A Woman Under the Influence (1974)

I guess I have over the years viewed all of the films made by ex-actor turned writer-director John Cassavetes but have never really been able to warm to them, despite the fact that he is now thought of as a major pioneer of Cinema Verite in the U.S.  One or two I felt I might have given up on prematurely which  accounts for my re-watching his first film "Shadows" (1959) and the above movie.  Unfortunately I have not emerged any more of a fan.  His films tend to be slow and stately improvisations from his stock company which includes Ben Gazzara, Seymour Cassell, Peter Falk, and Cassavetes' wife Gena Rowlands.

The last two take the leads in this story of a macho construction worker who is unduly under the thumb of his overbearing mother and his wife who is just this side of slightly ga-ga as she tries to hold on to reality.  As her behaviour becomes more and more irrational, Falk agrees to have her committed for six months.  When she is released, it would appear that she is no more able to cope with her everyday existence and the implication is that their imperfect relationship which veers between loving and physical violence is set to continue as before.  There is no denying that Rowlands gives an impressive portrait of mental disintegration and this showcase role is a remarkable tour de force.  However it goes on for some two and a half hours and I felt like screaming 'enough already'.  Maybe that explains my problem with Cassavetes in general; his films often come across as self-indulgent and would probably have benefitted from tighter editing.

I know that it was an uphill struggle for the director to get this film made and distributed and it comes across as something of a home movie with Cassavetes' mother and father and Rowlands' mother in major roles, along with the director's sister and Cassel's son.  He was in the end Oscar-nominated for the movie, along with Rowlands, but that does not make me believe that this film is one worth re-visiting again and again.

Tags: John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, hard-going movies