Compromising Positions

Compromising Positions is a 1985 American comedy-mystery about Judith Singer, a former newspaper reporter who has settled into life as a suburban housewife. When her dentist, a womanizing man, is found murdered, she cannot stop herself from looking into the case, even as the investigation turns up his affairs with several women in her neighbourhood. The screenplay, based on Susan Isaacs's novel, was written by Isaacs herself.

Frank Perry directed and produced the film, which sits between Mommie Dearest (1981) and Hello Again (1987) in a directing career that began with The Swimmer in 1968. Susan Sarandon plays Judith, with Raúl Juliá as David Suarez, Edward Herrmann as Bob Singer, Judith Ivey as Nancy Miller, Mary Beth Hurt as Peg Tuccio and Joe Mantegna as Bruce Fleckstein. The credited cast runs to 26 names.

Made for about 6 million dollars, the film took roughly 13 million at the worldwide box office. On IMDb it holds 5.9 out of 10 from around 1,300 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 5.3 out of 10 from 19 votes. The two audience scores are close to each other, putting the film in modest but not unfavourable territory.