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An unconventional take on the film noir genre, I’m Your Woman is the story about the wife of a small-time crook who’s forced to go on the run with a baby and a bag of cash. The audience is not sure how she got either of them.
Most stories of fleeing outlaws focus on male leads, the women showing up as occasional sidekicks or eye candy. Not here. This is about what happens to the wife in his wake.
Fans of the talented Rachel Brosnahan, star of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, will enjoy seeing her in another leading role during a throwback era. And this one is truly a credit to Brosnahan’s acting complexities. Whereas Midge Maisel is bubbly, warm, and inquisitive, here as Jean, she’s the opposite: an unhappy, dutiful wife in a slow-moving portrait of a lonely woman married to the bad guy.
Set in the 1970’s, maybe because it was the end of the time when wives were expected to shut up and be complicit, I’m Your Woman is at its best when it captures the era meticulously: denim and disco club finery, mid-century modern furniture, whimsical wallpaper. The evocative original music combines with songs of the era that are reminiscent of Quincy Jones jazz scores, many of which pervaded television shows of the 70’s.
It’s an intriguing new point of view for a crime drama that will appeal to a select audience, most likely David Lynch fans. In the 1940’s or 50’s, a film like this would be considered a B-movie and might have been the second half of a double feature that audiences sometimes sit through, other times skip. But it’s as atmospheric as a Lana Del Rey video and a film to watch during Covid lockdown, as the characters seem as trapped as the viewer.
Brosnahan fans will eat up every frame. Thrift store aficionados will love the design elements and vintage clothing.
Worth Noting:
Violence, drinking and drugs – with a high body count.
Where to find it: Prime Video
Arlene Schindler
