by the town’s prejudice against his wife, Sonny gives Marge the safe, untroubled, respectable life she has always believed she wanted. Part of a large family that he loves and misses, Sonny finds a job for his immature and selfish younger brother, Sugar (Steven Vidler). Sugar's arrival brings an unexpectedly strange sexual tension into the lives of the newlyweds. Sonny's dream of a loving bond that includes his brother as well as his wife fuels the desire that Sugar already feels for Marge. With her husband's unexpected encouragement, Marge gives in to Sugar's advances, secretly hoping to experience a deeper sexual fulfillment than she does with her husband. When she doesn’t, she regrets her decision and withdraws, confused and disillusioned, from both men. Now Marge is at her most vulnerable. Her disappointing experiences with her husband and his brother have left her with a new, more dangerous frustration. She is a woman who is bored, hot and in trouble-a dangerous combination. Enter Neville Gifford (Sam Neill), a charming but cold-hearted womanizer who arrives in town to take over the hotel's bar. Marge is the first person he meets, and he brazenly propositions her. She angrily rejects him but immediately his overt sexuality jolts her into the realization that the invitation she has just refused is one that she wants desperately to accept. Marge seeks out Neville, at first tentatively and discreetly but gradually her pursuit becomes an uncontrollable passion, indifferent to all advice or opposition. Nothing will stand in her way. This burning desire brings her face to face with all the forces that have shaped her life and must now be confronted and exercised. Out of the almost tragic consequences of her jagged odyssey, Marge and Sonny face the challenge of beginning anew, with the hope of putting their marriage and their lives back together.