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Three Wives (2001) movie poster

Timeline

Three Wives (2001) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Release, runtime and language
2001 · 105 mins · Italian
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Directed by
Marco Risi
Starring
Elisabetta Rocchetti, Loles León, Silke, Pietro Sermonti, Donato Placido, Sabrina Impacciatore

When each is left alone on New Year’s Eve and learns that her husband participated in a robbery, three women—each with a distinct personality and life—decide to travel to Argentina together, hoping to locate and confront the men who abandoned them, while confronting their own pasts.

Comedy Cast, crew & box office
On this page (6)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 Events in order (15)
  3. 3 Timeline questions answered
  4. 4 Movie threads
  5. 5 Movies like Three Wives
  6. 6 Every angle
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15 events in order · contains spoilers

Three Wives Timeline: Events in Chronological Order

Every key event of Three Wives (2001) in order, scene by scene, with when and where it takes place. Use it to untangle flashbacks, time jumps and parallel storylines, to refresh your memory before the sequel or to find the exact scene you are thinking of.

  1. New Year's Eve: meeting at the police station

    On New Year's Eve Beatrice, Bianca, and Billy meet at a police station to face the disappearance of their husbands after a bank robbery. They realize their spouses vanished after stealing 9 billion lire and left them to pick up the pieces. The moment sets the tone for a year of upheaval and new directions.

    When
    New Year's Eve
    Where
    Police station

  2. A year later: relocation to Buenos Aires

    A year after the disappearance, the three women are brought to Buenos Aires, Argentina, likely to answer questions and begin rebuilding their lives. The move exposes them to their husbands' hidden lives and the consequences of the crime.

    When
    One year later
    Where
    Buenos Aires, Argentina

  3. Beatrice learns Saverio's infidelity

    Beatrice discovers that Saverio cheated with his ex-girlfriend and that they even lived together in Buenos Aires. The revelation shatters her trust and reveals the true extent of the deception behind their marriage. This knowledge challenges her sense of partnership and security.

    When
    One year after relocation
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  4. Bianca discovers Antonio's double life

    Bianca finds out that Antonio visited prostitutes and kept a girlfriend who worked as a telenovela actress. The discovery exposes another layer of betrayal and undermines the foundation of their relationship. It prompts Bianca to reconsider her future.

    When
    One year after relocation
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  5. Billy discovers Gino's homosexuality

    Billy learns that Gino has always been homosexual, revealing a fundamental mismatch in their marriage. The revelation adds to the sense that their lives with the husbands were built on lies and false fronts. It pushes Billy toward independence and new choices.

    When
    One year after relocation
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  6. Amedeo's disguised friendship with the women

    Amedeo, a clumsy policeman with an overbearing fiancée, follows the women under the pretense of being a nature photographer. He befriends them and becomes a confidant despite his professional cover. His growing closeness injects both warmth and complication into their circle.

    When
    Shortly after arrival
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  7. Amedeo and Billy's night together

    Amedeo falls in love with Billy and they spend a night together, complicating loyalties and future plans. The romance tests the boundaries of honesty within the group and reshapes the dynamics among the women and their protector.

    When
    Shortly after befriending the group
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  8. Bianca's one-night stand

    Bianca has a one-night stand with a tango teacher, using the moment to explore independence and personal desire. The encounter reinforces her resolve to redefine her life apart from her husband.

    When
    Shortly after befriending the group
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  9. Beatrice's one-night stand

    Beatrice shares a one-night stand with a French tourist, seeking an escape from the weight of her situation. The brief romance underscores the theme of seeking freedom and new experiences.

    When
    Shortly after befriending the group
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  10. The glacier crash and staged deaths

    Just as hope returns that they might finally locate their husbands, the sisters learn that their boat hit the Perito Moreno Glacier, killing them. In truth, the husbands staged their deaths to disappear and start anew under false identities. The revelation reframes the entire journey and their assumptions about the men.

    When
    Before meeting the husbands again
    Where
    Perito Moreno Glacier, Patagonia

  11. Ushuaia: the husbands' revelation and relocation

    The husbands reveal they have relocated to Ushuaia, working in a bank and living under assumed identities, and they invite the wives to meet them there. The confession explains the earlier disappearances and sets up the possibility of a renewed, yet fragile, connection.

