Oh Crap! – Musings of an Unperfect Mommy

Movie Review – The Women (1939)

April 20, 2013

I read a few blogs every day and one of those I peruse is Pioneer Woman – she lives in the county next door don’tcha know. On her Entertainment page there was this post on classic black and white movies and so I looked through the list and that’s when I saw it – The Women – a movie from 1939. She talked about how it was edgy and bitchy (my words – she said funny and mean) and I thought, “Edgy and bitchy from 1939??” Sounds like I should give that a try! So I put it on my Netflix Q and I watched it this week.

She was right – edgy and bitchy sums it up! It’s about wealthy women – some married and some not, some with children and some not – and not one man in the entire movie! Wow! Apparently it was a play that was so good that someone decided it needed to be made into a movie. Oh, and let’s use our arsenal of big name actresses while we’re at it – Joan Crawford, Joan Fontaine, Marjorie Main, Norma Shearer, Rosalind Russell (who is just a peach – I love her), and on and on. It was really incredible just to see all those leading ladies in one place!

For a kicker, it opens at a salon/spa and Rosalind Russell’s character hears some juicy news on her “friend” that she just has to tell her friend who thinks it’s awful – saying so with a wicked smile on her face. Some of the dialogue and acting was so natural that it was incredibly modern. I was just blown away by it! I don’t want to give too much off because it really needs to be seen. Oh, and while it’s in black and white, there is a color sequence of a fashion show with clothes by Adrian – a Hollywood fashion designer (he did the costume design for Wizard of Oz) from back in the day. He also designed the costumes for this movie so this segment seemed like a commercial. However, it was fun to see!

It is definitely a taste of a time gone by with rich women getting divorces in Reno – I had to look that one up – but some is timeless. Like going to the salon or exercising to stay in shape. And the hairstyles are just amazing – love Norma Shearer’s but how did they get her hair to do that?!

SO, there you have it a movie review but not quite a review. If you are looking for a good chick flick classic rent this one and crack out the Junior Mints – I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

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» Movie Review – The Women (1939) » Oh Crap! – Musings of an Unperfect Mommy

Movie Review – The Women (1939)

April 20, 2013

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