Taglines: For better, for worse, forever.
Tom and Viv movie storyline. This romantic drama chronicles the tumultuous love affair between American poet T.S. Eliot and socialite Vivian Haigh-Wood. It is based on the 1984 play by Michael Hastings. Eliot met Vivian in 1914 while he was still a student at Merton College, Oxford.
She had come with her brother Maurice to visit Eliot. It is apparent from the start that Viv is a little odd. But despite her idiosyncrasies, Eliot falls in love and marries her. They honeymoon in the southern resort of Eastbourne. Vivian has extreme mood swings. She takes a huge amount of esoteric medicines, but they do not help her. Out of control, she destroys her room.
After the honeymoon, they stay in London with Bertrand Russell, a friend of Eliot’s. Viv continues to get sicker after she is again misdiagnosed and improperly medicated. Time passes and Eliot becomes an established poet. He works for a publishing company. His wife has gone completely bonkers and he must commit her to an asylum. He doesn’t visit her for a decade. When he finally does he is surprised to find that Viv still speaks well of him. Her condition was diagnosed as a hormonal imbalance related to menstruation.
Tom & Viv is a 1994 period drama film directed by Brian Gilbert, based on the 1984 play by the same name by British playwright Michael Hastings about the early love life of American poet T.S. Eliot. The film stars Willem Dafoe, Miranda Richardson, Rosemary Harris, Tim Dutton and Nickolas Grace.
Tom and Viv (1994)
Directed by: Brian Gilbert
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Miranda Richardson, Rosemary Harris, Tim Dutton, Nickolas Grace, Geoffrey Bayldon, Clare Holman, Joanna McCallum, Linda Spurrier
Screenplay by: Michael Hastings, Adrian Hodges
Production Design by: Jamie Leonard
Cinematography by: Martin Fuhrer
Film Editing by: Tony Lawson
Costume Design by: Phoebe De Gaye
Set Decoration by: Jill Quertier
Art Direction by: Mark Raggett
Music by: Debbie Wiseman
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for mature thematic elements.
Distributed by: Miramax Films
Release Date: December 2, 1994
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