I Stand Alone...


...at least I guess I do because I seem to be the only person on the planet who liked this movie. I thought Richard Gere was very appealing as a doctor who seems to have a genuine respect for women, whether they be his patients or members of his family. The actresses surrounding him provide solid support for the most part and Robert Altmann's direction is a little more structured than usual, though the ending just reeks of Altmann's unconventional directorial style.

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[deleted]

I know I am late with my response but I stand with you. I liked this movie and I did not find it anti-women at all.

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I know this is absolutely nuts because your OP was from over 10 years ago but having finally caught this movie tonight as a 46 year old woman married for over 24 years here I am, mainly responding as a bull does to a red cape by the words "...genuine respect for women". It's the internet where nothing ever goes away and our past opinions follow us around forever and ever ;-) So I'm sorry to do this. Hopefully you've gone on to far bigger and better things in life!

But if you have a moment or two to respond to this internet stranger, I'm really curious to know a few things as this movie affected me in a completely different way than your take (from 10 years ago): 1. Are you a woman or a man? 2. Are you married, and if so how long? 3. When you first saw this movie, how old were you and what was your situation in life? 4. Have you seen this movie since your original post in 2006 and if so have your thoughts evolved or changed since then?

As I mentioned above, I'm extremely curious of your phrase about Dr. T having "...genuine respect for women".

Reason I ask is because I found the alternately sheltered, overwhelmed and somewhat clueless attempts at caretaking of the various women in his life by Dr. T incredibly frustrating - whether rage inducing or laugh till I wanna cry moments, but there were many and not just because of him but because of the society we've created about what the "ideal" woman and man should be. I also think of the words paternalistic and patronizing - the movie practically begs me to go there so it's hard to believe it wasn't intentional by the director. But what do I know, eh?

I'm still processing this one and there's likely a lot more beneath what I've already considered, but I'm not yet quite sure what. I don't have much familiarity with Altman's past work beyond MASH (and even then with reruns when I was much younger) to even begin to say what I think he was going for here. But I'm almost certain it was not promoting a sentimental, uncomplicated view of Gere's character as deeply respecting women. There were multiple cages and traps at work here or at least, the gut reaction I had was that this was the case. Diminishment of both women and men was at play. The particularly heavy-handed portrayal of Dr. T's deferential worship of women and self-sacrificial suffering at their hands in his personal life and medical practice not to mention the absolutely howl-worthy exposition of the "Hestia complex" - a seeming indictment of women who have mental breakdowns because they have "too much" love, adoration, respect, perfection, etc, so they retreat in to a childlike state to reclaim the "mystery" of life (I really need to state that if this was really a reflection of the director's view of women getting "too much" love and perfection, I will have to radically revise my assessment of this film) - made me sit up and take notice. I have known men like this. And they really do not get it even as they try to live up to the impossible ideals antiquated and chivalrous mandates set them up for.

No, Dr. T -- women are not saints and purer souls by nature than men. We are simply human beings with many of the same basic needs, wants and weaknesses as any other, with a few important exceptions due to biology. But don't panic, as the wise saying goes, and always be the kind of frood who really knows where your towel is. Dr. T's expositions that "women are saints" seems to be in stark contrast with the portrayal of Dallas socialites, and I'm sure the movie's indictment of gender specific materialism and consumerism isn't limited to that geographical region. Dr. T wants to believe in Woman as Madonna but he knows in his heart there's something off kilter because it's all around him - in women he loves and only pretends to. Don't put any gender on a pedestal, Dr. T. It's not a compliment and it is actively destructive in raising up future generations who can fully participate, compete and contribute in an ever-changing world.

I, for one, utterly adored Helen Hunt's portrayal of "Bree". I got a huge ladyboner from watching her first "date" with Dr. T at her apartment and his discombobulation with it, not knowing how to be the chivalrous suitor. Watching her matter-of-factly turn on her stereo (great music btw), get the grill heated up, take out the steaks, pour two glasses of wine at once, go up to grab a shower, etc, while Dr. T fumbled around in mild unease. So goddamned refreshing. If Dr. T's character could've evolved somewhat in that direction - whether it was in healing the relationship with his wife (a huge rabbit hole there) or finding a new direction with a new love in Bree while setting healthy boundaries in his medical practice - it would've been interesting. The whole narrative arc with Bree was fascinating, up to and especially including the end which I interpreted as Dr. T going through his midlife crisis storm then finding something either grounding or familiar (symbolically and movingly portrayed in the real life birth scene of a male) that served to help him regress to a path of gender safety after the storms of female anarchy represented in his wife, his daughters, his sister in law, his patients, his employees.

