Themes: Feuds, Breakups and Divorces, Women's Friendship
Main Cast: Meryl Streep, Roseanne, Ed Begley, Jr., Linda Hunt, Sylvia Miles
Release Year: 1989
Country: US
Run Time: 100 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
Susan Seidelman directed this loose adaptation of Fay Weldon's novel The Life and Loves of a She-Devil concerning the extreme revenge exacted by a dumpy housewife on her philandering husband. Mary Fisher (Meryl Streep) is a best-selling romance novelist of the manner of Danielle Steel or Jackie Collins. One night at a glamorous dinner party, Ruth (Roseanne Barr), the frumpy housewife of Bob (Ed Begley Jr.), accidentally spills wine over Mary's pink evening gown. Bob rushes to Mary's assistance, they look into each other's eyes, and it is lust at first sight. After a few clandestine interludes, Bob abandons his wife and his two smart-aleck kids to live with Mary at her palace by the seaside. As a result, Ruth goes into high gear to seek vengeance. She deposits her kids with Bob and then, with the help of a collection of other abused women -- including Ruth's mother (Sylvia Miles), nursing home attendant Hopper (Linda Hunt), and dim-witted secretary Olivia Honey (Maria Pitillo) -- she systematically sets out to destroy Bob's life. Bob calls Ruth a she-devil, and Ruth plays the role to the hilt; first she destroys his home life, then his career, then his freedom. And when he has nothing left, she proceeds to haunt and stalk him, bringing Bob to his knees. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
Review
Director Susan Seidelman specializes in creating comedies that are not especially comic. Sometimes, as in Desperately Seeking Susan, there are enough other virtues to compensate for this lack of humor, but She-Devil falls somewhat short of the mark. The basic revenge premise has potential; indeed, in one form or another it has been used in dozens of other successful movies. But Seidelman and screenwriters Mark R. Burns and Barry Strugatz have made the character of the wronged wife so unlikable that the audience doesn't enjoy her obsessive desire to destroy her husband. Roseanne Barr's chilly performance doesn't help matters, although to be fair, she seems to be creating the character exactly as Seidelman has envisioned her. Ed Begley, Jr. is also problematic. He's entirely believable (and enjoyable) as a loathsome rat, but his animal magnetism is practically nil; without that, it's hard to believe that Meryl Streep's character would become so utterly smitten with him. Streep, however, is a joy and the movie's highlight. Letting loose in her first all-out comic role, she has a delightful time, especially during her drug-induced writhing sequence on and around the bed. Even she has difficulty maneuvering past Seidelman's undermining of the mechanics of comedy (timing, build-ups, payoffs) in a search for more original ways of getting a laugh; but for the most part, Streep's broad, through-the-roof performance works. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Elizabeth Peters - Nicolette Patchett; Brian Larkin - Andy Patchett; A. Martinez - Garcia, the Butler; Cynthia Adler - Vesta Rose Commercial Voice; Nitchie Barrett - Bob's Secretary; Doris Belack - Paula; Fred Bond - Apollo; Lori Tan Chinn - Vesta Rose Woman; June Gable - Realtor; Jack Gilpin - Larry; Clifton James; George Kodisch - Court Officer; Robin Leach - Himself; Larry Marshall - Guggenheim Party Guest; Max - Fuzzy; George McDaniel - The Tiger; Joe Pentangelo - Detective; Maria Pitillo - Olivia Honey; Steven Prince; Sally Jessy Raphael - Herself; Albert Roscoe - Maurice Taylor; Deborah Rush - "People" Reporter; R. Patrick Sullivan; Susan Willis - Ute; Mary Louise Wilson - Mrs. Trumper; Mack Brandon - Mack Brandon Duo; Rosanna Carter - Judge Brown; Cerius & Cinderella - Juliette; Sandra Fine - Roslyn Artists String Quartet; Will Ford - Mack Brandon Duo; Herbie - Himself; Alain Jarry - Alain; Jeanine Joyce - Flower Lady; Christopher Collins Lee - Roslyn Artists String Quartet; Manny Olmo - Cook; Scott Wyatt Rawls - Roslyn Artists String Quartet; John Richard Reynolds - Bookstore Customer; Julie Signitzer - Roslyn Artists String Quartet; Sally Sockwell - Guggenheim Party Guest; Mark Steiner - Valet; George W.S. Trow - Douglas
Credit
Tom Warren - Art Director, Jonathan Brett - Co-producer, Susan Seidelman - Co-producer, Albert Wolsky - Costume Designer, Susan Seidelman - Director, Craig McKay - Editor, Howard Shore - Composer (Music Score), Joseph Campayno - Makeup, Santo Loquasto - Production Designer, Oliver Stapleton - Cinematographer, G. Mac Brown - Producer, Efex Specialists, Inc. - Special Effects, Mark R. Burns - Screenwriter, Barry Strugatz - Screenwriter, George De Titta, Jr. - Set Decorator, Fay Weldon - Book Author
