Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970)

77% of critics liked it
(13 reviews)
76% of users liked it
(690 ratings)

Superstardom was predicted for Carrie Snodgress on the basis of her spectacular film debut in Diary of a Mad Housewife. Snodgress plays the long-suffering wife of pushy, insensitive attorney Richard Benjamin. Unable to withstand being treated as a trophy (and a tarnished one at that), Snodgress has… More Superstardom was predicted for Carrie Snodgress on the basis of her spectacular film debut in Diary of a Mad Housewife. Snodgress plays the long-suffering wife of pushy, insensitive attorney Richard Benjamin. Unable to withstand being treated as a trophy (and a tarnished one at that), Snodgress has a brief affair with sexy Frank Langella. Alas, Langella, like virtually every other male character in the film, is just as selfish and self-involved as Benjamin. Even when she enters group therapy, Snodgress is disenchanted by the obtuseness and chauvinism of her male psychiatrist. Nominated for an Academy Award for her performance in Diary of a Mad Housewife, Carrie Snodgress dropped out of films shortly afterward to move in with rock star Neil Young - with whom she raised a child. She returned to cinema with a pivotal role in Brian de Palma's bloody thriller The Fury. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 34 min.
Directed By: Frank Perry
Genres: Drama, Comedy

In Theaters: Aug 10, 1970 Wide

Critic Reviews

Variety Staff, Variety
An engrossing story of the disintegration of a modern loveless marriage.
Roger Greenspun, New York Times
Among the performers, Carrie Snodgress will surely receive the critical praise she deeply deserves.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
What makes the movie work, however, is that it's played entirely from the housewife's point of view, and that the housewife is played brilliantly by Carrie Snodgress.
, TV Guide's Movie Guide
The three leads are excellent.
Geoff Andrew, Time Out
It's an entertaining satire that disappoints only in the stereotypically limited choices it offers to the woman.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Frank Perry's screen version lacks the satirical bite of the novel but benefits from the powerful performance of Carrie Snodgress who deservedly received an Oscar nomination.
, Film4
A nice little oddity.

Read all 7 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

AJ V

The story of an average housewife who is married to the most annoying man in the world, you can't blame her for cheating on him! You sympathize with her. This is a fantastic drama, very psychological and intense. Plus, there's a scene with an early Alice Cooper band… More
The story of an average housewife who is married to the most annoying man in the world, you can't blame her for cheating on him! You sympathize with her. This is a fantastic drama, very psychological and intense. Plus, there's a scene with an early Alice Cooper band playing at a party! Check it out, it's cool.
Eric B

"Diary of a Mad Housewife" is impeccably acted and characterized, though more "play-like" than I prefer. There is little action beyond small-room dialogue, and no notable directing choices beyond a couple of sharp time-lapse montages. I always heard Carrie… More
"Diary of a Mad Housewife" is impeccably acted and characterized, though more "play-like" than I prefer. There is little action beyond small-room dialogue, and no notable directing choices beyond a couple of sharp time-lapse montages. I always heard Carrie Snodgrass's Oscar-nominated performance was amazing, but I was actually more impressed with Richard Benjamin. Without relying on any of the usual vices (physical abuse, addiction, womanizing), Benjamin's social-climbing lawyer manages to be one of the most repellent husbands you've ever seen in a film. Self-involved, needy, callous, childish, grasping, anal-retentive...he has it all. Every time he playfully suggests "a roll in dee ha-ay" to his wife, you hope she'll brain him with a baseball bat. Frank Langella is also good as a self-involved cad who (initially) seems like a refreshing escape for Snodgrass. Music fans will enjoy an unexpected live performance by Alice Cooper and band, and there's also an oh-so-brief cameo by the young Peter Boyle. Hard to guess why this film was never released on DVD.