Release Date: September 12, 2008
Rating: PG-13 (sex-related material, language, some drug use and brief smoking)
Genre: Drama
Run Time: 114 min.
Directors: Diane English
Actors: Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Eva Mendes, Debra Messing, Jada Pinkett Smith, Bette Midler, Candice Bergen, Carrie Fisher, Cloris Leachman, Debi Mazar, Ana Gasteyer, India Ennenga
If it wasn’t for the worldwide success of the recent big-screen treatment of
Sex and the City, chances are
The Women, a remake of the 1939 classic that’s been in the works for more than a decade, probably wouldn’t be playing at a theater near you as we speak.
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And while it would be nice to say that the film’s release is proof that persistence does indeed pay off, there’s really not much to celebrate here—even if The Women does feature a talented all-female cast. In fact, it’s the presence of such a promising collaboration that probably makes the end result the most disappointing. After all, when ‘90s rom-com supergirl Meg Ryan is teamed up with likes of Annette Bening, Debra Messing, Bette Midler and Candice Bergen, you’d assume a superior script is what brought them all together.
Unfortunately, that’s hardly the case with such sophomoric, sitcom-y material these ladies have to work with in The Women. Instead of a snappy, thought-provoking satire on the seemingly complex lives of wealthy Manhattan women or a laugh-out-loud comedy on the pratfalls of adjusting to the idea of getting older, you’re inevitably left wondering what these actresses must have turned down to actually say “yes” to this. Seeing a movie like this inevitably begs the question of why there’s not better material available for skilled actresses of a certain age, but that’s an entirely different conversation, right?
Back on topic, though, The Women is anchored by Ryan, who plays Mary, a late 40ish woman who seems to have it all. Or at least her life, filled with charity luncheons, shopping and long gossip sessions with her equally “successful” gal pals, would make it seem that way. But when Mary learns that her hubby (who we never actually see because there isn’t a guy shown in the entirety of the movie, short of a baby boy born at film’s end) has been sleeping with the gold-digging spritzer girl (Eva Mendes) from her favorite store, Sak’s Fifth Avenue, her seemingly perfect life is flipped upside down.
At first, her mom (Bergen) encourages Mary to simply overlook his infidelity because “he really does love her.” That’s what she did, after all, when her husband cheated, and everything’s fine. But as the weight of her mistrust grows heavier by the day, Mary escapes to a self-help retreat in search of “herself.” While that’s probably a typical course of action for someone who doesn’t turn to faith in times like these, the emptiness of self-empowerment is still glaringly apparent. After all, how seriously can one embrace the psychobabble when it’s given while smoking a joint with a crackpot Hollywood talent scout like Leah (Bette Midler)? But quicker than you can say “I’m every woman,” Mary knows exactly what to do after their “enlightening” conversation: She needs to be more selfish because if she takes care of herself, everything will magically fall into place, right?