ad man Teddy Pierce is amused by, then obsessed with, a beautiful woman whose red dress goes billowing over her head by a gust of wind from crossing over a ventilation grate, and exposing her red satinstring bikini panties. Teddy is happily married to Didi, but he cannot get this woman out of his mind. Encouraged by his friends Buddy, Joe, and Michael, he tries to ask her for a date but mistakenly phones Ms. Milner, a plain ad-agency employee who is flattered by his interest. Teddy ultimately does become acquainted with the woman in red, a Britishmodel named Charlotte, going horseback riding with her and even inviting her out on what is supposed to be a date but turns out to be a party with his relatives. He radically alters his wardrobe and begins using elaborate ruses to see Charlotte socially. Meanwhile, he incurs the wrath of Ms. Milner, whom he stood up before. Events come to a head in Charlotte's high-rise apartment, where she invites Teddy into her satin bed. He is thrilled until her airline pilot husband suddenly comes home. Trying to escape, Teddy ends up on a ledge, where passersby below believe he is about to commit suicide, all captured on live television. Didi, while watching this on live television, tears up as she believes Teddy is doing this because of her own cheating. He jumps off the window ledge and waits to be caught by the firemen. While falling, Teddy starts to become interested in a newswoman who smiles at him.
The film is a remake of An Elephant Can Be Extremely Deceptive, also known as Pardon Mon Affaire, directed by Yves Robert and written by Jean-Loup Dabadie and Yves Robert.
The film was originally released on VHS, LaserDisc and then DVD. In the U.S. and Canada Kino Lorber released The Woman in Red on Blu-ray in 2017 with a trailer and an audio commentary track by critic and filmmaker Jim Hemphill. In January 2019 a German Blu-ray was released.
Reception
The film gained publicity for Kelly LeBrock, a real-life model making her screen debut, particularly for the skirt-and-grate scene, a variation of Marilyn Monroe's iconic pose in The Seven Year Itch.
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 35% based on reviews from 17 critics. On Metacritic the film has a score of 55 out of 100, based on reviews from 10 critics. Richard Schickel of TIME Magazine wrote: "One of this summer's more pungent pleasures: a well-made sex farce of classical proportions. If there is a horse to fall off or an airplane forced to land at the wrong airport, you may be sure Teddy will be aboard." Variety wrote: "The laughs roll along readily as Wilder tries one idea after another to sneak out on wife Judith Ivey and family to rendezvous with Le Brock." Variety also praised Gilda Radner for her performance.
