Girlfriends

Although several reviewers state that that this film is very difficult to find or view, it is included in Turner Classic Movie's extensive library, so it should turn up there from time to time. I highly recommend "tcm on demand" which allows viewers a specific time frame in which to see films, and, thankfully, tcm has expanded these time periods for many, but not all, of the films.

Having personally experienced the New York City singles scene for a very brief period of my life during the 1980's, not a very happy time for me, I admit that I was not inclined to watch this film based on the description alone, but I was pleasantly surprised by the complexity of the characters, their relationships, and the quality of the acting. The only reason why I was drawn to it was to see Eli Wallach in the unexpected portrayal as a rabbi, not knowing that this was not his only appearance in a movie as a rabbi. I have only known him as sleazy, unsavory characters, roles which he mastered beautifully on many occasions. As it turns out, Rabbi Gold does not guide the spiritual fulfillment of the central character, Susan Weinblatt (Melanie Mayron), as much as providing her with a livelihood as a photographer of life events and, eventually, the promise of a risky, romantic relationship, at least for a moment. This is not at all the rabbi that I expected, and I would have liked more Wallach as his role was not very prominent in spite of his high billing.

Both Mayron and Anita Skinner produce fine performances. I couldn't, however, appreciate the male characters, who were very disagreeable to me, perhaps not by accident. Mayron's memorable film debut occurred four years earlier as the young, free-spirited hitch-hiker in "Harry and Tonto", a very different person than Susan Weinblatt, which attests to her excellent acting skills.

The central figure, played by Melanie Mayron, is a photographer sharing a large funky apartment on the Upper West Side of New York with her best girlfriend. The girlfriend suddenly decides to get married to someone she's only recently met & this seems to throw our main character into a period of soul searching. Who is she without her best friend? Can she handle the loneliness? The jealousy?

This film reminds me a lot of the Eric Rohmer films of the 70's & 80's...stylewise, it's very stark. Nothing much happens. But it's the ordinariness of the characters that seems to draw us in. In some ways, this film is too stark...so plain are the cast, so grey is the scenery & sometimes, so mundane the dialogue. But 'Girlfriends' has a warmth & a charm that has always made me remember it. To add to this, the film now has the look and feel of another era, the late 70s, which is now interesting to look at in retrospect.

Fans of 'Thirtysomething', who enjoyed Melanie Mayron's character, Melissa, will especially like this film. There are a number of parallels between the two characters. She alone with her warm smile, crooked teeth and mass of wild hair, brings enormous humanity to the proceedings.

This movie set in 1978, is a wonderful analysis of women's relationships with their friends and how relationships with men can change their relationships with each other. It is subtle and nuanced and emblematic of the independent films of the 1970's.

Claudia Weill was a women who tried to get into that very exclusive circle of directors which are very male. When this movie was made it was considered to be the first of many such independent films by women to try to climb that fortress.

The acting of Amy Wright and Melanie Mayron at the time felt like it wasn't acting at all. Since they were both unknowns, you felt like you were snooping into someone's personal lives rather than watching two actresses go through a script.

If you like very down to earth films, this one is an absolute must see! Honestly, I have to say that I like this film even a touch more than The Deer Hunter, which in its own right is a great picture, (Both films were released in 1978.). This is low budget arthouse filmmaking at its very best. I'm really not sure why more people haven't seen this film by now, and why it isn't more widely regarded as the great film it truly is. Only a little over 2000 votes on this site and this review, only the 20th ever written on it here. Mindboggling really! Even Stanley Kubrick called this film, "Wonderful.". I for one, couldn't agree more. 8.5/10.

Well-done and engrossing drama of a woman (played by Melanie Mayron) who's living with her best friend. Her best friend decides to get married and move out. It devastates Mayron and she goes on a journey of self-discovery...and trying to find a new roommate.

This was a big hit in 1978. It played the art house circuit for quite a while. I saw it when I was 16. Being a guy, I wasn't sure I would like it but I was fascinated. The characters were complex, the story absorbing and showed me what NYC was like (back in 1978). After it died down it disappeared completely. There was a showing on cable back in the early 1980s but that was it. I've asked a few friends who are film fanatics (like me) if they knew about this and none of them had even heard of it! That's too bad. This is a wonderful film for anybody--you don't have to be a woman to understand the loneliness and shock Mayron feels when her best friend leaves. Also it has some casual nudity which was surprising for a PG film. It also has Christopher Guest in an early role (and doing a nude scene--not much is shown).

An excellent film. It is available on DVD. The DVD transfer may look grainy but the film always looked like that, It was VERY low-budget.