    When
    After the staged deaths
    Where
    Ushuaia, Argentina

  12. The women choose independence

    The three women realize they are better off without their husbands. They abandon the men and pursue lives that grant them autonomy and happiness, marking a decisive turning point in their journeys.

    When
    After revelations
    Where
    Argentina

  13. Billy's new life with Amedeo and their son

    Billy marries Amedeo and starts a family, with a son to symbolize a fresh start. Their relationship represents a personal victory over the past and the formation of a new, hopeful chapter.

    When
    Some time after abandonment
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  14. Beatrice and Bianca open Le Tre Mogli in Buenos Aires

    Beatrice and Bianca move to Buenos Aires and open a restaurant named Le Tre Mogli, celebrating their independence with a new business venture. The restaurant becomes a symbol of their autonomy and shared strength.

    When
    After leaving husbands
    Where
    Buenos Aires

  15. Final twist: the husbands reappear at the restaurant

    In the closing moments, the husbands walk into the Le Tre Mogli restaurant on New Year's Eve, signaling an unresolved tension or new complication for the women. The scene leaves questions about forgiveness, identity, and the couples' future hanging in the air.

    When
    New Year's Eve (final moment)
    Where
    Le Tre Mogli, Buenos Aires

Last updated: January 28, 2026 at 12:45

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Timeline questions answered

Three Wives Timeline Explained: Your Questions Answered

When does it happen, and why in that order? The questions people ask about the chronology of Three Wives (2001): time jumps, flashbacks, cause and effect between scenes and the correct order of events, each answered with spoilers.

Q1

Why did the husbands fake their deaths at the Perito Moreno Glacier?

The husbands staged a boat crash at the Perito Moreno Glacier to fake their deaths and escape their debts and past lives. They wanted to start fresh with new identities in Ushuaia, leaving behind their families and the consequences of the 9 billion lire robbery. The glacier crash was a calculated cover to erase their old lives completely.

  • faked death
  • glacier
  • Perito Moreno
  • husbands
  • robbery
  • escape
Q2

Why did the three women travel to Argentina after their husbands disappeared?

The women traveled to Argentina because their husbands had vanished there after the bank robbery. A year after the disappearance, they were drawn to Buenos Aires chasing fragments of the truth about what happened to their spouses and where they might be.

  • Argentina
  • Buenos Aires
  • women
  • search
  • husbands
  • disappearance
Q3

What secret did Beatrice discover about Saverio in Buenos Aires?

Beatrice discovered that her husband Saverio had always been unfaithful and had been living with his ex-girlfriend in Buenos Aires the entire time. The revelation showed that their marriage was built on deception, and Saverio maintained a separate life parallel to his marriage.

  • Saverio
  • Beatrice
  • infidelity
  • ex-girlfriend
  • Buenos Aires
  • secret
Q4

What did Bianca discover about Antonio's double life?

Bianca learned that Antonio had been visiting prostitutes and keeping a secret girlfriend who worked as a telenovela actress. This discovery exposed another layer of betrayal in their marriage and undermined the foundation of their relationship.

  • Antonio
  • Bianca
  • prostitute
  • telenovela actress
  • double life
  • secret
Q5

Why did Billy decide to be with Amedeo?

Billy fell in love with Amedeo after he befriended the trio under the guise of a nature photographer. Despite his cover as a clumsy policeman with an overbearing fiancée, they connected deeply and spent a night together. Their bond eventually led to marriage and starting a family with a son.

  • Billy
  • Amedeo
  • relationship
  • love
  • marriage
  • policeman
Q6

Why did Beatrice and Bianca open Le Tre Mogli restaurant?

After learning the truth about their husbands and choosing independence, Beatrice and Bianca opened Le Tre Mogli (The Three Wives) in Buenos Aires as a symbol of their autonomy and shared strength. The restaurant represents their new-found freedom and the joy of steering their own destinies after leaving their unfaithful husbands.

  • Le Tre Mogli
  • restaurant
  • Beatrice
  • Bianca
  • independence
  • Buenos Aires
Q7

How much money did the husbands steal in the bank heist?

The husbands stole 9 billion lire in a spectacular bank heist before vanishing and leaving their wives to face the consequences. This massive amount was the reason behind their elaborate scheme to disappear and start new lives.

