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An Unmarried Woman [DVD]

Jill Clayburgh (Actor), Alan Bates (Actor), Paul Mazursky (Director) Rated:
R
Format: DVD
IMDb7.2/10.0
Additional DVD options Edition Discs
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DVD
January 10, 2006 		—
1
—
— $35.20
DVD
June 9, 2020
Criterion Collection
1
—
— $49.95
Genre Drama
Format DVD, Color, Closed-captioned, NTSC
Contributor Michael Tucker, Michel Murphy, Lisa Pelican, Alan Bates, Cliff Gorman, Jill Eikenberry, Paul Mazursky, Kelly Bishop, Jill Clayburgh See more
Language English
Runtime 2 hours and 4 minutes

Product Description

Erica seems to have it all - a comfortable home, an interesting job in a Manhattan art galley, a bright teenage daughter, and a loving, successful husband. Then, suddenly, her life is shattered. Her "perfect" husband walks out, and she is left frightened and alone to face the chancy singles world. How does a vital, contemporary woman pick up the pieces and start over?

Product details

  • Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.85:1
  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.75 x 5.25 x 0.5 inches; 3.2 ounces
  • Director ‏ : ‎ Paul Mazursky
  • Media Format ‏ : ‎ DVD, Color, Closed-captioned, NTSC
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 2 hours and 4 minutes
  • Release date ‏ : ‎ January 10, 2006
  • Actors ‏ : ‎ Jill Clayburgh, Alan Bates, Michel Murphy, Cliff Gorman, Lisa Pelican
  • Studio ‏ : ‎ 20th Century Fox
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000BOH918
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
  • Customer Reviews:

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
277 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Tim Lukeman
5.0 out of 5 stars The 1970s as honestly & insightfully as possible
Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2020
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The more I look back on Paul Mazursky's body of work, the more it becomes clear to me that he is THE chronicler of 1970s America—its mores, its attitudes, its changes, its ambience. Yet he seems to be underrated & neglected as a director these days. Is it because his stories are about so-called "ordinary" people & their so-called "ordinary" lives, rather than about larger-than-life characters? If so, then those who underrate & neglect him are missing out on a clear-eyed & compassionate look at those years.

Nowhere is this more evident than in AN UNMARRIED WOMAN, which may well be his finest film—although HARRY AND TONTO is my personal favorite, if I had to choose. But in this film, in which Jill Clayburgh gives the performance of her career, he reveals both the inner & outer life of an upper-middleclass woman whose husband suddenly leaves her for another woman, shattering what she once thought was so secure, leaving her to reshape her life beside her strikingly precocious teenaged daughter & with the support of her small circle of women friends.

There's an easiness & effortlessness to this film, which often feels more like cinéma vérité—and indeed more than a little of it was improvised along the way, as the wonderful commentary track by Mazursky & Clayburgh informs us. (That commentary, by the way, is a model of what good film commentary should be.) There are no real villains or heroes here, just very real people, struggling to make sense of their unmoored place in the world as it changes around them.

Some see the protagonist's involvement with an English artist (the superb Alan Bates) as an easy cliché. I don't think it is. Their romance develops organically & naturally—a quality that's a Mazursky trademark—and it doesn't tie up neatly at the end. As with the film as a whole, this all feels very true to life as it was lived then. Does that make the film "dated" as some dismiss it? Not in the least. It illuminates its time, but its human emotions aren't restricted to that time. They're complex, contradictory, and always honest. I don't know how much more one can ask from a film!

