The Stepford Wives (1975)Who wouldn't want the "perfect wife"? The answer to that would be the "imperfect wife", which rightly raises the question about who defines perfection. In the town of Stepford, it becomes apparent that men are the arbiters of desirability, as well as its enforcers; not so much with an iron fist, but with a diabolically subtle black glove, a conspiracy which Joanna Eberhart (Katharine Ross) slowly begins to peel away. Previously accustomed to the hustle and bustle of New York City, she and her husband, Walter (Peter Masterson), bring their daughters to the too-quiet town, where (most of) the wives are fixated on being perfect, submissive dolls for their altogether ordinary husbands, as though rehearsed...programmed.
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The Stepford Wives (1975) was adapted from a novel by Ira Levin, who also penned Rosemary's Baby; interestingly, both stories focus on a woman who gets drawn into a conspiracy, but is made to feel that her perception of a conspiracy is insane, which causes her to hesitate to act--even though her intuition tells her otherwise--until the wheel is spinning out of control, and her world slowly becomes unrecognizable. When the Eberhart family makes the move from the city, Walter is welcomed by their neighbor, Carol Van Sant (Nanette Newman), who delivers unto him a casserole as a welcoming gift. What could be a more perfect invitation into the elite WASP conclave than this quintessential symbol of domesticity? Surely, there is a dash of cynicism in that observation, but that spice is all part of the flavor. Maybe it's the generosity--or maybe Walter is being seeded to acknowledge his preconceived notions about femininity and "a woman's place", something we suspect is not yet a part of his relationship with Joanna. Instead, Joanna is welcomed by a kindly, old reporter from the local paper--who believes that Stepford is liberal on the merits of the upcoming inclusion of a black family into the community--who makes mention of Joanna's hobby (and passion): photography. Just prior to the trip to Stepford, Joanna catches a few snapshots of a young man crossing the street, carrying a nude mannequin of a woman. Just as it is to Joanna, this scene is interesting for varying reasons. Although it appears innocuous enough, is it because it is just a mannequin, or because it represents a particular perspective on what ideal femininity is, manifested in this physical simulacrum? And would a man view this differently than a woman, as evidenced by Walter's dismissive response? Joanna's photographic artistry is something which defines her as a person, and not just an automaton, so busy with making her husband's home sparkle that she has no time for herself--a slave by any other name. It also reflects that she has a unique perspective and capacity to observe objectively, even if this quality is lost on her husband, or that he chooses to ignore it. The article catches the eye of perhaps the only other free-spirited woman in the town, Bobby Markowe (Paula Prentiss), who instantly befriends Joanna as they get to know each other's eccentricities, and even their diction and habits. The two women feel that something is missing from Stepford, and attempt to organize a "women's club"--something to provide an alternative to just polishing floors and baking brownies. Their efforts fail spectacularly, as the majority of the wives acclimated to the community have nothing to contribute but cleaning advise, although they do end up befriending tennis aficionado, Charmaine Wimperis (Tina Louise). Charmaine serves as the most obvious litmus test of Stepford when one day, Joanna and Bobby discover her tennis court being demolished as she watches with a smile, decked out in an apron, indicating not that she felt unloved by her husband--as she had days before--but that she now only lived to serve him, and that something has turned her from the confident woman she had been into a Barbie doll overnight, literally.
