Girlfriends (1978) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The film takes place primarily in a shared apartment on Manhattan's Upper West Side, depicting the bohemian art scene of 1970s New York. There are also countryside sequences that serve as a retreat from city life, providing contrast to the urban setting where the main character pursues her photography career.

• upper west side
• manhattan
• new york city
• setting
• apartment

The story is set in the mid to late 1970s, capturing the cultural experimentation and economic challenges of that era. The film's fashion, attitudes, and city life reflect the zeitgeist of 1970s New York and how shifting social norms affected personal relationships.

• 1970s
• time period
• 1970s new york
• era
• vintage

Independence centers on Susan's fight to maintain her own artistic path and living space, resisting conventional expectations about marriage and cohabitation. She pushes to show her photography work on her own terms, highlighting a drive for personal and professional autonomy that mirrors the broader feminist currents of the 1970s.

• independence
• feminism
• autonomy
• artistic career
• personal freedom

The film uses Susan and Anne's relationship to explore how female friendship can endure but also strain under pressure. Their dynamic oscillates between support and conflict, with jealousy, different life choices, and mutual dependence testing their bond as they navigate diverging paths.

• friendship
• female relationships
• anne munroe
• best friend
• conflict

Anne's abortion reveal becomes a pivotal moment that foregrounds female agency and the cost of decisions in a changing society. The event reshapes trust, priorities, and the women's relationship with their own futures, examining the personal costs of independence within friendships and romance.

• choice
• abortion
• female agency
• decision
• consequences

Susan Weinblatt is a photographer who supports herself through low-paying baby pictures, weddings, and bar mitzvahs while hoping for a big break with a gallery show. She is the film's protagonist, navigating independence and balancing relationships with her career ambitions in the New York art scene.

• susan weinblatt
• photographer
• protagonist
• artist
• melanie mayron

Anne Munroe is Susan's best friend and aspiring writer who eventually moves out and marries her boyfriend Martin. Their friendship experiences tension from diverging life paths, as Anne chooses conventional domestic life while Susan pursues artistic independence, though moments of reconciliation reveal their deep bond.

• anne munroe
• writer
• best friend
• marriage
• martin

Rabbi Gold is the rabbi who oversees the bar mitzvahs and weddings that Susan photographs. He develops a crush on Susan and they share a kiss, but their romance is complicated by his existing wife and son, testing boundaries and commitments in ways that contrast with Susan's independence.

• rabbi gold
• eli wallach
• romance
• complicated relationship
• bar mitzvah

Eric is Susan's new boyfriend whom she meets at a house party. Their relationship offers companionship but also friction, particularly when Susan insists on maintaining her own apartment rather than moving in with him, reflecting her commitment to independence.

• eric
• boyfriend
• christopher guest
• relationship
• independence

The film portrays the 1970s New York art scene through Susan's journey as a photographer seeking gallery recognition. The urban setting anchors her pursuit of a gallery show and frames her romantic and friendship dynamics against a backdrop of bohemian New York, where artists struggled with economic challenges while pursuing creative dreams.

• art scene
• gallery
• photography
• bohemian
• new york artists
• 1970s culture

The shared apartment on Manhattan's Upper West Side serves as the central setting where Susan lives with her best friend Anne. When Anne announces she's getting married and moving out, the apartment becomes a symbol of Susan's independence and her need to navigate life on her own, forming a key conflict in the film.

• apartment
• upper west side
• living alone
• independence
• roommate