I'm so glad to see it getting the Criterion treatment, which it richly deserves. Most highly recommended!
14 people found this helpful
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wayne m.
5.0 out of 5 stars good vintage flick
Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2024
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loved the artwork and the dialogue between Clayburgh and Bates.
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m-chan
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully done release from Criterion
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2021
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I leapt at the chance to get An Unmarried Woman on Criterion blu ray, and I wasn't disappointed. This is much better than the old DVD release, and has some interesting extras. Paul Mazursky is one of my favorite directors from the 1970s, and this is my favorite of his movies. Jill Clayburgh is mesmerizing, her performance as a wife betrayed out of the blue still a tour de force. An Unmarried Woman remains, decades later, one of Hollywood's most realistic movies about betrayal, divorce, and the struggle for recovery from a woman's point of view. It also depicts the mutual support between women in a highly realistic fashion. In fact, the film is unfailing in its concentration on women, their feelings, their difficulties. When this movie came out, that was something outstanding, harking back to older movies, such as those in the pre-code 1930s. That Mazursky respected women, and felt a deep compassion for people in general, made him a special filmmaker, one of honesty and tenderness. The Criterion blu ray of An Unmarried Woman looks very good, even remarkable considering this is a movie that never looked vibrant, not even on the big screen. Very happy to own it!
4 people found this helpful
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Geoffrey7
5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific film about love, relationships, and becoming yourself
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2023
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This film has not aged. It is a wonderfully written film about falling out of love, shifting relationships, and friendships, and finding your own strength and identity. Jill Claybourgh and the entire cast were and remain sensational. This film was one of the most literate to tell the story of a marriage breakup from the woman's point of view. It appeals to anyone, male or female, who has loved and lost and found themselves in the process.
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Peter Shelley
4.0 out of 5 stars A peak for both Jill Clayburgh and Paul Mazursky
Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2000
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Jill Clayburgh was nominated for an Oscar as the lead in this 1978 film. She didn't win but it pushed her into the "A" class for a few good years. It's interesting to witness Clayburgh's career rise and fall as symptomatic of the public's short love affair with actresses. She still can be seen in supporting roles and she is as good as she ever was - beautiful, funny, warm and tender - but she is probably unable to recapture those "A" bankable heydays. As Erica, a woman who's husband leaves her for a younger woman, Pauline Kael describes her having an "addled radiance with a floating not-quite-sure not-quite-here quality". Clayburgh is memorable wearing a high-collared tan Albert Wolsky coat with a snarl on her face that is both funny and real when she is told the news of the infidelity. Written and directed by Paul Mazursky and burdened with an annoying Rocky-esque score by Bill Conti, the film has a few slow improvisational spots but is generally likeable. Ironically, as it raised Clayburgh's profile, it also was the peak for Mazursky, after films like Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice, Blume in Love and Next Stop, Greenwich Village in the early 70's. The only later film to match them is Enemies, A Love Story made in 1989. The film was also a mainstream breakthrough for Alan Bates who here wears a beard and is hunkily gorgeous as Erica's love interest. His rapport with Clayburgh seems genuine and the film improves once he appears half way through. At the time it was released, Mazursky's feminist end was criticised for having Erica turn down Bates' request to go away with her since Bates is presented as irresistible. Kael thought the only way to balance Erica's "idiotic" decision would be to reveal Bates' character as a fraud. You decide.
31 people found this helpful
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Blane R. Schippers
5.0 out of 5 stars Feminist movie that surpasses anything put out today
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2023
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What a fantastic movie. Jill Clayburgh is a joy to watch. See is such a fantastic actress. Believable and likable. This movie draws you in from the first moment. I'm usually not into dramas but this movie is more than that. It's a character study. It's a feminist piece. It's just a beautiful film about being devastated, moving on, and starting over. I adore this movie. It looks amazing. Worth every penny.
One person found this helpful
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George Fusco
5.0 out of 5 stars Another classy movie with Jill Clayburgh
Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2023
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I remember when this came out--I saw it at the theater. Love Jill Clayburgh movies. Very realistic movie about the challenges of divorce.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Anonymous
5.0 out of 5 stars Regione A
Reviewed in Italy on March 11, 2021
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Regione A. Non giocabile su giocatori europei. Regiona non menzionato nella pagina del prodotto.
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Maddy
5.0 out of 5 stars Unmarried Woman
Reviewed in Canada on March 5, 2013
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Timeless - one of the best movies of the seventies, Jill Clayburgh is at her best along with an excellent cast of actors.
2 people found this helpful
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Carlo Mari
3.0 out of 5 stars DVD senza sottotitoli
Reviewed in Italy on October 19, 2020
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Imbarazzante non ci siano sottotitoli
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Lyon Mitch
4.0 out of 5 stars Very powerful and feel good film.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 20, 2008
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Set in the 70's about a mother in her early 40's who is suddenly on her own after her husband leaves for a younger women. Very relevant for today as we see her grow and become more confident day by day. A really lovely film to share with a girlfriend (not a wife!!)and a bottle of red wine. A friend of mine going through a similar experience identified completely with the character, who is fantastically portrayed by Jill Clayburgh.
Not a must see but a nice night in.
5 people found this helpful
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Fourteen14
1.0 out of 5 stars Did Not specifically state regional compatible or non compatibility.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 30, 2023
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Can’t play it as not my region. Doesn’t clearly state region. Complete waste of time.
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