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A Woman Under the Influence (1974)

tomatometer

94

Average Rating: 8.4/10
Reviews Counted: 17
Fresh: 16 | Rotten: 1

Electrified by searing performances from Gena Rowlands and Peter Falk, A Woman Under the Influence finds pioneering independent filmmaker John Cassavetes working at his artistic peak.

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Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 4
Fresh: 4 | Rotten: 0

Electrified by searing performances from Gena Rowlands and Peter Falk, A Woman Under the Influence finds pioneering independent filmmaker John Cassavetes working at his artistic peak.

audience

93

liked it
Average Rating: 4.3/5
User Ratings: 6,940

My Rating

Movie Info

John Cassavetes' harrowing masterpiece charts the emotional meltdown of a suburban housewife and its effects on her blue-collar Italian family. Gena Rowlands stars as Mabel Longhetti, a mother of three whose husband Nick (Peter Falk) works as a construction worker; a mismatched couple like so many others in Cassavetes films, the Longhettis seem to be complete opposites: she's impetuous, extroverted, and fragile, while he's controlling, distant, and hard-bitten. Their differences underscore a

R, 2 hr. 35 min.

Drama, Classics

Jun 29, 1998

Criterion Collection

Cast

All Critics (20) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (18) | Rotten (1) | DVD (7)

Falk and the rest of the cast are exceptional -- even the smallest roles feel spot-on -- but Rowlands is the film.

October 20, 2009 Full Review Source: Village Voice | Comment
Village Voice
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Rowlands' performance in the title role is one of those tour de force numbers available only to screen players of alcoholics and lunatics.

November 12, 2008 Full Review Source: Variety | Comment
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The most frightening scenes are extremely compelling, and this is a thoughtful film that does prompt serious discussion.

May 9, 2005 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comment
New York Times
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Perhaps the greatest of Cassavetes' films.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | Comment
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Falk and Rowlands -- in performances of almost indescribable intensity -- detail a marriage anchored by love, but tossed by the expectations of others and the unpredictable swell of madness.

March 29, 2011 Full Review Source: AV Club | Comment
AV Club

Watching 35 years later, you're struck by its forward sense of therapeutic misfortune.

October 21, 2009 Full Review Source: Time Out New York | Comment
Time Out New York

Gena Rowlands gives a career-defining tour de force performance that is a pinnacle of film-acting in an earth-shattering film that is unlike any other ever made.

April 11, 2009 Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | Comment
ColeSmithey.com

An exceptional film .. a study in the complexities of love, in the subtleties of mental disorder and in the way society demands rigid conformity

January 9, 2009 Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | Comment
Urban Cinefile

John Cassavetes was one of those rare artists of whom it could be said that his flaws were his strengths, and his strengths were his flaws...Consequently, the film has to rank somewhere between the two in the Cassavetes canon, and I'd opt for putting it c

March 12, 2007 Full Review Source: culturevulture.net | Comment
culturevulture.net

A insightful essay on sexual politics: Rowlands is terrific as a housewife who crosses the line into sanity. With a light feminist touch, she is perceived as a victim of repressive patriarchal order.

December 21, 2006 Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | Comment

An insightful essay on sexual politics. As Rowlands delicately crosses the line of sanity, it becomes apparent that imposed social roles are the cause.

August 30, 2006 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | Comment
TV Guide's Movie Guide

An astonishing, compulsive film, directed with a crackling energy.

January 26, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

Always remains intense and popping with energy.

November 2, 2005 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | Comment
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

The knee-jerk, or neckless cinematography (in other words, it's all over the place) is horrendous, unprofessional and junkie. A mess. And the two-a-half-hour running time is no less ludicrous and a feat on its own.

February 13, 2001 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | Comment
eFilmCritic.com
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for A Woman Under the Influence

Two of the best performances I've ever seen. Gena Rowlands makes you fall in love with her and feel sorry for her. Peter Falk is great as the rough man who tries to cope with his wife losing her mind. The scene with Falk sitting in the back of a pick up truck sharing a beer with his kids is priceless.

October 18, 2011
Graham Jones

Super Reviewer

a devastating film containing one of the bravest performances ever seen, for which gena rowlands is justly celebrated, overshadowing the fine work of her costar. peter falk is completely natural as the frustrated blue collar husband trying to deal with his emotionally fragile and increasingly eccentric wife. the film

November 4, 2007
rubystevens
Stella Dallas

Super Reviewer

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Foreign Titles

  • Une femme sous influence (FR)
  • Una mujer bajo influencia (ES)
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