Oh, that infant penis was a beautiful thing indeed. Who could blame him in rejoicing in that immediate celebration of maleness, new life, etc? And yet...what happened to all those women who were driving him nuts? I guess we're not supposed to worry too much about such things. They were kinda crazy, after all. Women!

Thinking of a 20 to 30 year old me, I think I would've been one of the women in Dr T's office more tempted to compete with other women (especially at those ages) in trying be a "good patient" in such a practice. I think Altman went over the top in portrayals of women who seemed to get a kick out of pelvic exams (ewwwwwww) but I admit I've never been a wealthy Dallas socialite whose older husband apparently has lost interest in them - who the *beep* knows? Regardless, the 45 year old me is definitely more in line with Bree: this is me, warts and all I've come to a place of more acceptance and confidence in who I am and will not suffer fools gladly. I know what I'm willing to accept and what I won't tolerate while I'm still searching for my place in this world, trying to be a decent person as much as I can. So take me or leave me, but I refuse to be judged by traditional cultural ideals of what makes me interesting, desirable or valuable as a person, but particularly as a woman. If that's a turn off or objectionable in some way I don't consider it a big loss on my end.

I guffawed - literally lol'd - when Dr. T complimented Bree's golf shoes and then put his identical shoes up on the cart next to hers. He still didn't quite get this as a clue to the kind of person she was -- not "I wear manly golf shoes so you must respect me as a woman golfer" but "I like these shoes, they're comfortable, attractive and work for my game and if they happen to be the same shoes you like, who cares?" I couldn't quite blame him for his discombobulation given what we're shown of his life before then. Plus he's Richard Gere, and a Buddhist, so how can I not continue to lust after such a man?

Anyway, the one thing I most certainly didn't take away from this was that Dr. T "genuinely respected" women. His view of himself was absolutely that he thought he did. But he truly had no clue. That's not a slam on him at all but one on patriarchal culture, materialism, and many other things, I think. I didn't see the ending as redemption as much as a retreat into a bygone fantasy world where his skills were godlike and unchained from feminine control. He didn't really do much in that amazing birth scene - the infant was born and probably would have been with or without his help. But it was a boy, and that made all the difference (symbolism can be great but also deeply unsettling).

Again, my apologies for hitting you up with these many questions a full decade after you commented on this movie. If you're still around and have a little time, I'd be grateful for any willingness to briefly revisit this particular topic so many years later. Cheers!

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Wow, that's a lot to digest.

As someone who actually liked the film, I think you are reading too much misogyny into this. To me, its more of an indictment of the culture of affluent Dallas/Texas, in general.

Women are expected to look good for their men. This is the how their self worth is determined, from both sexes. Dr T's patients are craving attention. They are all victims.

I've driven through small towns in Texas with Botox/cosmetic surgery billboards coming and going.

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Thanks for the reply, chas437.

Believe it or not I liked the movie too - very much. I admit that Gere's empathetic character portrayal was a large part of that. I totally got the indictment of affluent Dallas culture in this film though I've never lived there. For the past 5 years I've lived in affluent SE Florida. There are parallels all over the place and then some.

I will (at least for now) remain conflicted over your use of the term 'misogyny' in relation to my comments on the movie. In my own life I'll always be coming to terms with both overtly hostile and also more subtle sentiments that seek to put women in their place, shame them (slut- or otherwise), and insist they're not qualified or worthy to contribute opinions, expertise or any real input into any particular sphere of human life other than the tired and revered mommy wisdom, or sex-it-up wisdom tropes. "Slam dunk" misogynistic slurs are much easier to identify than the far more subtle interplay of semi-worshipful (and equally demeaning) cultural constructs that still manage to tear down women by unfairly holding them ultimately responsible for not being feminine enough, or supporting enough, to satisfy impossible standards and save us all.

'Dr. T and the Women' will remain (for now) a movie that I have a hard time fully processing what, exactly, it's trying to say. There's definitely criticism of rampant consumerism, and it seems to have something important to say about how modern American men and women relate within that paradigm. I took away from it what I could, given my own situation in life. I guess that's all any of us can do.

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