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Reviews Counted:27
Fresh:18
Rotten:9
Average Rating:6.2/10
Runtime: 1 hr 55 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Synopsis: Katharine Ross stars in this classic horror film as Joanna, a woman who moves to Stepford, Connecticut, along with her husband Walter (Peter Masterson) and her best friend Bobbie (Paula Prentiss).... [More]
Starring: Katharine Ross, Paula Prentiss, Peter Masterson, Nanette Newman
Director: Bryan Forbes
William Goldman's leisurely script and Forbes' dull direction never quite capture the subtleties of Ira Levin's novel about an idyllic Connecticut commuter village where the housewives are a bunch of domesticated dummies.
Top CriticMaintains a satisfying level of suspense, and if nothing else beats the stuffing out of the lame remake.
The story is built on a foundation of fear and paranoia, yet it manages to give us a satisfying conclusion, proving that sometimes our sixth sense is not so far off.
The humor that remains in the movie is preesnted with such facetiousness one almost feels embarrassed to watch. You want to tell the actors to take it easy, since it's apparent that Bryan Forbes, the film's director, didn't.
Top CriticOverlong and underdeveloped, this flimsy Bryan Forbes horror story (1975) would probably have made a decent television movie; but on the big screen and stretched to nearly two hours, it sags badly.
I can imagine similar material being directed by, say, Woody Allen, and coming out pointed and funny. Instead, director Bryan Forbes gets all solemn and spooky and goes for obvious effects like bolts of lightning and forbidding Gothic mansions.
Top CriticCritical of the suburban milieu as a petri dish where regressive sexist fantasies are cultivated.
The Stepford Wives contains a number of timeless scenes that are the essence of women's fears about the patriarchal society in which they live.
This oft-referenced tale of suburban wives who suddenly lose their vibrant individualism and become 'perfect housewives' may earn points for becoming a piece of Americana, but it's hardly excellent filmmaking.
Suburban blandness.
The first hour takes what feels like two, and the last 44 minutes goes like an Indy car, so the pace is alternately snail's and Lamborghini's.
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Top CriticDecent 70s thriller.
Overrated uber-70s style thriller with an intriguing premise.
The misogynistic twist at the end is an acquiescence in the worst sort of way.
Still holds up as part horror film, part social commentary
No review available.
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