3 Women

I've wanted to see Robert Altman's "3 Women"(1977) for long time and finally saw it last night. The references to one of my all time favorites, Ingmar Bergman's "Persona" are obvious: two young women, the main characters (seemingly meek, childlike Pinky and outgoing and seemingly popular but in reality a sad loser Millie seem almost to exchange identities, or to become one in a desperate search for connection and sense of belonging but "3 Women" is memorable and haunting on its own terms. It makes you think long time after it's over. As a matter of fact, I am still thinking about it. I think that it is an incredible work of an extraordinary master. As always in his best films, Robert Altman is terrific - innovative, iconoclastic, free-spirited, unconventional, and truly original. He is a great humanist who sees through his characters but never makes fun of them and he understands them. Under his directing, Shelly Duvall and Sissy Spacec gave two astonishing performances. They were both great but Duvall was a revelation. She adapted the loquacious Millie's personality and become the character. Altman had discovered Duvall at one of the malls in Texas where she was selling cosmetics and given her roles in his six films. I want also to mention the eerie music, the dreamy and uneasy atmosphere of something sinister ready to happen, the scary and mesmerizing murals on the bottom of the pool that the third woman, silent and mysterious, tired and wise Willie (Janice Rule) was painting. Altman did not try to trick or confuse me, and the story seems to be simple one but I am not sure that I understood everything, especially the enigmatic ending. Altman was aware of the effect of his movie to the viewers and in his commentary he says that he sees the film as a painting and that the audience should feel it but not understand it. In this regard it also reminds of "Un chien andalou" (1929) which was supposed to be experienced directly and not analyzed by the viewers.

"3 Women" is another great film by one of the best American film directors. I've never seen a bad film from Robert Altman.

9/10

...and creates something even more fascinating than Bergman's film. Although they're not exactly equally themed films, the theme of female identity-swapping is similar in both. "3 Women" is a dark, allegorical and poignant study of loneliness and search for identity. Pinky Rose (Sissy Spacek) is a shy Texan girl who idolizes her pathetic co-worker Millie Lammoreaux (Shelley Duvall), a young woman who's ignored by everybody around her - except Pinky. Pinky soon becomes Millie's new roommate, but their friendship doesn't make Millie feel any less ostracized by her peers, and an extreme act of Pinky will turn everything upside down.

Sissy Spacek, right after the huge hit "Carrie", delivered another unforgettable performance. That's no surprise considering Spacek is one of the finest American actresses of all time; the real surprise here is Shelley Duvall, who usually got small roles in great films and never was considered a great actress. When she had a big role in a Kubrick film (the now classic "The Shining"), everybody hated her, and unfortunately that's what most people remember her for (which is unfair, since she was okay in my books; come on, you'd also act hysterical if your husband was chasing you and your son with an axe!). However, 3 years before "The Shining", Duvall gave a mesmerizing, wonderfully nuanced performance as the pathetic Millie, a cross between Blanche DuBois and Pollyanna. A character that could've been annoying if played by a less talented actress, but that became fascinating in Duvall's body. We all know or met people like Millie at least once in our lives, and at moments you just wish you could give her a hug.

"3 Women" is one of Robert Altman's best, and, consequently, one of the best films of all time. The man who knew how to make ensemble dramas like no other (Nashville, Short Cuts, The Player, Gosford Park, etc.) was also brilliant at creating intimate portraits/character studies. 1 woman became 2/2 women became 3/3 women became 1, which can be summed up by: Birth, growing up, awakening, and (in)stability. The artist, his art, perception, film, and life themselves. 10/10.

I don't feel I can add anything to the excellent commentary by the other reviewers for "3 Women"; I just want to urge film lovers of all stripes to check out Altman't commentary on the Criterion DVD. In the liner notes, they refer to it as "wide-ranging;" it IS that, and expansive, too. It is almost as if Altman was saying to himself, "Well, I'm not going to be around much longer, so I am going to speak my peace about how I feel about film-making and let it all hang out". For the true aficionado, this is as good as it gets. You'll want to savor it in chunks it is so thought-provoking. Not only does Altman reveal all the hidden meanings of the film, he explains at length (with copious examples) the philosophy of his art. It shed light on my previous encounters with Altman's "difficult" style; highly recommended.

Playing would-be social butterfly Millie in Robert Altman's often-inscrutable "3 Women", Shelley Duvall creates an amazing, amusing, totally original character. Millie fancies herself a great caregiver at a job where others regard her as nothing; she talks about her neighbors and activities as if she's Sally Bowles, when actually nobody notices her. She's pathetic, but Duvall makes her funny and quirky (and Altman is careful not to make too much fun of her). Sissy Spacek as roommate Pinky is also fine in a less-showy, less-complex role, but her transformation in the second-half shows off her range. The film is slow but not dull, confusing but not off-putting (despite fuzzy cinematography). The one thing I really objected to was the ending, which plays like Greek tragedy mixed with Tennessee Williams. Nobody has dared to make another film like "3 Women". Altman-protégé Alan Rudolph captured some of its eccentric quality in "Welcome to L.A.", but his script wasn't clever enough. The writing here may seem simple, but this turns out to be deceptive: the dialogue is pungent with the ring of absurd truth. It took me a while to reconcile my feelings for this film. As soon as I decided how I felt about it, I couldn't wait to see it again. *** from ****

Put together a top-shelf Raymond Carver story and the last two reels of 2001 and you have a dim idea of the unique genius of Altman's 1977 masterpiece, probably the most original movie ever made within the studio system. Shelley Duvall is a practiced flirt and would-be social butterfly, oblivious to the total failure of her Donna Reed mystique, and Sissy Spacek is the childlike tag-along who idolizes her. That's all I'll say about the story, which makes turns you couldn't have guessed at in ways that can't be summarized. Humane, funny, staggeringly strange and deeply creepy, THREE WOMEN defines certain social strata and modes of interaction that you've never seen in a movie before or since--and then goes out on a mystical limb that makes the last third of APOCALYPSE NOW look prosaic. With all due respect to NASHVILLE, MCCABE and many others, Altman never made a better film.