The Wasteland Reviewer

The Wasteland Review Request: 3 Women (1977)

How impactful can a dream be to inspire a filmmaker to create a film based on it? Apparently, film legend Robert Altman had one such dream. That is how audiences were introduced to his 1977 drama/mystery/thriller 3 Women. This such an alluring and strange film that centers around…you guessed it, three women. Shelley Duvall, Sissy Spacek, and Janice Rule star as these three different women in significantly different places in their lives. But the mystery of Spacek’s Pinky Rose is what drives this film forward. What starts out as a drama with bits of tension soon gives way to an enthralling, confounding, and thought-provoking journey into the mind and dreams of women.

This certainly sounds compelling, doesn’t it? Altman can slowly peel back the layers on this abstract and surrealist piece that will play with your perception. Structurally, the film eases the audience into the “weird” by starting with a mostly straightforward human story about a young woman starting at a new job and becoming roommates with her peer at work. But things soon become less concrete as Altman pulls focus on some interesting decorations around a pool (painted by Rule’s Willie). What starts as a roommate drama with rising tensions turns into something more unnerving and peculiar. Through the three titular women, Altman is able to explore the ideas of “hollow vessels” through shifting personalities which breathes a whole new level of conflict into the film. One personality spread across three bodies. Three stages brought to life in a singular period. Identity is expressed with a fluidity and challenges the audience to process the place each of these women have in each other’s lives. Narratively challenging, and thematically robust, 3 Women finds Altman at his most impressionistic and experimental as a writer.

Is Altman’s direction anywhere near as compelling as his writing and thematic ideas? He certainly has plenty of ideas behind the camera as well. There is a texture and impactful feel from how the film is shot. There is something haunting and a tad dreamlike in the visuals that Altman delivers. This makes plenty of sense as Altman explores dreams and psychoanalysis through his film. Cinematographer Charles Rosher Jr. delivers that perspective laid out by Altman so well as you feel enveloped by the atmosphere around the film. The ability to synthesize ideas and visual experience like this is quite impressive. Another key piece to crafting this aethereal and eerie atmosphere is the score from Gerald Busby. The horns with their eerie, mysterious, and deep tones just put you, the audience, on edge and make you wonder what exactly is going on. When a director and their crew can construct an atmosphere that is always unsettling you and makes you question everything…that is something special.

How essential are the actors who bring these three women to life? This film would simply not work without them. There are some challenging elements to these characters that would be hard for any performer to balance and that shows you just how committed and impressive this cast is. Rule is the one who gets the least amount of focus, but her physicality and little acting choices make her so mysterious. The character of Willie is rarely the focus but is always the looming presence through this film. Her biggest moment is a birthing scene, and Rule brings a significant level of authenticity for sure. Duvall is the main focal point of the film, and she embodies her character so perfectly. Millie is overly confident and gregarious at all moments. The ability to constantly be on and attempting to engage can be a hard thing to accomplish but Duvall nails it. Her façade is so important to the dynamics with Pinky and her moments of fracturing are equally essential. Even when Millie shifts more to being reserved and hesitant, Duvall feels organic and authentic. Spacek does so many things with her eyes and physicality. The way she carries Pinky allows her to feel so isolated and at an arm’s length. She has the look for a shy girl, but she rises to the occasion when she has her big moment in the middle of the film that results in her taking on Millie’s more confident and engaging persona.

 What is the lasting impression of 3 Women? The most impressive achievement of Altman’s film is that it is a truly lasting impression. This film is not easy. This is challenging. Altman will force you to engage with the thought-provoking murals of Willie and as well in the strange dreams of Millie. Altman crafts a film that truly feels thoughtful, artistic, and ambitious. Will everything make sense during the first viewing? No. Will 3 Women keep you thinking and living in its space for days to come. That is certainly true. Duvall, Spacek, and Rule is a beautiful trio of artists who do amazing work in tandem with Altman’s vision to explore rich themes.

Special thanks to Carl Kelsch for the nomination of 3 Women (1977)!