1975 Directed by Bryan Forbes
Joanna Eberhart has come to the quaint little town of Stepford, Connecticut with her family, but soon discovers there lies a sinister truth in the all too perfect behavior of the female residents.
Katharine Ross Paula Prentiss Nanette Newman Judith Baldwin Peter Masterson Tina Louise Carol Eve Rossen William Prince Mary Stuart Masterson Patrick O'Neal Dee Wallace George Coe Franklin Cover Carole Mallory Toni Reid Barbara Rucker Robert Fields Josef Sommer Paula Trueman Michael Higgins Martha Greenhouse Neil Brooks Cunningham Remak Ramsay Ronny Sullivan John Aprea Kenneth McMillan Tom Spratley
스텝포드 와이브스, Stepfordin naiset
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“I like to watch women doing little domestic chores” is one of the creepiest lines of dialogue I’ve ever heard, especially with that wistful music playing over it... actually this whole conformity nightmare scenario gives me the creeps.
"The Stepford Wives" is an iconic film, so much so that the title has been used to coin a phrase. There's really nothing special to the film's style - the cinematography, editing, or art design - although I'd argue that the acting is pretty great.
However, the story itself is way ahead of its time; indeed, it's still revolutionary to this day. The film's feminist themes are explicit from the outset, and even the environmental concerns are teased out rather easily, but the way the narrative deals with the blurred lines between reality, simulation and simulacra is less obvious and yet fundamentally postmodern.
The 2004 remake turns this film's ideas into a joke, but the "original" - pun intended -…
"Why?"
"Because we can."
A succinct exchange that really gets to the core of the banal evil inherent in power.
A really fun and feminist take on Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Katharine Ross stars as a photographer and mother who moves to Stepford, finding that all the housewives are super pristine, and almost from a different time.
This movie angered many feminist groups at the time, causing protests, however the misogynistic world it depicts isn't by accident, but a reflection of our own society. The point it is trying to make is that the situation is impossible but if it were possible, men are such pigs that many would wish for a situation with a perfect yet plain housewife. I hope others will reflect back on the strong message it is trying to convey. That was my interpretation, I'd love to know others' thoughts.
Great Katharine Ross performance, and great example of early social-horror.
Thanks to ScreeningNotes for putting this on my radar :)
Joanna: Why?
Dale Coba: Why? Because we can.
No evil master plot. No lengthy exposition. Just the most chilling exchange of lines in a horror film.
I love an intelligent, dark satire. Its influence on films like Get Out and Greener Grass is plain to see. I'm honestly floored at how good this movie is. The old TV and magazine ads that portray domesticity are so ridiculous to look at through a 2019 lens, but it's interesting how the absurdity of that portrayal was so divisive. Clearly, everyone involved in this film understood what they were trying to convey about the archaic view that women were nothing but housecleaning robots, but it's also interesting to note that many feminist groups thought the film was anti-women. It's definitely not, but it shows how the film was ahead of its time.
Also, when my girlfriend Bobby changed I started crying. Truly a horror film!
Arguably the most powerful moment in The Stepford Wives is a tiny one, one it's easy to ignore in favor of the endlessly quotable lines and late, dramatic confrontations. It's one that occurs when Joanna (Katharine Ross) for the first time speaks aloud her terrible, ridiculous fears about Stepford to the therapist she just met (Carol Rossen as Dr. Fancher), right after she's told a complete stranger the impossible truth: that she is going to be replaced by a thing with her name, that looks like her and talks like her, but which won't be her.
And Dr. Fancher looks at Joanna, and she believes. There's no wisely moderate therapist talk, no "well, I can see how it might feel…
