In this 1970s set crime drama, a woman is forced to go on the run after her husband betrays his partners, sending her and her baby on a dangerous journey.
Films driven by a manhunt often involve heists, but the only heist in “I’m Your Woman” is a heist of identity. Jean, played by the marvelous Rachel Brosnahan, is a young and married woman who lives a life of leisurely discomfort after some failed attempts at bearing a child. Her rather unexceptional lifestyle is thrust upside down when her husband Eddie (Bill Heck) not only steals a child for her to raise but goes missing after a business deal gone wrong. (Hint, it involves murder.) Jean is then forced to trust people she’s never met before and indulge in uncertain escape routes if only to keep herself and her child alive.
Brosnahan is renowned for her roles of strong women finding their way forward against adversity, and her portrayal of Jean carries that similitude of undoubtful drive for survival that thrives rather than of survival driven by desperation. Although she is not cracking jokes at a comedy circle, Brosnahan is still transformed from a traditional role of motherhood to proactive womanhood. While her character first struggles to find a rhythm that comprehends the tense situation at hand, the level of growth that follows is inspirational due to the audacity of the obstacles she is faced with. Brosnahan’s tone carries just the right amount of stoicism that grounds both Jean and the audience into recognizing that sometimes there isn’t enough time to feel but to just do.
Parallel to Jean, Teri (Marsha Stephanie Blake) is later introduced to show just how damaging it can be to be a woman lured by the charms of a man who lives in crime – the quintessential bad boy archetype. Teri is the voice of reason to Jean’s shifting reality and Blake is the powerful female presence to complement the stability of Brosnahan’s presence as heroine. Teri is the guidance that Jean needs in order to recognize that a woman doesn’t have to find completeness through a man but can equally, if not more, gain fulfillment through herself. Jean and Teri take that strength one step further to find that the responsibility of raising a child is an additional force of motivation rather than destabilization. Women don’t need a man to protect them nor do they need a man to protect their own loved ones – they can do it just fine on their own.
Perhaps the most satisfying contrast in the film is the presence of Cal (Arinze Kene), the first character who Jean is forced to trust throughout her escapade. Cal is initially rough around the edges, but he is actually the gentlest force to be reckoned with as Teri continues to kick ass beside him. The duo demonstrates how family systems would function as a matriarchy and it is a satisfying spin in a film driven by crime. Cal hyperventilates with alarm and trepidation when he has to shoot someone, but Teri doesn’t even hesitate to pull the trigger as long as she can accomplish her desire to protect. It is both an endearing and gratifying representation on screen.
“I’m Your Woman” carries as much climax as its female characters carry strength and it will leave a trail of awe as Jean undergoes catharsis after a long journey of authentic self-actualization. The film is neither too soft nor too hard, but it is a sophisticated account of characters who are nimble and flexible to the turbulent winds surrounding them. Firm but yielding.
In Select Theaters and on Amazon Prime Video Friday, December 11th
