Unless you are a hardcore Republican conservative or political junkie you probably have never heard of Phyllis Schlafly. She is one of the most influential women in American history and is known as the “First Lady” of the modern conservative movement. On the other hand, even if you barely paid attention in your history classes you should still know the name of the woman who was her polar opposite on Schlafly’s ideological spectrum, Gloria Steinem. A key figure in the rise of feminism, Steinem has been a mainstay in pop culture for over 50 years. How these two women became intertwined is one of the most fascinating aspects of the new FX mini-series “Mrs. America.”
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Created and written by Dahvi Waller (an Emmy winner for “Mad Men”), “Mrs. America” begins in 1971 with Phyllis (Cate Blanchett), a successful author (her book “A Choice Not An Echo” helped Barry Goldwater earn the Republican nomination for president in 1964) and former congressional candidate. The first scene of the series, though, finds her modeling a swimsuit at a fundraiser for a current congressman, Phil Crane (James Marsden). You read that correctly. At this point in her life, it should be noted she’s an author who has sold 3 million books, run for the House of Representatives and raised six children. And, yet, she’s modeling a swimsuit with other men’s wives half her age. One of Waller’s strongest skills is to point out sexism in the lives of her characters and demonstrate how it resonates today and, boy, she starts out swinging.
While Schlafly attempts to find a place for herself in Washington, much to the chagrin of her husband Fred (John Slattery), a group of activists are celebrating in the capitol building. The first few states have ratified the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and the members of the National Women’s Caucus are buoyant over their influence to get bipartisan support for the effort. The NWC is made up of Steinem (Rose Byrne), Bella Abzug (Margot Martindale), Betty Friedan (Tracy Ullman), Shirley Chisholm (Uzo Aduba), and Brenda Feigen-Fasteau (Ari Graynor), among others. And with Abzug and Chilson members of congress and their belief that Nixon will be out of office within the year, they are simply on cloud nine. Little do they know of how the women in Schlafly’s life will change the course of history.
Led by the fictional Alice Macray (Sarah Paulson), Schlafly is informed by her social circle of the impending vote for the ERA in the Illinois statehouse. Feeling that the amendment demeans their jobs as homemakers and threatened that it would force them to work outside the home (it would not have), they open Schlafly’s eyes to the political power of an anti-ERA movement. Soon, a STOP ERA organization is born and much to Abzug’s shock, they stop the amendment from passing in Illinois, a state the NWC assumed was a safe signatory. And with STOP ERA growing nationally thanks to support in conservative states, the clock begins ticking. The law says the 38 states need to ratify the amendment within seven years for it to become an article in the constitution. What was a foregone conclusion is suddenly not.
Over the course of nine episodes, Waller moves the spotlight from one member of the NWC to another while continuing to capture Schlafly’s influential rise over the ensuing decade. Always shadowing Schlafly’s achievements isn’t Abzug or Friedan, but Steinheim. Political wins and losses occur for both sides over the course of the series. Obviously with no Equal Rights Amendment in the constitution presently there is no spoiler to the ultimate ending of the series. The question increasingly becomes, how do Waller and her cohorts including executive producers and directors Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck as well as additional episode directors Amma Asante (“Belle”), Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre (“The Mustang,” “The Act”), and Janicza Bravo (“Zola”) provide the series with any semblance of hope? That is left to the character of Alice and her arc turns out to be a very weak link in an overall stellar piece of historical fiction.
Despite Paulson’s best efforts (and, boy, she gives it her all), Alice is the one character who feels the least authentic among the ensemble cast and that’s basically because she seems the most generic. By the second episode, Paulson has already dropped the hint that Alice is the one member of Schlafly’s posse that is uncomfortable with the alliances and shortcuts their fearless leader is taking in growing their movement. When Alice gets to the National Women’s Conference in 1977 in the episode appropriately titled “Houston,” the bumpiest chapter of the series, she pretty much a cookie-cutter version of a character opening up and finding herself in a whole new world. That sort of narrative arc is thankfully missing from all of the real figures in the series.
“Mrs. America” is often entertaining and compelling, however, because of its exquisite cast and that begins with Blanchett who is also an executive producer. Anyone who would question whether Blanchett would knock playing Schlafly out of the park simply hasn’t seen enough of Blanchett’s cinematic oeuvre to know it was practically a foregone conclusion. For many viewers, it will be hard not to detest Schlafly because of her political beliefs, but Blanchett marvelously shows the cracks in her character’s steely façade. Schlafly is belittled by her male peers in the Republican party, discounted by her own husband and finds her own children turning against her as the year pass. But there is a sliver of compassion here and there (mostly in her relationship with her oldest son). It was hard to be “the” Phyllis Schlafly and despite the horrible consequences of her actions, Blanchett wants you to at least consider giving her an ounce of respect for what she went through to reach her own mountaintop.
Byrne, on the other hand, may have given the definitive performance as Steinheim and that’s noteworthy considering the film “The Glorias,” which debuted at Sundance in January, found Julianne Moore and Alicia Vikander playing her during this same period. What Byrne does so wonderfully is recreate the seemingly effortless way Steinheim could communicate both publicly and privately. The Ms. Magazine founder was the epitome of feminist chic and Byrne makes sure that it doesn’t get lost among the political infighting and you come to realize why Schlafly is so fixated on her. There is clearly jealousy in how Byrne’s Steinheim lived her life with such glamorous freedom. Whether genuine or not, the contrast allows Blanchett and Byrne to wonderfully play opposite each other even if a climactic showdown never comes to pass.
As for the rest of the cast, Martindale gives Abzug the jovial personality she personified while hinting at the political respect she so desperately craves. Aduba chronicles the heartbreak Chilsom experiences as a presidential candidate who feels she’s so close to truly having an impact on the ticket only to have it snatched away from her (shades of the Bernie revolution reverberate through her storyline). Graynor is almost unrecognizable as Feigen-Fasteau and is at her best in a remarkable showdown with Schlafly on live television. As a fan of Ullman, it pains me to remark that her version of Friedman feels too much like a caricature than a well-rounded interpretation of the feminist icon. Despite having a reputation for being blunt and divisive it’s simply too arch for even this chronicling of strong personalities. Friedman is too often comic relief and she shouldn’t be.
Waller’s greatest accomplishment with the series is, again, the aforementioned ability to tie the events from almost half-century ago to the battles being waged today. The intersectionality of women of color in the feminist movement being a prime example. But what might strike the heart of viewers the most is just how so much of the sexism women endured in that era is still so prevalent today. Three generations later, mind you. And that’s pretty hard to stomach. [B+]
“Mrs. America” debuts on FX on Hulu on April 15.