To comply with IMDB rules, I must begin by warning you that this review contain a possible spoiler -- which leads nicely to my first point. THE STEPFORD WIVES is a movie that suffers from what I call the `Spoiled by Recognition' problem. If a movie hinges on some key fact being concealed from the viewer until the end, the movie is almost impossible to discuss or review without revealing at least some part of the ending. Therefore, the more recognition the movie receives, the harder it is for you to be a first-time viewer who hasn't already tripped over at least some of the spilled beans.
You can still appreciate such a movie, however, if you go into it with the right mindset. My mother has always said she enjoys reading an Agatha Christie murder mystery twice -- the first time to experience the mystery, the second time to see how all the events in the story were cleverly engineered to lead up to the resolution without actually giving it away. If the resolution has been given away, you can read the novel this way the first time around. In the case of THE STEPFORD WIVES, even if you've already been told what the men in Stepford are doing, you can still appreciate how it's revealed only in stages, along with Joanna and Bobbie's growing terror as they slowly uncover the secret.
Of course, a smart story teller will anticipates the `Spoiled by Recognition' problem and offer something of interest besides the big revelation. In the case of THE STEPFORD WIVES, this is accomplished partly through the use of the mystery/thriller format, in which the protagonist solves a mystery and uncovers an imminent danger in the process. The mystery is solved before the story's conclusion, and the focus shifts to averting the danger. Once Joanna figures out what's being done, the question becomes that of whether she can keep it from being done to her.
But truly makes THE STEPFORD WIVES worth your time, even if you've stepped on those spilled beans, are the questions and issues raised by the story. This is a story about the role some men want women to play, and about the lengths those men will go to to force women into that role. It might also be considered an allegorical deal-with-the-devil story, because the men of Stepford are effectively selling not only the souls of their wives, but their own souls as well. This allegorical overtone is interesting, given that this movie is based on a novel by Ira Levin, who also wrote ROSEMARY'S BABY, which involved a literal deal with the devil. (And ROSEMARY'S BABY is a movie that has the `Spoiled by Recognition' problem really bad because it's a classic.)
Indeed, the horror in THE STEPFORD WIVES is very much a horror of ideas, rather than a horror of physical events, which is likely to frustrate you if you're looking for a thrill ride along the lines of NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. Now, don't get me wrong. I have an appetite for gross-out horror as well, but I think it's important to realize horror can come in other forms as well -- which can be just as effective.
I will concede that THE STEPFORD WIVES might have been more suspenseful; at a nice tight 90 minutes, but both the characters and the situation might have come off as flat and wooden. As it is, there's a much stronger sense of reality, which makes what finally does happen that much more frightening and disturbing.
Finally, I'd like to address one other complaint you may have about this movie -- that it never explains the mechanics of HOW the men are doing what they're doing. The answer is that it really doesn't't matter how. What matters is that they ARE doing it and WHY they're doing it. By way of comparison, I would cite Franz Kafka's classic novella, THE METAMORPHOSIS, in which it is never explained HOW Gregor Samsa turns into a giant insect. It isn't explained, because it isn't germane to the point of the story.
You can still appreciate such a movie, however, if you go into it with the right mindset. My mother has always said she enjoys reading an Agatha Christie murder mystery twice -- the first time to experience the mystery, the second time to see how all the events in the story were cleverly engineered to lead up to the resolution without actually giving it away. If the resolution has been given away, you can read the novel this way the first time around. In the case of THE STEPFORD WIVES, even if you've already been told what the men in Stepford are doing, you can still appreciate how it's revealed only in stages, along with Joanna and Bobbie's growing terror as they slowly uncover the secret.
Of course, a smart story teller will anticipates the `Spoiled by Recognition' problem and offer something of interest besides the big revelation. In the case of THE STEPFORD WIVES, this is accomplished partly through the use of the mystery/thriller format, in which the protagonist solves a mystery and uncovers an imminent danger in the process. The mystery is solved before the story's conclusion, and the focus shifts to averting the danger. Once Joanna figures out what's being done, the question becomes that of whether she can keep it from being done to her.
But truly makes THE STEPFORD WIVES worth your time, even if you've stepped on those spilled beans, are the questions and issues raised by the story. This is a story about the role some men want women to play, and about the lengths those men will go to to force women into that role. It might also be considered an allegorical deal-with-the-devil story, because the men of Stepford are effectively selling not only the souls of their wives, but their own souls as well. This allegorical overtone is interesting, given that this movie is based on a novel by Ira Levin, who also wrote ROSEMARY'S BABY, which involved a literal deal with the devil. (And ROSEMARY'S BABY is a movie that has the `Spoiled by Recognition' problem really bad because it's a classic.)
Indeed, the horror in THE STEPFORD WIVES is very much a horror of ideas, rather than a horror of physical events, which is likely to frustrate you if you're looking for a thrill ride along the lines of NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. Now, don't get me wrong. I have an appetite for gross-out horror as well, but I think it's important to realize horror can come in other forms as well -- which can be just as effective.
I will concede that THE STEPFORD WIVES might have been more suspenseful; at a nice tight 90 minutes, but both the characters and the situation might have come off as flat and wooden. As it is, there's a much stronger sense of reality, which makes what finally does happen that much more frightening and disturbing.
Finally, I'd like to address one other complaint you may have about this movie -- that it never explains the mechanics of HOW the men are doing what they're doing. The answer is that it really doesn't't matter how. What matters is that they ARE doing it and WHY they're doing it. By way of comparison, I would cite Franz Kafka's classic novella, THE METAMORPHOSIS, in which it is never explained HOW Gregor Samsa turns into a giant insect. It isn't explained, because it isn't germane to the point of the story.
