PoW FILM SEASON: Paradise Road (1997) Trailer Paradise Road is a 1997 American war film that tells the story of a group of English, American, Dutch and Australian women who are imprisoned by the Japanese in Sumatra during World War II. It was directed by Bruce Beresford and stars Glenn Close as Adrienne Pargiter, Frances McDormand as the brash Dr. Verstak, Pauline Collins as missionary Margaret Drummond (based on missionary Margaret Dryburgh), Julianna Margulies as U.S. socialite Topsy Merritt,

Paradise Road, an Australian film directed by Bruce Beresford (1997), tells the story of a group of English, American, Dutch, and Australian women imprisoned by the Japanese in Sumatra during World War II. It stars Glenn Close, Frances McDormand, Pauline Collins, Julianna Margulies, Jennifer Ehle, Cate Blanchett, and Elizabeth Spriggs. Cate Blanchett plays Susan McCarthy, an Australian nurse who finds strength in the internment camp. In 1997, Cate appeared in the films "Thank God She Met Lizzie"