A Woman Under the Influence (1974)

Director:

John Cassavetes

Writer:

John Cassavetes (written by)

Release Date:

18 November 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Mabel, a wife and mother, is loved by her husband Nick but her madness proves to be a problem in the marriage. The film transpires to a positive role of madness in the family, challenging conventional representations of madness in cinema.

Plot Keywords:

Mental Breakdown | Husband Wife Relationship | Adultery | Bar | Beach

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Peter Falk	...	Nick Longhetti
Gena Rowlands	...	Mabel Longhetti
Fred Draper	...	George Mortensen
Lady Rowlands	...	Martha Mortensen
Katherine Cassavetes	...	Margaret Longhetti
Matthew Laborteaux	...	Angelo Longhetti
Matthew Cassel	...	Tony Longhetti
Christina Grisanti	...	Maria Longhetti
O.G. Dunn	...	Garson Cross
Mario Gallo	...	Harold Jensen
Eddie Shaw	...	Dr. Zepp
Angelo Grisanti	...	Vito Grimaldi
Charles Horvath	...	Eddie
James Joyce	...	Bowman
John Finnegan	...	Clancy

Runtime:

155 min | USA:146 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:16 | Brazil:12 | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16 | Portugal:M/12 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video rating) (1992) | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

1741 N. Taft Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Faces

Trivia:

John Cassavetes, could not find any distributor for this film after completion, and was at one point literally carrying the reels of the film under his arm from one theater to another in hopes of getting one to play his movie. Finally, 'Martin Scorcese' , who had recently become a critically acclaimed director thanks to his film Mean Streets (1973) and happened to be a huge fan of Cassavetes' work threatened to pull his film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) from a major New York film festival unless they accepted this film.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene where Nick first decides to have Mabel committed, he's got a towel on his shoulder and a bottle of gin in his hand. The next cut contains the towel, but no bottle of gin. The following shot the gin returns.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Stardust: The Bette Davis Story (2006) (TV)

Cassavettes – The Anti-Hollywood

A man goes into a big, strange house with his family and friends. He is armed with script and camera, and proceeds to create a milestone work of American cinema – the key film of the 1970s. Above all else, `A Woman Under the Influence' is Anti-Hollywood, Anti-Establishment, Anti-Film. 1970's Hollywood may have defined itself with films like Godfather, Rocky, Annie Hall, and Deer Hunter – but real, unpredictable, chaotic life was Cassavettes' territory. Fact is, Hollywood will never be ready for uninhibited Mabel and her much crazier husband Nick. Nutty as she is, Mabel/Cassavettes does nothing but tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but. Hollywood at best, tells persuasive lies. So…, to get Hollywood ready for the Gospel of Cassavettes, the first thing that must happen is to banish the entire FX community; ship ‘em to Alcatraz where they can make blockbuster cartoons for each other. Second – the writers, directors and producers of said cartoons can go Vegas and try to `leave.' Those who remain will be entrusted with putting complex human beings who inhabit interesting lives and situations on the screen – not `role models' who traipse through neatly-plotted, highly-improbable, beautifully photographed, committee-designed plots. Get my point? By the way, Gena Rowlands in "Influence" gives one of the finest performances of the sound era. See this film. See it now. Right now.