The phrase "Stepford wife" has been absorbed into our lexicon as a woman who has relinquished her authority in a marriage, who seems to live only to obey her husband, leaving all the important decisions to him. It is generally employed in a derogatory sense, but there is a question that remains unasked in the evidence of its existence: what is an ideal relationship, and what is an ideal mate? The world of The Stepford Wives is one immersed in commercials and products; the women talk on about the cleansers they love, and dress and doll themselves up like models, as though they were advertisements. When Joanna and Bobby accidentally overhear a session of passionate lovemaking between the pharmacist and his wife, they catch bits of bed talk which sounds lifted from an adult movie--embarrassing for the women listening, and perhaps for the men who might hesitate to admit that the kind of foreplay turns them on. Both Bobby and Joanna--as well as Charmaine--all agree that the men's association is a bit creepy, although there is nothing they seem to be privy to which should give them that impression; Joanna's sole exposure to them has been sitting in on a boring discussion--staged for her benefit--about a bake sale or square dance, where she gets to meet some of the upper echelon in the group. The most enigmatic--and decidedly creepy--member of the bunch is Dale "Diz" Coba (Patrick O'Neal), who gets his nickname--he claims--because he used to work for Disney, a fact that gets revisited when Joanna comments that the women of Stepford behave not unlike those robots at Disneyland. Another member of this elite, male coven is Ike Mazzard (William Prince), who takes the opportunity of their meeting to draw a startlingly lifelike sketch of Joanna, which he gifts to her...as he has done for all the wives in Stepford. The paranoid-prodding associations we make with the unusual events in town to the drastic transformation in the women ratchets up throughout the movie, so that it doesn't seem crazy when Bobby suggests that the water may be tainted by tranquilizers, or that Joanna insists on moving away from Stepford because of a feeling of unease. Is it so odd that the ambulance which took Carol away from the supermarket goes in a direction not leading to the hospital? Yes, but because we are conditioned--like Joanna--to see that "uncanny valley", even in seemingly harmless behavior--and identify the real from the fabrication. Frank's return after his first night meeting at the men's association leaves him visibly rattled, even though we don't know why and he won't tell Joanna...but we suspect, and our suspicions remain peaked and pointed as the film continues. Clearly, Joanna's perceptions of perfection do not mirror those of the men in Stepford, or even that of her husband. She comments that she misses the noise of New York City; what she really misses are the sounds of reality, in all its chaotic splendor, not the artificial, rehearsed placidity of Stepford, without soul, without life. We feel it, and that is how we know; what do the men of Stepford feel?
Recommended for: Fans of a striking thriller which operates best in the open, because it is there that the conspiracy of the Stepford wives is hidden in plain sight. It is a feminist film if there ever was one; and how you respond to the term "feminist" should itself serve as a litmus test to how you respond to The Stepford Wives.
The phrase "Stepford wife" has been absorbed into our lexicon as a woman who has relinquished her authority in a marriage, who seems to live only to obey her husband, leaving all the important decisions to him. It is generally employed in a derogatory sense, but there is a question that remains unasked in the evidence of its existence: what is an ideal relationship, and what is an ideal mate? The world of The Stepford Wives is one immersed in commercials and products; the women talk on about the cleansers they love, and dress and doll themselves up like models, as though they were advertisements. When Joanna and Bobby accidentally overhear a session of passionate lovemaking between the pharmacist and his wife, they catch bits of bed talk which sounds lifted from an adult movie--embarrassing for the women listening, and perhaps for the men who might hesitate to admit that the kind of foreplay turns them on. Both Bobby and Joanna--as well as Charmaine--all agree that the men's association is a bit creepy, although there is nothing they seem to be privy to which should give them that impression; Joanna's sole exposure to them has been sitting in on a boring discussion--staged for her benefit--about a bake sale or square dance, where she gets to meet some of the upper echelon in the group. The most enigmatic--and decidedly creepy--member of the bunch is Dale "Diz" Coba (Patrick O'Neal), who gets his nickname--he claims--because he used to work for Disney, a fact that gets revisited when Joanna comments that the women of Stepford behave not unlike those robots at Disneyland. Another member of this elite, male coven is Ike Mazzard (William Prince), who takes the opportunity of their meeting to draw a startlingly lifelike sketch of Joanna, which he gifts to her...as he has done for all the wives in Stepford. The paranoid-prodding associations we make with the unusual events in town to the drastic transformation in the women ratchets up throughout the movie, so that it doesn't seem crazy when Bobby suggests that the water may be tainted by tranquilizers, or that Joanna insists on moving away from Stepford because of a feeling of unease. Is it so odd that the ambulance which took Carol away from the supermarket goes in a direction not leading to the hospital? Yes, but because we are conditioned--like Joanna--to see that "uncanny valley", even in seemingly harmless behavior--and identify the real from the fabrication. Frank's return after his first night meeting at the men's association leaves him visibly rattled, even though we don't know why and he won't tell Joanna...but we suspect, and our suspicions remain peaked and pointed as the film continues. Clearly, Joanna's perceptions of perfection do not mirror those of the men in Stepford, or even that of her husband. She comments that she misses the noise of New York City; what she really misses are the sounds of reality, in all its chaotic splendor, not the artificial, rehearsed placidity of Stepford, without soul, without life. We feel it, and that is how we know; what do the men of Stepford feel?
Recommended for: Fans of a striking thriller which operates best in the open, because it is there that the conspiracy of the Stepford wives is hidden in plain sight. It is a feminist film if there ever was one; and how you respond to the term "feminist" should itself serve as a litmus test to how you respond to The Stepford Wives.