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Movies / In Cinemas / The Women
The Women

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The Women (2008)

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Reviews Counted: 122

Fresh: 12

Rotten:110

Average Rating: 3.8/10

Consensus: The Women is a toothless remake of the 1939 classic, lacking the charm, wit and compelling protagonists of the original.

Rated: 12A [See Full Rating] for sex-related material, language, some drug use and brief smoking

Runtime: 1 hr 54 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release: 12-09-2008

Synopsis: Packed with an all-star cast, Diane English's (MURPHY BROWN) contemporary version of THE WOMEN showcases the talents of Annette Bening, Meg Ryan, Jada Pinkett Smith, Candice Bergen, and Debra Messing. Like the 1939 original, the film... Packed with an all-star cast, Diane English's (MURPHY BROWN) contemporary version of THE WOMEN showcases the talents of Annette Bening, Meg Ryan, Jada Pinkett Smith, Candice Bergen, and Debra Messing. Like the 1939 original, the film deals with the relationships among a close-knit group of female friends, who, when their marriages fail and their lives are on the verge of falling apart, turn to each other for support. On the surface, Mary (Ryan) appears the happiest of the bunch, but her life changes instantly when her best friend Sylvia (Bening) discovers that Mary's husband's having an affair. The actresses frequently appear on screen as an ensemble, exhibiting a relaxed, compelling chemistry. The film feels cluttered at times, but perhaps that is fitting considering how much each female character has on her plate with regards to family, work, marriage, and friendship. Eva Mendes appears as the jaw-dropping beauty who is partially to blame for the fallout of Mary's marriage. As Mary's mother and the voice of wisdom, Bergen delivers the film's best lines with sarcasm, wit, and charm. As in the SEX AND THE CITY movie, the message here seems to be that before finding love with a man, a woman must truly love and know herself. While Mary's high-society social standing enables her to start a fashion line on a whim and makes her self-transformation somewhat easy, female viewers from all walks of life are likely to recognize something relatable in the many women characters driving the film. One nice touch is that while much of the drama surrounds various marital problems, even the cheating husband in question never appears on screen. When you get down to it, the film's most important relationships are between the women themselves. [More]

Starring: Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Eva Mendes, Debra Messing

Starring: Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Eva Mendes, Debra Messing, Jada Pinkett Smith, Candice Bergen, Carrie Fisher, Lynn Whitfield, Joanna Gleason, Ana Gasteyer, Debi Mazar, Bette Midler, Cloris Leachman

Director: Diane English

Director: Diane English
Screenwriter: Diane English
Producer: Victoria Pearman, Mick Jagger, Bill Johnson, Diane English
Composer: Mark Isham
Studio: Picturehouse

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Reviews for The Women

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Ratings Image

At least the actors are strong enough to keep us engaged, and they deliver their lines impeccably, from the spicy comedy to the teary drama.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
09/12/08
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
Ratings Image

As female ensemble movies go, The Women is no Sex and the City, but it remains watchable thanks to strong performances from Meg Ryan, Annette Bening and Candice Bergen.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
09/12/08
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon
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It's so flat and unfunny it makes Sex and the City sound like Billy Wilder.

Full Review Source: Independent | comment Comment
09/12/08
Anthony Quinn
Independent
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The Women has a cast to die for – Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Candice Bergen, Carrie Fisher – in a film that dies before our eyes.

Full Review Source: Financial Times | comment Comment
09/12/08
Nigel Andrews
Financial Times
Ratings Image

But the only bit to set red-blooded males’ pulses racing is when Eva Mendes bends over in sexy suspenders.

Full Review Source: Sun Online | comment Comment
09/12/08
Sun Online
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Admittedly, I am a man, but I am partial to a good chick flick. This one made me feel as if I had been trapped in the perfume hall at Selfridges.

Full Review Source: Daily Mail [UK] | comment Comment
09/12/08
Christopher Tookey
Daily Mail [UK]
Ratings Image

Like real women, this goes on. And on and on. For almost two hours. God, does it go on.

