Unmarried Woman, An (1978)

reviewed by
Brian Koller


An Unmarried Woman (1978)
Grade: 71

Erica (Jill Clayburgh) and Martin (Michael Murphy) are a long-married couple in their late thirties. They have a teenage daughter Patti. Martin is a stockbroker, while Erica works part time at an art gallery.

There is some stress in their relationship. Martin is sexually demanding, and Martin seems distracted. She asks him about this, but he won't give her an answer.

Erica is a bit smug about her marriage. When she hangs with the girls, she can listen to their romantic tales with a subtle smile that comes from never needing to be in their position. When the artist Charlie hits on her while working at the art gallery, she can fend off his passes and retain her sense of humor.

One day, out of nowhere, Martin bursts out sobbing. He tells Erica that he is having an affair with a much younger woman, and is going to leave Erica for her. This is so devastating to Erica that she staggers down the sidewalk for awhile, then throws up. After Martin leaves, she exterminates the house of his presence, throwing out all his possessions and taking off her wedding ring.

One of Erica's friends arranges a lunch date for her. Erica does not have the best attitude towards men now, and freaks when he makes a pass at her. He is kicked out of the cab, and left stranded on a New York freeway.

Erica begins seeing a psychiatrist, with the sessions paid for by her ex-husband. She tells Erica to begin dating men. Erica has a quickie with Charlie, then begins a relationship with another painter, Saul Kaplan (Alan Bates).

I can't say much for Saul's paintings. He is shown dumping buckets of paint on a huge canvas, tilting the canvas to make blurry rainbows of color. I guess actually drawing something is not to his liking.

At a party, we learn that Erica's shrink is a lesbian, and Saul, with Erica, meets Charlie. Charlie makes amusing boorish comments, infuriating Saul, and both end up wrestling on the table. Erica seems secretely pleased that men are fighting over her.

Saul becomes part of Erica's life. He begins trying to talk her into staying with him at his country home for the summer. Erica does not want to give up her new-found independence. Saul meets daughter Patti, who asks impertinent questions designed to test him. He passes.

Martin and Erica occasionally meet each other while jogging. Now that she is in a relationship, the former hostility she showed towards him has vanished. She gets to triumph over him when he admits to her that his affair has ended, and asks to move back in with her. When she says sorry, one can hear the voice inside her saying, "HA!"

Saul has to go to his summer cottage without Erica. As a parting gift, he gives her one of his enormous paintings, but since she is at his apartment she has to find a way to carry it down the streets to her place.

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