From the wicked opening sequence in a posh Park Avenue salon, The Women proclaims it's not just what gossip you know, but how great you look while you're spreading it. Based on Clare Boothe's satire of (or is it homage to?) the catty, backbiting world of New York society ladies, the films' stars model a fantastic wardrobe of fabulously expensive gowns and pantsuits for living room, beauty salon, train, supper club, or even divorcee ranch in Nevada. A color fashion show displays the fashions of 1939, featuring the full skirts and tight waists that would not be seen again until after the war, when Dior would reinvent them as the New Look. The fashion show also provides the setting for the central conflict of the film, a contest of couture in which a wife's lovely, sedate, and classic styles battle those of her husband's bold, flashy, and modern mistress.-Amy Holberg