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Adapted from the play Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov, Country Life is set in Australia ca. 1919. Alexander Voysey, who has been living abroad for twenty-two years, returns with his new and much younger wife Deborah to the estate in the country where his daughter Sally and brother-in-law Uncle Jack live. Another character is Dr Max Askey. A free-thinker and something of a playboy, his ideas clash with the conservative town folks. Deborah's popularity with the local men quickly becomes apparent. Although she and Max develop a passion for each other nothing eventuates. Sally, meanwhile secretly desires the older doctor, but her feelings are unrequited. Alexander eventually decides to sell the estate but is foiled by Jack, who by then realises that his brother-in-law is a fake. Alexander and his wife are subsequently forced to leave in search of greener pastures.
Country Life draws parallels between its Russian model and the Australian setting, with most of Chekhov's original story intact.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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"This Land is Mine/ This Land is Me" : Reconciling Harmonies in One Night the Moon
2002
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Senses of Cinema , March-April no. 19 2002; -
Widening Appeal in a Land of Contrasts
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 1 August 1995; (p. 18)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV -
From Russia with Love
1994
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Sunday Age , 6 November 1994; (p. 6) -
To Life II
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: Eureka Street , December vol. 4 no. 10 1994; (p. 45)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV -
Country Clubbed
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Independent Monthly , November vol. 6 no. 5 1994; (p. 88)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV
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Chekhov Collides with the Cultural Cringe
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Bulletin , 1 November vol. 116 no. 5944 1994; (p. 108)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV -
Chekhov Goes Bush
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 29 October 1994; (p. wkd 8)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV -
Life. What Life?
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sunday Age , 30 October 1994; (p. 7)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV -
Surviving Antipodes with a Stiff Upper Lip
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 28 October 1994; (p. 7)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV -
Critic's Choice
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 28 October 1994; (p. 5)
— Review of Country Life 1994 single work film/TV -
"This Land is Mine/ This Land is Me" : Reconciling Harmonies in One Night the Moon
2002
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Senses of Cinema , March-April no. 19 2002; -
Movie Success Won't Spoil Michael Blakemore
1994
single work
biography
— Appears in: The West Australian , 31 October 1994; (p. 5) -
Look at the Way We Saw Ourselves
1994
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Age , 1 November 1994; (p. 20) -
Republican Edge Portrayed in Film
1994
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 27 October 1994; (p. 32) -
From Russia with Love
1994
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Sunday Age , 6 November 1994; (p. 6)
Awards
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cAustralia,c
- 1910s
- 1920s