3 Women, or: 2 Hours of Really Dramatic Pool Scenes

Blog Free or Die Hard, take two! This is Christa’s pick, which is nothing if not ‘70s-y. I’m…not sure what else I can politely say about this film. But hey, if I can pick Monkey’s Paw, then 3 Women is also fair game. Commence the brutally honest part of the review.

The Film:

3 Women

Where to Watch:

Netflix (US)

The Premise:

Sissy Spacek is pretty obsessed with Shelley Duvall until she suffers an unfortunate accident.

The Uncondensed Version:

I don’t know where to begin with this one.

Our film opens as Pinky, played by Sissy Spacek, starts working at a spa for the elderly. Millie (Shelley Duvall) is her mentor, and takes her through the job, which is mostly walking around a pool with the patient.

Pinky is a little on the creepy/watchful end of the spectrum, but I choose to interpret her as mostly just awkward. Idk if I was really supposed to like her that much considering how neurotic she is; however, I am always going to identify with the awkward girl who makes everyone slightly uncomfortable.

So Pinky is kind of obsessed with Millie and ends up moving in with her. Surprisingly, this doesn’t end up taking a Rosemary’s Baby turn…though, in retrospect, it probably would’ve been better if it had.

Not watching you sleep…just sleeping with my eyes open.

It becomes obvious that Pinky and Millie are at very different life stages, or they are at least very different types of people. Millie takes Pinky to an Old West-themed bar so she can pick up cops, but Pinky just thinks beer foam is the most fascinating thing.

It’s pretty nuts when you stop to think about it, though. Right???

Also of note is the lady who paints murals and sand paintings and shit around the bar. Mostly because she paints a pool with Aztec penises and such.  As the title of this post suggests, there are LOTS.  Of dramatic pool shots.

I admit Pinky could get annoying, but Millie is disproportionately bitchy about minor things like leaving the milk out, which could seriously happen to anyone. Esp. as it becomes clear that no one really likes Millie as much as she thinks they do. This becomes apparent when she decides to throw a dinner party, but her guests completely blow her off. I honestly feel this has more to do with the fact that Millie was serving cheez whiz on crackers at her dinner party. I have to remind myself that it was a different time—the ‘70s were a different time.

SHUDDER.

Millie, of course, blames everything that went wrong with the dinner party on Pinky. In response, Pinky jumps into the pool, falls into a coma, and the two women experience a dramatic role reversal. I feel that’s all I should say. Frankly, that’s all I care to say about this film anyway. This is a weird one, guys. W-E-I-R-D.

The Rating:

Christa describes this one as “atmospheric.” Take that as you will. You either like this one or you don’t. I fall into the latter category.

2/5 Pink Panther Heads

Prob 1 realistically, but I threw in an extra PPH for Sissy Spacek’s crazy eyes.

What other insights does Christa have about this…er…unusual film? Find out by reading her review here!