The brilliant young British actress
Jane Horrocks made her film debut in The Dressmaker. She plays Rita, the 17-year-old niece of two Liverpool sisters, who are united only by a common hatred. Older sister Nellie (
Joan Plowright) is an emotionally repressed dressmaker, while Margo (
Billie Whitelaw) is her brash, libertine younger sibling. Caught in the middle, Rita spends most of her time snivelling over her fate. Though it is clear that no love is lost in this household, the aunts betray a nasty jealous streak when the niece falls in love with American Wesley (Tim Ransom). This quietly turbulent domestic drama was based on The Secret Glass, a novel by Beryl Bainbridge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide