And God Created Woman is a 1988 American romantic comedy\drama film directed by Roger Vadim, starring Rebecca De Mornay and Vincent Spano.
Plot[]
| Spoiler Warning: The following contains important plot details of the entire film. |
Robin Shea (Rebecca De Mornay) is a convict in a New Mexico prison who manages to escape, but accidentally hitches a ride in the limo of politican James Tiernan who was visiting the prison as part of his campaign for governor & he returns Robin back to prison in secret. While changing back into her prison clothes, Robin meets Billy Moran (Vincent Spano) a carpenter and handyman who is doing work in the compound under supervision that is supposed to keep him isolated from the female inmates. Billy helps Robin temporarily hide from the guards & they end up having sex.
Robin learns who James Tiernan is from a political ad on television where he talks about his strong stance on prison issues and manages to call James at his campaign headquarters, asking for help on her upcoming parole hearing. James gives her advice, suggesting that she gets married. Robin approaches Billy and offers him five thousand dollars to marry her for a year so she can get out of prison. Billy accepts her proposal, they get married and Robin ends up getting released from prison.
Robin moves in with Billy, who also lives with his brother Peter (Donovan Leitch) and Billy's son Timmy (Jamie McEnnan). At first, there is a clash of personalities due to the contrast between Billy's serious demeanor and Robin's wild-child nature. Billy is interested in having a real relationship with Robin, who instead insists that it's just an arrangement & Robin wants to focus on her musical career.
Robin starts up a band, which Peter joins, and also meets up again with James, who uses Robin as a poster child for successful prison reform on his campaign. She also spends more time with the family, getting close to Peter and Timmy, which upsets Billy. Robin suggests they see other people, which Billy accepts.
Billy has sex with another woman while Robin has sex with James, who is married. Afterward the pair confront each other jealously over their being with other people. The next morning, Robin reconciles with Billy, helping him out when his jeep breaks down and even spending time with him at work restoring an old museum. They have sex in his workshop & are interrupted by a group of tourists, who take pictures of them.
At first, Robin’s public indecency is hushed up because of her status as James' poster child for giving convicts second chances , but when James sees the pictures, he becomes jealous and orders that Robin's parole be revoked. The police arrest Robin when she is performing with her band at a bar and Robin flees to James' house for help, but he turns her away.
Robin goes back to Billy's house where he has packed up her things and prepared money for her and he promises to help her no matter what she wants to do, and Robin decides she's tired of running. Robin and Billy secretly crash James’ political dinner where Robin takes the stage with her band, praising James for “helping her” and her performance earns them a standing ovation which also helps James’ image. James agrees to help Robin out and she gets to stay out of prison.
In the end, James wins the election and Robin & Billy return home together, happily married.
Cast[]
- Rebecca De Mornay as Robin Shea
- Vincent Spano as Billy Moran
- Frank Langella as James Tiernan
- Donovan Leitch as Peter Moran
- Judith Chapman as Alexandra Tiernan
- Jamie McEnnan as Timmy Moran
- Benjamin Mouton as Blue
- Dave Shelley as David
- Einstein Brown as Einstein
- David López as Hawk
Production[]
In 1983, Roger Vadim announced his plan to make a new version of “And God Created Woman” along with producers George Braunstein and Ron Hamady.
According to him:
“Friends suggested that I remake the film. I was curious to see how Juliette (the main character in the 1956 film) would have changed and not changed in 1983. In 1956, Frenchwomen were presenting the image of a new, modern kind of female. Today, the newest prototypes are coming from America. The other reason for remaking 'And God Created Woman' is because the story itself is good. The basic situation involves a young woman whose amoral escapades make her an outsider, the pink wold in the herd. The 1950s, with its restrictive morality, was the perfect time to make the film. In the 1980s we are back in a similar era and will have the girl confronted by the Moral Majority, which is still a good proportion of this country.”
Vadim announced he and producers would undertake a nationwide talent quest to discover a 19 to 20 year old to star. RJ Stewart was reported as writing on a script with Diane Lane mentioned as a leading contender for the star role. He chose Rebecca De Mornay to play the lead. "He wasn't the kind of man I expected to meet,” De Mornay recalled. "I found him very funny and warm. He makes me feel secure and I feel like I can trust him not to turn this into an exploitation film."
Rebecca De Mornay had seen the original movie when she was younger. She said during filming that “in some ways I'm sorry they're even using the same title. Our story has nothing to do with the first film. It's entirely different. This is an American love story set in New Mexico. But of course it was on the strength of the title that Vadim was able to promote interest in the project.”
Vadim stated during filming: “What is important for me here is once again to tell the story of a sexy, funny and somewhat outrageous young woman within a social context. That's why, even though practically everything about the original has been changed and I don't consider this in any sense a remake, I feel justified in using the title... Santa Fe in the 80s is not Saint Tropez in the 50s, except perhaps in the sense that there is no gap between the classes. Rich people, artists, blue collar and Indian - different parts of the society mix together, which was true of St Tropez before it became the circus it is now. And, more important, in the last 30 years women have won many freedoms - social freedom, professional freedom, sexual freedom. Robin, the girl in the film, claims all these freedoms - in a way that's cerebral, she's aware of her personality, while Bardot behaved totally instinctively.”
The production took place in New Mexico and began filming in March of 1987.
Box Office[]
“And God Created Woman” didn’t fare well at the box office, ranking at #17 and grossing $393,647 at the box office.
Critical Reception[]
The movie received poor reviews from critics. According to Roger Ebert, the two films shared little in common except a title and a director.
Janet Maslin from The New York Times wrote: “And God Created Woman has a slow pace, a trashy look and a notably poor sense of humor.”
Trailer[]
And God Created Woman (1988) Trailer