The Stepford Wives (2004)

Director:

Frank Oz

Writers (WGA):

Ira Levin (book)
Paul Rudnick (screenplay)

Release Date:

11 June 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy | Thriller

Tagline:

Make one.

Plot:

What does it take to become a Stepford wife, a woman perfect beyond belief? Ask the Stepford husbands, who've created this high-tech terrifying little town, in a very modern comedy-thriller.

Plot Keywords:

Community | Writer | Connecticut | Robot | Remake

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Nicole Kidman	...	Joanna Eberhart
Matthew Broderick	...	Walter Kresby
Bette Midler	...	Bobbie Markowitz
Glenn Close	...	Claire Wellington
Christopher Walken	...	Mike Wellington
Roger Bart	...	Roger Bannister
David Marshall Grant	...	Jerry Harmon
Jon Lovitz	...	Dave Markowitz
Dylan Hartigan	...	Pete Kresby
Fallon Brooking	...	Kimberly Kresby
Faith Hill	...	Sarah Sunderson
Matt Malloy	...	Herb Sunderson
Kate Shindle	...	Beth Peters
Tom Riis Farrell	...	Stan Peters
Lorri Bagley	...	Charmaine Van Sant

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, thematic material and language.

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Switzerland:12 (canton of Zurich) | Malaysia:18PL | Portugal:M/12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #40783) | Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Canada:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:K-7 | Germany:12 | Ireland:15PG (original rating) | Ireland:15 (video rating) | Netherlands:12 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:NC-16 (original rating) | Singapore:PG (edited for re-rating) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A

Filming Locations:

Bedminster, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

During post-production, in March 2004, a new scene was filmed: this scene showed Manhattan business women on their way to work, in congested Manhattan morning traffic. This was intended to be the "new" opening scene of the movie, directly preceding the Network Affiliate scene. This scene was later completely scratched from the film, before the official June 2004 release in theatres.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: Boom mic reflection visible in window over door in scene when Walter replies, "When I get back."

Quotes:

[first lines]
Helen Devlin: Ladies and gentlemen, I would now like to introduce a legend in our industry. She's the most successful president in the history of our network and for the past five years has kept us at the very top of the ratings.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: (2004-06-12)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

A Fifth of Beethoven

As Bad As It Gets

This movie is a perfect example of what is wrong with the state of movies today. The original was a gem, with excellent acting by Katharine Ross, Paula Prentiss, and Patrick O'Neal. It was part horror story, part feminist cautionary tale. Most of all, it was BELIEVABLE! You got the feeling these were real people, and that all this could really be happening--and with a minimum of "special effects". The dialogue was pretty intelligent, the plot twists weren't given away in the first 15 minutes, and the ending was a real shocker. You cared about the female characters in the movie--you cared about Joanna's plight, and rooted for her to escape her planned fate.

The current version could only--and was probably meant to--appeal to the lowest common denominator of movie-goer. In this film, the women are just as bad as the men--you don't give a damn what happens to them; that's how annoying the characters are. The laughs are cheap and lowbrow, vital plot elements of Ira Levin's novel are missing, and the acting is just plain bad.

You know what? I'm getting annoyed just writing about this dreck. If you have any taste, any sense, any feeling for good films, any aversion to wasting good money on bad movies--stay far away from this one!! See the original, and appreciate the stunning subtlety of a thinking person's movie, well-made and well-acted.