An Unmarried Woman

An Unmarried Woman is a 1978 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Mazursky and starring Jill Clayburgh and Alan Bates. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture and Clayburgh was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.

Plot

The perfect life of wealthy New York City wife Erica Benton (Jill Clayburgh) is shattered when her stockbroker husband Martin (Michael Murphy) leaves her for a younger woman. The film documents Erica's attempts at being single again, where she suffers confusion, sadness, and rage.

As her life progresses, she begins to bond with several friends and finds herself inspired and even happier by her renewed liberation. The story also touches on the overall sexual liberation of the 1970s. Erica eventually finds love with a rugged, yet sensitive British artist (Alan Bates).

Cast

 Jill Clayburgh as Erica Benton
 Alan Bates as Saul
 Michael Murphy as Martin
 Cliff Gorman as Charlie
 Patricia Quinn as Sue (as Pat Quinn)
 Kelly Bishop as Elaine
 Lisa Lucas as Patti
 Linda Miller as Jeannette
 Andrew Duncan as Bob
 Daniel Seltzer as Dr. Jacobs
 Matthew Arkin as Phil
 Penelope Russianoff as Tanya
 Novella Nelson as Jean
 Raymond J. Barry as Edward
 Ivan Karp as Herb Rowan

The abstract expressionist paintings in the film were created by artist Paul Jenkins, who taught Alan Bates his painting technique for his acting role.

Awards and honors
It was nominated for three Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Actress (Clayburgh) and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen. Mazursky's screenplay won awards from the New York Film Critics Circle and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.

Clayburgh won the award for Best Actress at the 1978 Cannes Film Festival.

The film was also nominated for several 1978 New York Film Critics Circle Awards, including Best Film, Best Direction, and Best Actress (Clayburgh).

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
 2006: AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers – Nominated

Reception
Vincent Canby in The New York Times wrote "Miss Clayburgh is nothing less than extraordinary in what is the performance of the year to date. In her we see intelligence battling feelingreason backed against the wall by pushy needs."

Pauline Kael in The New Yorker wrote: 

, An Unmarried Woman holds a rating of 91% on Rotten Tomatoes based on twenty-three reviews.

References

External links
 
 
 An Unmarried Woman Overview
 Vincent Canby Review

Category:1978 films
Category:1970s comedy-drama films
Category:20th Century Fox films
Category:American films
Category:American comedy-drama films
Category:English-language films
Category:1970s feminist films
Category:Films scored by Bill Conti
Category:Films directed by Paul Mazursky
Category:Films set in New York City