Movie Description
She-Devil is a 1989 American black comedy film directed by Susan Seidelman and written by Barry Strugatz and Mark R. Burns. It stars Meryl Streep, Roseanne Barr (in her film debut) and Ed Begley Jr.. A loose adaptation of the 1983 novel The Life and Loves of a She-Devil by British writer Fay Weldon, She-Devil tells the story of Ruth Patchett, a dumpy, overweight housewife who exacts devilish revenge, after her philandering husband leaves her and their children for glamorous, best-selling romance novelist Mary Fisher.
The second adaption of Weldon's novel, after a BBC TV miniseries entitled The Life and Loves of a She-Devil was broadcast in 1986, the film was shot amid the first season break of Barr's highly successful ABC sitcom Roseanne, in New York City throughout spring and summer 1989. For a while, Streep, who was one of the first actresses to read the script, considered taking the part of Ruth herself but later opted to play Fisher instead, as she felt she had dealt with a similar subject in her previous film Evil Angels (1988).
Produced by Orion Pictures, She-Devil was released on December 8, 1989, and grossed $15.5 million at the box office. Critics praised Barr's and Streep's performances but criticized the film for its tone. Streep earned a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy the following year.
