Peter Soffel is the stuffy warden of a remote American prison around the turn of the century. His wife, Kate, finds herself attracted to prisoner Ed Biddle. She abandons her husband and ...
See full summary »
Dolittle star John Cena shares the movie that makes him ugly cry and gets us excited for his new film with Jackie Chan.
Related News
-
Diane Keaton movies: 15 greatest films, ranked worst to best, include ‘Annie Hall,’ ‘The Godfather,’ ‘Reds’
19 May 2018 | Gold Derby -
Katherine Dieckmann on Crafting an Unconventional Female Protagonist in “Strange Weather”
27 July 2017 | Women and Hollywood -
What Happened to the Women Directors in Hollywood? Part 4: 1984–1999
17 March 2017 | Women and Hollywood
Share this Rating
Title: Mrs. Soffel (1984)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
Learn more
More Like This
Drama
|
Romance
|
War
Director:
Peter Weir
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Sigourney Weaver,
Linda Hunt
Tim
(1979)
Drama
|
Romance
Director:
Michael Pate
Stars:
Piper Laurie,
Mel Gibson,
Alwyn Kurts
Gallipoli
(1981)
Adventure
|
Drama
|
History
Director:
Peter Weir
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Mark Lee,
Bill Kerr
Tequila Sunrise
(1988)
Crime
|
Drama
|
Romance
Director:
Robert Towne
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Michelle Pfeiffer,
Kurt Russell
Air America
(1990)
Action
|
Comedy
|
War
Director:
Roger Spottiswoode
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Robert Downey Jr.,
Nancy Travis
High Tide
(1987)
Drama
Director:
Gillian Armstrong
Stars:
Judy Davis,
Jan Adele,
Claudia Karvan
Shoot the Moon
(1982)
Drama
Director:
Alan Parker
Stars:
Albert Finney,
Diane Keaton,
Karen Allen
Forever Young
(1992)
Drama
|
Romance
|
Sci-Fi
Director:
Steve Miner
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Jamie Lee Curtis,
Elijah Wood
The Bounty
(1984)
Adventure
|
Drama
|
History
Director:
Roger Donaldson
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Anthony Hopkins,
Laurence Olivier
The Man Without a Face
(1993)
Drama
Director:
Mel Gibson
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Nick Stahl,
Margaret Whitton
Bird on a Wire
(1990)
Action
|
Comedy
Director:
John Badham
Stars:
Mel Gibson,
Goldie Hawn,
David Carradine
Edit
Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Diane Keaton | ... | Kate Soffel | |
| Mel Gibson | ... | Ed Biddle | |
| Matthew Modine | ... | Jack Biddle | |
| Edward Herrmann | ... | Warden Peter Soffel | |
| Trini Alvarado | ... | Irene Soffel | |
| Jennifer Dundas | ... | Margaret Soffel (as Jennie Dundas) | |
| Danny Corkill | ... | Eddie Soffel | |
| Harley Cross | ... | Clarence Soffel | |
| Terry O'Quinn | ... | Detective Buck McGovern | |
| Pippa Pearthree | ... | Maggie | |
| William Youmans | ... | Guard George Koslow | |
| Maury Chaykin | ... | Guard Charlie Reynolds | |
 |
Joyce Ebert | ... | Matron Agnes Garvey |
| Wayne Robson | ... | Halliday | |
| Dana Wheeler-Nicholson | ... | Jessie Bodyne | |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
See All (15) »
Storyline
Peter Soffel is the stuffy warden of a remote American prison around the turn of the century. His wife, Kate, finds herself attracted to prisoner Ed Biddle. She abandons her husband and children to help Ed and his brother Jack escape and accompanies them into the wintery wasteland. Written by Reid Gagle
Plot Keywords:
f rated | character name as title | two word title | escape | warden |Taglines:
A true storyParents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents »
Edit
Edit
See more on IMDbPro »
See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
8 February 1985 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Mrs. Soffel See more »Edit
Box Office
Budget:
$11,000,000 (estimated)Opening Weekend USA:
$86,280, 1 January 1985Gross USA:
$4,385,312Cumulative Worldwide Gross:
$4,385,312Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
DolbyColor:
Color (Metrocolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
Edit
Did You Know?
Trivia
Much of the movie was shot on-location in the area of the Serez Family Farm in Mulmer, Ontario, Canada, as well as Elora and Toronto. See more »Goofs
A toy electric train shown running around a Christmas tree is of a post-1950 design, as is the track. The train is based on 19th-century locomotive and passenger car prototypes, making it more plausible. However, toy electric trains that even remotely resembled the one shown did not exist by 1901. See more »Frequently Asked Questions
See more »Contribute to This Page
On IMDb TV, you can catch Hollywood hits and popular TV series at no cost. Select any poster below to play the movie, totally free!
Australian director Gillian Armstrong makes great films with strong women characters--her earlier Australian film "My brilliant career" being a perfect example. I watched "Mrs. Soffel" because of my admiration for Armstrong and found that "Mrs. Soffel" could not hold a candle to "My brilliant career" even though American actress Diane Keaton was admirable compared to the Australian actresses in the latter.
Armstrong had the talented Australian cinematographer Russel Boyd (who was responsible for the seminal works of Peter Weir and Bruce Beresford) once again to work with. While Armstrong and Boyd used justifiably darkened interior shots, I had problems seeing anything for long periods and had to rely on the soundtrack!
Armstrong loves to develop the female characters but leaves the male characters totally undeveloped (Mr Soffel and Jack Biddle). This is one reason I prefer the works of Weir and Beresford over Armstrong--even though her latent talent cannot be ignored. It is amazing to see Soffel's daughter getting equal or more prominence in the script than Mr Soffel towards the end.
Mel Gibson has made a name for himself by directing "Braveheart," but I give more credence to his acting phase in Australia ("Tim", "Mad Max", etc.). I am convinced that he is a director's actor--doing well with good directors. In "Mrs Soffel" Armstrong has evidently invested time with Diane Keaton, who carries the film. Gibson only lends support to her thanks more to the script than his acting capabilities.
Most of the fine tribe of Australian filmmakers of the Seventies have drifted to the US to become richer and gain international recognition--but their work in Australia in the Seventies remains unsurpassed.