I'm Your Woman

Love Rachel Brosnahan and couldn't wait to see this. I don't need lots of action to find a movie satisfying but this one was just too slow, ponderous, and unnecessarily long, for my taste, though it did pick up toward the end. Guess I will just stick to Mrs. Maisel for my Rachel Brosnahan fix.

The experience of the movie is the experience of Jean (Rachel Brosnahan). That's on purpose, so if you can't handle a crying baby or not knowing what is happening, and only sloooowly figuring out what is going on: yup that's the point. It's annoying, harrowing, and helps explain some of the actions she takes in the movie.

The conceit is to look at what happens to some of the more peripheral characters in the typical mobster movie. When the wife is sent off with a trusted cohort, what happens? How unpleasant is it to not be in the know? To find you NEVER were in the know about anything, and slowly find out the truth of many things about your life.

Even those who rated it well, I will note, say that it's not got action etc. Wrong. It has Meaningful Action. You really, really start learning the stakes, and get paranoid about everything while watching. When there is a sudden burst of violence, it is both unexpectedly all the more frightening, and the probability of a violent outcome are very clear. Violence builds slowly, then happens suddenly. Like reality. People who hold others at gunpoint get shot by people not stupid enough to talk about it first.

Great movie, really makes me weep for civilization at all the low ratings.

I loved this film. Amazed to see so many bad reviews, likely due to a Michael Mann audience not knowing what to make of Kelly Reichardt stylings. Excellent period design, cinematography, and superb performance by Brosnahan, with a subtle script, heavy on interiority, that allows most of the action to enter without much explanation.

I loved the way it left so much of the chaos and violence off stage, and brought just enough in to validate the terror of the characters, and the way it managed to play on some strong ant-racist and feminist themes without ever commenting on them. If you're looking for Heat, walk on by, if you're patient and motherhood thrills you, you might love this as well.

No idea where this movie was going from it's placid opening and then it takes off with a female twist on the usual crime gone wrong movie and keeps on hurtling to the end. Standout performances from the leads and great art direction.

I understand why many people have reviewed this film negatively. It's not for everyone. If it were meant to be for everyone, the producers would have dug up another comic book character and we'd have another steaming piece of Marvel to stare at for 2 hours. With great production value, I'm sure.

This is a slow burn. I like that. I want to care about the characters before I know (or I am left to determine) their fate. I want to see Jean's transformation-especially since she is simply Eddie's woman for the first part of the story. She starts off purposeless. Maybe a pretty face he didn't marry for her cooking.

Anyway, the plot moves soon enough and we are presented with a crime movie not dissimilar from most crime movies. Except for the transformation of Jean. And the humanity. The kindness of strangers along the way. The touch of a stranger at a laundromat. Some good people.

There are a couple of events in the film that cannot be overlooked. Maybe these events will cause some viewers to find one or two of the heroes irredeemable. (I'm being vague to avoid spoilers.) But at least it gives you something to think about as you watch it.

Also, I love the two Aretha songs (covers) in this film: Natural Woman and The Weight. (Sorry, I had to throw that in.)

If you like independent films, I think you'll like this one. Personally, I am glad I watched it and enjoyed seeing Jean's arc.