The film stars Cate Blanchett, Minnie Driver, Rupert Everett, Julianne Moore and Jeremy Northam.

At the Chiltern’s lavish party, Laura tries to extort Sir Robert, a member of Parliament, into supporting a bill to provide government financing for what he considers to be a new fraudulent canal scheme.

Laura has incriminating letters Robert wrote many years earlier that disclosed a cabinet secret--insider knowledge of the financing of the Suez Canal--to establish his fortune and career.

Before leaving the party, Laura tells Gertrude that her husband will support the canal scheme, which surprises the politician's wife.

At the party, Laura reencounters Lord Arthur Goring, to whom she was engaged before her marriage, and is eager to reestablish a romantic relationship with him.

The next morning, Robert reveals Laura’s blackmail attempt to Arthur, who urges him to let his wife know about his own past indiscretion, even if it lowers her regard for her husband.

Laura retaliates by telling Gertrude how her husband made his fortune and that she will disclose his dishonesty if Robert does not support the canal bill.

As she leaves, Laura steals Gertrude's note, planning to use it to make Robert believe that his wife is having an affair with Arthur.

[5] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly wrote the film is "an enjoyable, minor, lustrously shot revamping of Oscar Wilde’s play about the perpetually interlocked manners of love and deception…Everett gets all the good lines, but he’s daring enough to deliver them gently, with a knowing touch of rue.

[13] Moore won the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performances in Magnolia, A Map of The World, and An Ideal Husband.

[12] The film was nominated for BAFTA awards in three categories: Oliver Parker for Best Adapted Screenplay, Caroline Harris for Best Costume Design, and Peter King for Best Make-up and Hair.