3 Women (1977)

In a California desert town, timid Sissy Spacek begins working at a health spa and becomes charmed by somewhat more worldly and outgoing Shelley Duvall, whom she soon becomes roommates with. Though somewhat annoyed by her roommate’s naiveté and constant presence, Duvall also enjoys the fawning and attention she is denied in all her other relationships. Also in the women’s orbit are the womanizing owner of their building and his aloof, pregnant artist wife. Despite her incessant chatter and seemingly obliviousness to the opinions of others, Duvall’s character is rather adorable in her era fashions and homemaking. The film makes an interesting follow-up to The Stranger Within as they both explore women’s roles and experiences in the 1970s, here the three women exhibiting and trading between them extreme versions of traditional feminine roles.