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 | Battle Of The Sexes | Decapitation

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

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

Also Known As:

Las mujeres perfectas (Argentina) (International: Spanish title) (Peru) (Spain) [es]
Die Frauen von Stepford (Germany) (Switzerland: German title) [de]
Et l'homme créa la femme (France) [fr]
La donna perfetta (Italy) [it]
Les femmes de Stepford (Canada: French title) [fr]
Mulheres Perfeitas (Brazil) [pt]
Stepford Kadinlari (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Stepfordi naised (Estonia) [et]
Stepfordin naiset (Finland) [fi]

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:

When Walter enters the lab where Stepford Wives are transformed. He's referred to as "Member 1956". This is the same number he punches in the front-door code to allow Joanna to leave.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the picnic, background actors change hairdos from shot to shot. They look different outside than when they are square dancing.

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:

Features "Larry King Live" (1985)

Soundtrack:

Scenic Railway

A suspenseful remake

Having read the Ira Levin book and seen the 1975 film, I was pleasantly surprised by the modern twist - emphasis on TWIST - of this "Stepford Wives" versus the original version. It kept the principal message of the story while almost spoofing it at the same time. As usual, Nicole Kidman was brilliant, and the already Stepford-ized actresses were eerily convincing enough to maintain the suspense. I hadn't expected to be kept guessing - or to be so entertained! Though I'm not sure it could be appreciated as a standalone film - as is evidenced by the many negative reviews it received - it definitely gave me the feeling of a tribute, almost as "High Society" was to "The Philadelphia Story." The comic timing of the ensemble even managed to make some clichés funny all over again.