Full Review Source: Sky Movies | comment Comment
09/12/08
Tim Evans
Sky Movies
Ratings Image

Once English has wheeled on Carrie Fisher and – horror of horrors – Bette Midler in a wildly unnecessary cameo, all momentum and fun have emigrated to another planet.

Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph | comment Comment
09/12/08
Tim Robey
Daily Telegraph
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
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The Women, is a costly and bemusing disaster. Dull is too kind a word.

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
09/12/08
James Christopher
Times [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

A costly and bemusing disaster. Dull is too kind a word.

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
09/11/08
James Christopher
Times [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

It is difficult to determine whether this adaptation of the old Clare Boothe Luce play, and the 1939 George Cukor film version of it, is a calculated insult to all women or just a poorly directed effort to understand the fair sex.

Full Review Source: This is London | comment Comment
09/11/08
Derek Malcolm
This is London
Ratings Image

In a post Ab Fab world, The Women is distinctly Ab Blab - an awful lot of nattering that has little edge.

Full Review Source: Teletext | comment Comment
09/11/08
Victor Olliver
Teletext
Ratings Image

While The Women provides an evening of laughter and some points to ponder, relationships work only when all involved are willing to sacrifice for one another.

Full Review Source: Christianity Today | comment Comment
09/29/08
Alissa Wilkinson
Christianity Today
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I feel bad for women that The Women is the kind of movie Hollywood makes for you.

Full Review Source: Can Magazine | comment Comment
09/26/08
Fred Topel
Can Magazine
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English puts plenty of pithy one-liners in her characters' mouths, seemingly oblivious that the film's having-it-all feminist mantra was lapped by Ally McBeal and Sex & the City about a decade ago.

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
09/26/08
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune
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Not nearly as bad as I thought...but that's not saying much.

Full Review Source: Illinois Times | comment Comment
09/20/08
Charles Koplinski
Illinois Times
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The most disappointing aspect of The Women is how few laughs it delivers.

Full Review Source: Playback:stl | comment Comment
09/19/08
Sarah Boslaugh
Playback:stl
Ratings Image

It takes ovaries the size of Alaska to update a classic like George Cukor's 1939 catfight "The Women," but that's just what Diane English has done--and nobody should thank her for it.

Full Review Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine) | comment Comment
09/18/08
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)
Ratings Image

No barbs, no bite, no passion; the claws stay sheathed and the film stays bland

Full Review Source: jackiekcooper.com | comment Comment
09/18/08
Jackie K. Cooper
jackiekcooper.com
Ratings Image

They say that you can never have too much of a good thing, but in this case, there's so much talent and only so much time that most of the actresses are wasted in cameo roles.

Full Review Source: Sean the Movie Guy | comment Comment
09/17/08
Sean McBride
Sean the Movie Guy
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Latest News for The Women

September 23, 2008: CelebsCentral: Jada Pinkett Smith Talks The Women Opens in new window
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September 22, 2008: Box Office Guru Wrapup: Jackson Debuts Ahead of the Race
Movies were serious business this weekend with drama, Lakeview Terrace, heading the box office hands down while comedies My Best Friend's Girl, Igor, and Ghost Town trail... More...

September 21, 2008: CelebrityIndex: The Eva Mendes Women Interview: On Pie, Boy Talk And Trying Not To Play Bitchy Opens in new window
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September 16, 2008: Jada Pinkett Smith Talks The Women Opens in new window
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See More Topics...

Related Forums for The Women

Real Boba
(REMAKE-itis 2008)-USA redo of 1939 (chickflick?) THE WOMEN ... sure, why not babe!!!
by: Real Boba 9/28


Real Boba
(REMAKE-itis 2008)-USA redo of 1939 (chickflick?) THE WOMEN ... sure, why not babe!!!
by: Real Boba 9/28


that bad!!
by: gholzthum 9/14


charlieahinds
violently appalling, rather cut out my eyes with a screwdriver
by: charlieahinds 9/11
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