A Spanish film that opened across Israeli theaters on Thursday examines the economic and social realities facing women who leave marriages in midlife, depicting a protagonist who discovers that the dating landscape systematically devalues women approaching 50 while privileging younger women and men of all ages.
My Friend Eva stars Nora Navas in the title role as Eva, a publishing house executive who becomes discontented with her marriage and leaves her husband to pursue romance, only to encounter structural barriers in the dating market. The film, billed as a romantic comedy, is described as more accurately an unromantic one, defined by covert cynicism about the possibilities available to women of a certain age.
The Premise of Escape
Eva leaves Barcelona on a business trip to Rome, where she becomes smitten with Alex, played by Rodrigo de la Serna, a handsome Argentinian screenwriter who lives in Spain. They have a meet-cute when the adjoining door between their hotel rooms is left ajar and she walks in on him naked, then backs out in embarrassment. Later, when he runs into her in the lobby, he is not upset; instead, they flirt, and he suggests she have dinner at a restaurant he recommends.
When they run into each other again, he convinces her to go to a birthday party for some friends, and everyone assumes they are a couple. He knows she is married, and while it is clear he does not care, she gets so tipsy that nothing happens afterward, and they each go their separate ways. Their flirtation makes enough of an impression on him that he leaves her a book with his phone number and an invitation to call him anytime.
The Reality of Her Situation
She keeps looking at the book and thinking about him as she returns to her usual routine, which includes being with Victor, played by Juan Diego Botto, her husband, who works in hi-tech and has a passion for interior design. The couple has two charming children and a lovely apartment, and they often entertain other couples who have similar lifestyles.
One night at a dinner party with their married friends, Eva makes a throwaway comment about how she envies a friend who has just gotten divorced after she saw him on the street kissing his new girlfriend. Victor takes it as a condemnation of their relationship, and everyone assures him that she did not mean anything by it and tells him not to take it personally. But although Eva does not own up to it at first, it was a very personal remark, and the soft-spoken Victor was right to get upset and feel threatened.
Confronting Market Realities
It is usually the men in movies who have this kind of sudden-onset midlife crisis, but here it is Eva who impulsively decides to move out of her apartment and start dating. She has been texting with Alex, and her hopes are high. But when it looks as if he is unavailable, she throws herself into the dating pool and discovers that it is hard to feel passion for the men she meets there.
One is very cheap, another is kind of boring, some of them are not good in bed, and for many attractive men her age, Eva, who is about to turn 50, is too old for them. The review says this echoes what Nora Ephron wrote in her novel Heartburn about women leaving their marriages in the 1970s: "Their wives went out into the world, free at last, single again, and discovered the horrible truth: That they were sellers in a buyer's market, and that the major concrete achievement of the women's movement in the 1970s was the Dutch treat."
The review says maybe Ephron went a little too far with the "Dutch treat" crack, but the idea becomes clear very quickly, and so does Eva.
Class and Comfort
The film is directed by Cesc Gay, who co-wrote it with Eduard Sola. The review says the film plays with the idea of Eva finding great love and makes fun of it, though it pulls its punches a little toward the end, hinting at a happily-ever-after for the heroine.
The review also says all the characters are from the same milieu, are effortlessly attractive, wear the same kind of tasteful casual clothes, and eat and drink the same appetizing-looking food and wine. Victor tends to go on about what kind of rug he wants for the living room, but that is the worst thing said about him, and many women would find that to be a positive aspect in a husband.
The review says no one has any big problems, and no one is distinctive in any way, and that while it is natural to long for one's youth and have romantic fantasies, it is hard to imagine anyone in this world of fine wine and lovely sweaters feeling very passionate about anything. The reviewer says they would have liked the film better if the director had found even more comedy in Eva's disillusionment.
Why This Matters:
The film documents how age-based discrimination in romantic and sexual markets disproportionately affects women, with men Eva's age considering her too old while remaining attractive to younger partners themselves. This asymmetry reflects broader patterns of gender inequality that persist despite formal equality in professional and legal spheres. The invocation of Nora Ephron's observation about women becoming "sellers in a buyer's market" upon leaving marriages connects 1970s feminist insights to contemporary realities, suggesting that structural barriers to women's autonomy have proven more durable than institutional reforms. The film's focus on affluent characters who lack material hardship highlights how gender-based disadvantages cut across class lines, affecting even economically secure professional women. That the protagonist discovers limited options despite her executive position underscores how market dynamics in personal relationships operate independently of women's economic achievements.