If one were to make a list of the All-time Most Annoying Movie Characters, it would properly include only those whom we can enjoy as they annoy. They're the ones who cause you to smile as you squirm, not those who make you reach for the remote. Right alongside DeNiro's Rupert Pupkin, and Honey, as played by Sandy Dennis (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf), ranks Richard Benjamin as Jonathan Balser. His unctuous whine is the best reason to watch this period piece. Carrie Snodgress, as the brunt of his annoying personality, also does a fine job. Frank Langella, playing her lover, is a bit too unlikeable, but it only serves to heighten our empathy for the unfortunate heroine.

Jonathan Balser is a pretentious man. A social climber, he is usually seen at the right parties in Manhattan where he is trying to pass himself for someone he is not. Jonathan is married to Tina, a grounded woman who does not share her husband's desire to be in the company of all the phonies and celebrities he seems to enjoy. Tina realizes she is in a bad marriage, but in the late 1960s and early 1970s women still depended on husbands for their jobs were to keep the house, take care of the children, be the perfect wife, and hostess for an up and coming star attorney.

Tina is ripe for an affair, or at least for someone who will see her potential as a neglected woman that will be ready for the man who is able to get her out of her shell. That man comes in the shape of George Prager, a writer, who sees in Tina a possible prey. George realizes Tina is starving for affection and sex, which he will be happy to provide. Unfortunately, Tina realizes her mistake in her involvement; George is only using her for his sexual satisfaction, the same way he uses many other women in his circle.

"Diary of a Mad Housewife" was one of the best films of that period. It helped that Frank Perry decided to direct it and had the extraordinary help of his then wife, Eleonor, to do the excellent screenplay for the picture. The original novel was by Sue Kaufman. The Perrys were one of the most original people working in movies then. Among their best efforts were "The Swimmer" and "Last Summer".

Carrie Snodgress is the main reason for watching this film. With her good looks and extraordinary voice, she made a fantastic creation of Tina. Richard Benjamin's Jonathan is one of his best screen works. He captures the essence of the man that wants to socialize with what he thinks is the "in crowd" at all costs. At the end, he is a man that has lost everything because of his unrelenting ambition. A young Frank Langella contributes to the success of the film with his acerbic portrait of George.

A must for serious fans of Frank Perry.

Tina Balser (Carrie Snodgress) is a tired NYC housewife married to the demeaning pompous Jonathan (Richard Benjamin). He criticizes her on everything even in front of their two young impressionable daughters. At a party she got dragged to by her husband, she meets the arrogant chauvinistic writer George Prager (Frank Langella). She has an affair but George isn't much better than Jonathan. Essentially, I like Tina enough to watch this movie despite the annoying Jonathan and the callous George. This movie is a bit of a torture but it's a fascinating one. It's also a movie of its times. It was probably more compelling back in the day.