  • bank heist
  • 9 billion lire
  • robbery
  • husbands
  • money
Q8

Where did the husbands relocate after faking their deaths?

After staging their deaths at the glacier, the husbands relocated to Ushuaia (the southernmost city in Argentina) where they worked in a bank under assumed identities. They invited their wives to meet them there, not realizing the women had already chosen to abandon them.

  • Ushuaia
  • husbands
  • new identities
  • bank
  • relocation
  • faked death
Q9

Why did Amedeo follow the women pretending to be a nature photographer?

Amedeo, a clumsy policeman, followed the three women to Buenos Aires under the pretense of being a nature photographer while actually investigating them professionally. Despite his cover, he befriended the women and eventually fell in love with Billy, complicating his professional role.

  • Amedeo
  • policeman
  • nature photographer
  • disguise
  • investigation
  • Buenos Aires
Q10

Why did Bianca have a one-night stand with the tango teacher?

Bianca had a one-night stand with a tango teacher while in Buenos Aires as a moment of exploration and independence. The encounter represented her breaking free from her marriage constraints and seeking personal desire, reinforcing her resolve to redefine her life apart from her husband Antonio.

  • Bianca
  • tango teacher
  • one-night stand
  • independence
  • Buenos Aires
  • freedom
Q11

What did Billy discover about Gino's true nature?

Billy learned that her husband Gino had always been homosexual, revealing a fundamental mismatch in their marriage. The revelation added to the sense that her entire married life was built on lies and a false front, pushing her toward independence and new choices.

  • Billy
  • Gino
  • homosexuality
  • secret
  • marriage
  • truth
Q12

Why do the husbands return at the end of the movie?

In the final moments on New Year's Eve, the husbands unexpectedly walk into Le Tre Mogli restaurant where Beatrice, Bianca, and Billy have rebuilt their lives. Their return creates a cliffhanger that invites reflection on forgiveness and whether the women will let their past dictate their future choices.

  • husbands return
  • New Year's Eve
  • Le Tre Mogli
  • ending
  • reunion
  • closure

Movie threads

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Curated lists built around what makes Three Wives tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Comedic Female Friendship Adventures like in Three Wives

Women finding themselves and bonding through a shared, often chaotic, journey. If you enjoyed the bonding and humor of Three Wives, you'll love these movies about women embarking on transformative journeys together. Find more comedies about female friendship, self-discovery, and shared adventures.

  • empowering
  • uproarious
  • liberating
  • comical
  • female friendship
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  • Tone: light, uplifting
  • Pacing: steady, journey-driven
Why these movies?

The story pattern: Stories typically begin with a catalyst that pushes a group of female protagonists out of their comfort zones. As they travel or navigate a series of comedic challenges together, their initial differences give way to a strong bond, leading to personal growth and a renewed sense of freedom.

Why they belong together: These movies are grouped by their shared focus on the uplifting dynamics of female friendship, a light and comedic tone even when dealing with serious topics, and a narrative arc centered on empowerment through shared experience.

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Lighthearted Crime Capers like in Three Wives

A humorous and surprising adventure sparked by a criminal misadventure. Fans of the comedic crime plot in Three Wives will enjoy these movies that mix mischief, travel, and surprising reveals with a light touch. Discover more stories where a caper leads to personal transformation.

  • mischievous
  • surprising
  • comical
  • caper
  • farce
  • quest
  • Tone: light, surprising
  • Pacing: steady, unfolding
Why these movies?

The story pattern: A seemingly straightforward crime—like a robbery or a disappearance—unravels into a web of farcical secrets, sending ordinary characters on a quest. The journey is filled with humorous encounters and twists, leading to a conclusion that prioritizes personal resolution over strict justice.

Why they belong together: These films share a unique blend of a crime-based plot framework with a consistently light and comedic tone. They feature steady pacing, moderate complexity from unfolding secrets, and an emotional focus on the protagonists' personal journeys.

Disorganized Crime movie poster

Disorganized Crime

1989
Once Upon a Crime... movie poster

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1992
Bandits movie poster

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2001
A Slight Case of Murder movie poster

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1999
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1942
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Three Wives (2001) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

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