3 Women

PG

Released Apr 10, 1977

2h 5m

Drama

List

85%

54 Reviews

Tomatometer

86%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Writer/director Robert Altman claimed this impressionistic film came to him in a dream. Millie Lammoreaux (Shelley Duvall) considers herself irresistible to men, though in fact men have little trouble resisting her. Mysterious teenager Pinky Rose (Sissy Spacek), Millie's fellow physical therapist at a desert spa who becomes her roommate at a singles-only apartment building, at first appears worshipful of Millie's self-confidence but soon seems to be taking over aspects of her personality.

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Premiered Apr 06

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Prime Video

Rent 3 Women on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video.

Critics Consensus

3 Women is a strange, eerie portrait of late-'70s womanhood that upends and then defies all expectations.

Read Critics Reviews

Alec B

The kind of enigmatic and strangely menacing movie that I wish Altman had done more often.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/22/24

Full Review

Audience Member

What seems to be the makings of a fun, tense and catty chick flick lead me on to some disappointment. Although Altman's direction and cast are great, the key tools at his disposable are more or less wasted in this slightly dull and fascinating 70's picture.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

Full Review

Shioka O

It's like a nightmarish film, but not scary rather awkward. With starring Shelley Duvall and Sissy Spacek, the awkwardness is promising. Great direction, but not for everyone. Slow, I actually played x1.5 speed to finish it.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

12/10/22

Full Review

dave s

3 Women is probably Robert Altman's least Altmanesque film, more similar in style and theme to Bergman's Persona than anything that the American master ever attempted. In a remote California community, the socially inept Millie (Shelley Duvall) is befriended by the young and naïve Pinky (Sissy Spacek) at a seniors' complex where they both work. From there, their lives become intertwined to the point where they gradually begin to switch personalities. Altman leaves it up to the audience to interpret what exactly is happening – can things be taken literally or is it a surreal fever dream regarding the components of one person's identity? Filled with stark imagery and cryptic symbolism, 3 Women is a movie for those who like to be challenged.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

William L

Just goes to show you that the only people you can trust are mysterious, artistic women in big hats. I watched 3 Women as a double-feature with Ida Lupino's The Hitch-Hiker (1953) which formed an interesting comparison as the latter is a traditionally masculine noir from a female filmmaker while the former is a male filmmaker's exploration of femininity. Apparently Altman claimed to have created this entirely from a dream that he had, which makes sense because the film has an ethereal and subjective quality to it. Though a slow burn and initially very cryptic, 3 Women's bizarre ending makes the film oddly come together thematically, as a treatise on dueling identities and personal growth with the characters portrayed by Spacek, Duvall, and Rule representing distinct aspects or stages of one's own existence (which are notably not exclusively linear, as with Duvall's reversion to a more reserved state, and are certainly not static). Each has their own relative strengths and weaknesses based on their personal experience, or lack thereof. Their conflicts are representative of natural uncertainty, reflections of shifting priorities and needs. What each of these personality facets can agree on is that we need to murder the toxic guy ruining each of our lives and make it look like an accident. Decidedly more surreal territory than Altman might typically have worked in, but interesting nonetheless. Or alternatively, this movie is just about the strangest Pokémon evolution ever. (4/5)

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/18/22

Full Review

Audience Member

Robert Altman tells a story of making you re-examine everyone you've ever wanted to be Starring Shelley Duvall and Sissy Spacek Millie and Pinky work at an old folks home as physical therapists; Millie is repellent to men, Pinky is the newest recruit When they both share an apartment for singles only Pinky starts acting very unusual as she starts taking over traits of Millie Altman displays a form of 70's womanhood Truthfully though I kept waiting for something to happen It isn't until Pinky starts losing her mindset after the hour and 25 min mark things start changing Millie is unsure how to handle her new perspective on things This is a complicated tale of female relationships told from a dreamlike state of mind The whole thing comes off as awkward and at times incomprehensible Altman made this from a dream and it does show

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Robert Altman

Director

Sissy Spacek

Pinky Rose

Shelley Duvall

Millie Lammoreaux

Janice Rule

Willie Hart

Robert Fortier

Edgar Hart

Ruth Nelson

Mrs. Rose

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

63%

67%

The Turning Point

73%

70%

Julia

94%

85%

Missing

70%

80%

Urban Cowboy

88%

74%

Wise Blood

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Perry Stewart

Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com

It's a brilliantly crafted film, and it includes some of the best acting you'll see this year.

Apr 7, 2023

Full Review

Gene Siskel

Chicago Tribune

I didn't find enough threads of sanity to keep me interested in the film's final sequences.

Rated: 2.5/4

Apr 6, 2023

Full Review

Bruce McCabe

Boston Globe

This is a film for those who find whatever Altman does intriguing.

Apr 6, 2023

Full Review

Clayton Schuster

Vague Visages

Altman balances searing interpersonal conflicts with a visual rhythm that’s downright whimsical.

Dec 6, 2023

Full Review

Steve Warren

The Barb (Atlanta)

3 Women is an intense psychological drama laced with satire... a mind-blowing screen achievement.

May 6, 2023

Full Review

Julia Maskoulis

Montreal Gazette

A psychologically brilliant film that activates emotions like a rumbling volcano.

Apr 7, 2023

Full Review

Read all reviews

Synopsis

Writer/director Robert Altman claimed this impressionistic film came to him in a dream. Millie Lammoreaux (Shelley Duvall) considers herself irresistible to men, though in fact men have little trouble resisting her. Mysterious teenager Pinky Rose (Sissy Spacek), Millie's fellow physical therapist at a desert spa who becomes her roommate at a singles-only apartment building, at first appears worshipful of Millie's self-confidence but soon seems to be taking over aspects of her personality.

Director: Robert Altman
Screenwriter: Robert Altman, Patricia Resnick
Distributor: Criterion Collection, 20th Century Fox
Production Co: Lionsgate Films
Rating: PG
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 10, 1977, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 1, 2013
Runtime: 2h 5m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Scope (2.35:1)

Most Popular at Home Now