Une femme libre

It's very interesting reading the other reviews to this film. The reactions to it are very extreme. Some people love it. Some people hate it and that was exactly the reaction people had to it back in 1978 when it first came out.

The mid to late 70s was New York's era as the 'fashionable city' in the days of fashionable cities. NYC took the torch from Swinging Sixites London as the city every fashionable person wanted to go to, live in, know... It was the 'Disco' capital of the world. It was where the most interesting films were set. It where all the happening artists lived and Unmarried Woman caught the zeitgeist of that time. Even jogging was a new phenomenon back then and NY lead the way with it and 'everyone' wanted to know what people were up to there, even about the jogging. If you'd never been to NYC you were missing out. If you had been to NY and or knew NY, back in 1978, you bragged about it. While at the same time the city was officially broke and in many ways seemed to be crumbling into the sea.

Unmarried Woman was a product of all this fascination, both negative and positive, with the city at the time. Trivial details about life in NY had a sort of cachet. Therefore, on reflection, what may seem trite to viewers today, had a strange sort of value back then.

Some people sneer at Erica's seemingly privileged position in society. How dare she be so miserable, have you seen where she lives? Well, guess what, wealthy women also feel sad when they are rejected by their husbands for a younger model. And guess what, some people like to look at the lives of people who live in beautiful apartments with views of the river and whizz downtown in yellow cabs on bright New York mornings. In fact it's the contrast between the material privilege and the sadness and loss that makes this film work.

Some people are also alarmed by the strong, upfront musical score. Sorry about that. Music in the 70s was strong and upfront in our lives, not just background noise. The wailing saxophone was the pop instrument of the time and the excellent, very 70s soundtrack, is one of the aspects that make watching this film such a powerful, nostalgic and enjoyable ride.

Unmarried Woman does have its flaws. It is at times somewhat simplistic and personally, I'm not so sure that newly unmarried woman, Erica, was as much of a catch as we're made to believe. Every man she meets seems to fall at her feet.

This is very much a film of its time and a very interesting time and place it was. I wish they still made films like this today, about adults, for adults, with strong subtle performances, without both eyes on the cash register and without some dreary, over-exposed, under talented box office 'star' drudging her way through her lines. There was something very adult and sophisticated about American cinema in the 70s and Unmarrried Woman takes its place in the long list of films that were a part of that.

The film was beautifully shot, beautifully scored, excellently acted and I'm glad it's now available for us to see, as a reminder of a short but memorable time and place.

Moving tale of a middle-class Manhattan housewife's struggle for independence after her husband leaves her for another woman.

The wonderful Paul Mazursky created this 1978 landmark slaute to women's liberation and the film wipes the floor with the messy urban horror of 1977's Looking for Mr. Goodbar: Goodbar's makers ultimately had no respect for their female protagonist but Mazursky scores in his depiction of female self-respect and love.

Jill Clayburg's miraculous performance as Erica was snubbed at the Academy Awards in favor of Jane Fonda's more 'tolerable' female in Coming Home but if you look closely you'll see there's no comparison and Clayburg hits all the right notes while displaying Erica's overwhelmingly complex feelings. Perhaps Erica's unique strength was too much for many male Academy members so they rewarded the typical moony-eyed housewife character instead. Regardless of that, Clayburg makes a brilliant lead and her lonely journey through New York-chic (art exhibits, bars, therapists, narcisstic artists) makes for great viewing. (The very brief encounters Erica has with a handsome blonde man at the coatcheck before and after she's been hit with the news from her husband are a nice touch!) There's a rare level of intimacy between the actors in all of the scenes but especially the girl group talks: the words sound surprisingly like they belong to the actors and Mazursky's ear for dialogue is sharp and refreshingly to-the-point.

Michael Murphy as the wayward husband, Alan Bates as the new love interest, and Cliff Gorman -whom I last saw as the bitchy, effeminate in The Boys in the Band!- as a male chauvinist provide exceptional support as the men in Erica's life. The only thing that marres the beauty of this film is its awful, piercingly shrill, '70's saxophone musical score.

Didn't anyone else notice that when Martin was crying there were no tears? How incredibly self-serving!

I agree with the poster that said Jill Clayburgh doesn't give much. Everything is said in a matter-of-fact fashion with very little emotion. I love the scene where she is getting dressed after having had sex with Alan Bates (yummy in this movie, BTW), she acts as though she just had a pedicure or something.

I watched the chopped up WE channel version, so I might have missed something, but it was all very emotionless.

I did think it was really dated. How could it not be?

"Erica" (Jill Clayburgh) is a happily married woman who lives in an upscale apartment in Manhattan with her husband "Martin" (Michael Murphy) and their teenage daughter "Patti" (Lisa Lucas). Then one day Martin discloses that he has been seeing another woman for over a year and wants a divorce. Needless to say, Erica is devastated by this news and from that point on this film showcases the various emotions she experiences along with the manner in which she adapts to her new life on her own. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a deep romantic-drama which benefited from an excellent performance on the part of Jill Clayburgh. On the other hand, however, there were also several scenes which were rather slow and the movie itself ran on a bit too long as well. Be that as it may, although this film is clearly geared to a female audience in general, it was still entertaining in its own right and I have rated it accordingly.

A thoughtful film about human emotions and modern relationships, it is filled with interesting ideas and it is very well acted. At the time of the film's initial release, Jill Clayburgh received a lot of attention for her performance, and indeed she delivers very well, but Michael Murphy cannot be forgotten - he is an actor who is able to convey his emotions very realistically. In 1976 and 1979 he was also brilliant in 'The Front' and 'Manhattan' respectively - with such talent it is a shame that he has not had a better career. The film is also is set to some quite appropriately moody music from Bill Conti, and although technically unimpressive in general, some shots are very well composed by Mazursky. On the down side, the supporting characters are only lightly developed, and it drags a bit towards the end, but generally this is a solidly made film, and if nothing else, it is interesting to see Clayburgh dancing about in her underwear!