Barnes & Noble

Here's proof positive that you shouldn't believe everything you hear or read. The pre-release "buzz" on Stepford Wives was uniformly bad, convincing prospective viewers that Frank Oz's remake of the 1975 thriller based on Ira Levin's bestselling novel would be virtually unwatchable. That's not the case, however. Although we'd be hard pressed to call the new version a classic, it has many great moments and several terrific performances. Nicole Kidman portrays Joanna Eberhart, a hard-charging, stressed-out TV executive fired from her network after being targeted for assassination by a disgruntled reality-show contestant. She moves with her pleasant but ineffectual husband, Walter (Matthew Broderick), and their kids to the upscale suburban community of Stepford, where remarkably contented husbands lounge in a lavishly appointed clubhouse while their attractive, servile spouses attend to their every need. Kidman's character finds this a little strange, as does her new friend Bobbie Markowitz (Bette Midler), the village's only other refugee from Manhattan. When they begin to suspect something sinister in the overly efficient machinations of Stepford's "power couple," Mike and Claire Wellington (Christopher Walken and Glenn Close), they launch an investigation -- unbeknownst to their hubbies. At this point, anyone who has seen the original might think they know where the remake is headed -- but they would be wrong. Frank Oz's Stepford Wives takes liberties with both Levin's novel and the earlier film version, coming up with a hybrid that may be somewhat inconsistent but is far from the disaster this movie's detractors claimed it to be. Kidman is decidedly quirky as an unknowingly domineering wife, although her finely tuned performance is eclipsed by the more colorful portrayal of Midler, whose blowsy, tart-tongued scribe gets most of the laughs. Walken plays another of his mannered eccentrics, and Close scores big with her turn as a tightly wrapped matron. The film misses opportunities here and there, and some tampering is clearly evident (reportedly, several key scenes, including the climax, were reshot), but in general The Stepford Wives is a lot better than you may have heard. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Ira Levin's best-selling novel about a town where great wives aren't born but made gets a second screen adaptation in this darkly satirical comedy drama. Joanna Eberhart (Nicole Kidman) is a successful television executive until one day her career hits the glass ceiling and crashes to the ground. Looking to take some time off to start over, Joanna and her husband, Walter Kresby (Matthew Broderick), pull up stakes and move to the peaceful suburban community of Stepford. Walter takes to his new environment with real enthusiasm and joins the local men's organization, headed by one Mike Wellington. Joanna, on the other hand, finds that Stepford is just a bit too quiet and well-groomed for her taste, and is taken aback by the aggressively cheerful and servile attitude of Mike's wife, Claire (Glenn Close), and the other women of the community. A notable exception is Bobbi Markowitz (Bette Midler), a happily misanthropic writer who revels in her lack of enthusiasm for housework or exercise. Joanna and Bobbi become fast friends, but as they look closer at the all-too-perfect surfaces of Stepford and its female inhabitants, they slowly discover a terrible secret lurking beneath. Also featuring Faith Hill, Jon Lovitz, and Roger Bart, The Stepford Wives was previously adapted for the screen in 1975, with Katherine Ross in the lead; that version spawned three made-for-TV sequels. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 097360503845
• Source: PARAMOUNT
• Region Code: 1
• Aspect Ratio: Pre-1954 Standard (1.33.1)
• Presentation: Pan & Scan
• Sound: Dolby Digital Surround, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: English, Français
• Subtitles: English, Español
• Time: 1:32:00
• Sales Rank: 4,487

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