Rachel Brosnahan’s on the Run in the Crime Thriller I’m Your Woman

I’m Your Woman is the perfect title for writer-director Julia Hart’s film set in the 1970s and starring Rachel Brosnahan, known for her Emmy-winning role as The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The phrase could describe a kept woman with nothing more to do all day than wait for her man to come home. When the film opens, we see Brosnahan’s Jean anticipating that moment, relaxing in her backyard, smoking and dressed in a marabou-trimmed chartreuse negligee. But when Jean’s life comes crashing down around her, the title means something else entirely – a woman willing to take on the challenge and do anything to protect those around her.

Jean accepts the truth about about her husband, Eddie (a brief but memorable appearance by Bill Heck). She knows that her negligee, along with most everything else in their home, was stolen by her husband. (Another wife, Michelle Pfeiffer in Married to the Mob, was faced with that reality.) Jean doesn’t ask questions when Eddie shows up with a baby, telling her he’s their new son. (The fact that the infant arrives without any equipment or supplies, not even a few diapers or bottles of formula, should alert Jean that the baby was most likely snatched.) Jean looks more stunned than thrilled by the prospect of instant motherhood. Eddie seems not to notice, just telling her he will be out for the evening.

In the middle of the night, Jean is awakened by Jimmy, a member of Eddie’s crew. He tells Jean to grab the baby, along with a satchel in Eddie’s closet containing thousands of dollars. Another man, Cal (Arinzé Kene), is waiting outside in a car. Jean’s told to go with him and not to come back. Her questions about Eddie remain unanswered and will for a long time.

Cal drives her to a row house in a working class neighborhood. (The film was shot in and around Pittsburgh.) There’s food in the fridge and milk and diapers for the baby, now named Harry by Jean. That some planning went into this part of Jean’s journey is both reassuring and alarming. Was Eddie on constant alert that he might need such a plan to keep Jean safe? Upstairs in the bedroom there’s a pink phone in a drawer. In case of danger, Cal tells Jean  to plug in the phone and call a number written on a slip of paper. After warning her not to go out or talk to any of the neighbors, he leaves.

Jean does leave the house for short walks, putting Harry in a stroller. It’s no surprise that Evelyn, an elderly neighbor (Marceline Hugot), comes calling. Jean is lonely and eager for a good meal (she has trouble even frying an egg), so finds it hard to turn away Evelyn and her lasagna. But that one encounter will lead to tragedy. Jean does manage to use that phone bringing Cal to her rescue.

The next hideout is Cal’s family home, a log cabin in the country. He shows Jean around, revealing a hiding place under the floorboards. Prodding Cal for answers about Eddie, Jean learns her husband was not only a thief but a killer. He’s placed Jean and most of his crew in danger after killing one of the mob bosses. Jimmy, who came to Jean’s home, is dead, although Cal doesn’t know where Eddie is or if he’s still alive. 

All of this is a lot for Jean to digest, but she has plenty of time and solitude holed up in the cabin. Her motherly side begins to emerge as she spends her days with Harry. Although Cal doesn’t return, his family does turn up: Cal’s wife, Teri (Marsha Stephanie Blake), her son, Paul (Da’Mauri Parks), and Cal’s father, Art (Frankie Faison). Teri is the polar opposite of Jean – Black, tough, and street smart, she’s been on the run before. She’s devoted to Cal, but also has a history with Eddie. Cal’s father, Art (Frankie Faison), gives Jean a gun and teaches her how to shoot. Jean, grasping how dangerous their situation has become, practices shooting as if her life, and those of others, may depend on her.  

When Cal doesn’t return, Teri and Jean go into the city to look for him, confronting “White Mike” (James McMenamin), who’s behind the efforts to find and kill Eddie. Teri and Jean become separated when violence breaks out in Mike’s club. After a harrowing night wandering the streets in the rain, Jean finds Teri at a hotel that was a former refuge. They locate Cal, but their situation becomes more dire now that Mike knows they are in town.

The film does a better job of fleshing out the characters of Teri and Cal (both Blake and Kene are excellent) than telling us anything meaningful about Jean. What did she do before meeting Eddie? Why would she stay with him, even though he was a thief? How could she not know that he was also a killer? Was she content not to work, to stay in the bubble that Eddie created for her? Didn’t she ever anticipate that Eddie’s profession might put her in danger?

Despite those limitations, Brosnahan does a good job of showing Jean’s transformation. She’s a quick study. When a white police officer finds her and Cal asleep in their car, the situation might have spun out of control. But she stays calm, explaining why they are there. After the cop leaves, she tells Cal, “I didn’t know I could lie like that.” Cal is just thankful the cop never asked to see the baby.

Speaking of the baby, three infants play Harry, each one’s facial expressions priceless, threatening to upstage the adult actors. 

I’m Your Woman will open in select theaters on December 11 and also be available for streaming on Amazon Prime.

Top photo: Bill Heck and Rachel Brosnahan
Credit: Wilson Webb, Courtesy of Amazon Studios