The Stepford Wives (2004)

I think it was the tone of the film. They couldn't decide on a thriller like the original, a comedy, a satire or a hybrid of all these. Tonally, it's all over the place. It's a mess.

I know Frank Oz has had run-ins with people in the past but he was very pointed about Bette Midler in this quote:

"Tension on the set? Absolutely! In every movie I do, there's tension. That's the whole point. And working people hard, that's exactly what they expect me to do... Bette has been under a lot of stress lately... She made the mistake of bringing her stress on the set."

The original was superior.

The movie was reshot/re-edited because they pussied out on the original ending (the women are killed and replaced by robots - same as the original movie only it didn’t play right in a “comedy”) - and this created a lot of continuity errors and the deletion of a very fun set piece where Bette’s jewish hausfrau character breaks down.

Nicole Kidman really used to be synonymous with big studio disasters. (this , the golden compass, invasion).

Nicole looked horrible in this, especially with that frau wig at the beginning. This is when she seriously started fucking with her face more aggressively.

No wonder Glenn went running to TV.

All that may be true, but the idea of those perfect little housewife who’s too good to be true, so she’s probably an Android, is just so ridiculously dated now. The movie is a dinosaur.

^^^this

[quote] the idea of those perfect little housewife who’s too good to be true, so she’s probably an Android, is just so ridiculously dated now.

I see you’ve never been to Connecticut.

The original was a horror movie, the husband's were straight up evil bastards since they knew their wives were killed in the process.

It was pretty obvious when you watched it that the making of the movie was a hot mess.

I remember it was kind of a big deal that it was Faith Hill’s film debut, but then she wasn’t really in much of the final film and has only done one film since. It didn’t make her a Dolly or Reba.

R6 has never been to Texas, either!

It was really boring and slow. I remember seeing it in the theatre and was really disappointed. I just saw the original one during 2020 and it was more dark and suspenseful. Nicole looked amazing here. To Die For she was smoking hot.

More from Fran Oz about the tension on the set.

"Bette has been under a lot of stress lately. She not only has been filming a very large production, but she's had to finish her record BETTE MIDLER SINGS ROSEMARY CLOONEY. She's also been rehearsing for her tour. She made the mistake of bringing her stress on the set."

"There's tension there. There's tension with Chris and Nic Kidman and Roger Bart and Glenn Close to a degree, there's tension with everybody."

"Sure, Christopher and I had words. But I've had words with other actors, and then at the end of the day Chris was fantastic. This is like kids fighting for turf and then they're friends again."

^ Frank.

The only way it could play today would be if the reason for the weird behavior was never explained...and extended to the men as well. Move to Stepford, wind up a smug, unflappable yuppie.

Robot wives are just a bit too literal-minded these days to play as anything but farce, but the implied murderousness behind the idea is clearly not funny.

That said the opening credits are a work of art and Bette gets in a couple good zingers.

It was meant to be campy, but it just wasn’t very fun. I agree that the whole concept was a bit tired at the time - and the update of making it husbands of high powered executive wives didn’t do much to make the satire relevant in the 21st century.

Still, it was my introduction to the Stepford story and though I didn’t really love it at the time, I still kind of like the vibe of it.

I always bring this up when this movie is mentioned but back when the movie was in production there was a set insider posting here confirming what a mess the production was. I wish those threads were archived somehow because they were a trove of good gossip. I don't remember all the details just that it was an extremely unhappy set with friction between Oz and much of the cast (Midler especially) due to script changes and reshoots and that everyone knew they were making a bomb and were struggling to hold it together. I think they said Faith Hill was forced into the movie by the studio and it took forever to film her scenes since she had no experience. There was stuff about Broderick but I can't remember exactly what - an affair? a separation from SJP? alcohol abuse? The jist was he was in a bad place in his life when he made it and the troubled production didn't help. Maybe some other DL longtimers have better memories than me.

What is the worst Nicole Kidman “reimagining,” this or BEWITCHED? They were both terrible, but I have seen each only once and don’t remember much. I love Nic as an actress, but neither film did her career any favors. They were both just totally wrong headed.

The whole idea to make a remake of this movie, as a comedy, was just bizarre. Men and their last ditch effort to be the ones in charge? What was Hollywood thinking? I guess "Get Out" fared better, because it put a whole new twist in that trope.

But, fuck, that trailer! That’s what reels ‘em in, kids. Jesus Christ, I’d become a robot to live there.

Part of the problem was the Paul Rudnick script. Rudnick can write one-liners and skits but he can not write a script that exists as a successful whole.

Much of the changes from the original weakened the movie. Making Glenn lose the villain, the added gay angle, etc.

Why aren't there theme related towns like, you know, Pleasantville which, on top of nation and state laws, have their own rules to keep up the town's theme?

You would think the Republicans would love nothing more than to have their own Stepford Wives Utopian town, or towns.

If there was a remake, it should have gone back to the book (the robotic wives dress like Playboy Bunnies and Hooters waitresses, not members of a garden club) and it should have been directed by Neil LaBute. That would have been a true horror movie.

the remake-remake should feature "progressives" as the husbands

the filmmakers didn't understand the story.The Stepford Wives is a feminist story and a feminist film. The remake got rid of the boring feminist theme and what remained was another empty vehicle for Nicole Kidman's movie stardom. Another Nicole Kidman flop.

I loved Glenn Close in this; it looked like she was having fun. I get what they were trying to achieve with the campy vibe, but there were plot-holes galore! It needed extensive and comprehensive re-shooting.

Wasn’t Bette also a pain in the ass during First Wives filming. Rolling her eyes at Director, etc.

R19, Soon to be surpassed in awfulness by her "Lucy."

The script is horrible. Whatever made them think “Stepford Wives” would work as a comedy?

Erm, because Paul Rudnick is NOT funny.

Who plays the Paula Prentiss role in the remake?

R3, you forgot Bewitched. Another disaster.

There are so many deleted scenes from this movie, you'd probably be able to cobble together a completely different alternate version of the film.

Joan Cusack saw the writing on the wall and bailed.

I remember hearing that Nicole really wanted John Cusack for the role of Walter but she got stuck with Matthew Broderick instead.

Get Out was a lazy, beat-by-beat remake of Stepford Wives... yet somehow it won an Oscar for original screenplay.

Sure, Jan, with the whole #oscarsooooowhite

They edited out a scene with Paula Prentiss and Katherine Ross. Why? Well I don't know why exactly but Bette had really big shoes to fill in playing Paula's role.

Paula Prentiss is gorgeous in the original and played her role to perfection.

I highly recommend the novel and the original movie.

Not quite, R37. Not at all really.

Yeah, I'm not sure who thought "Bette Midler would be great in the Paula Prentiss role!" Some lunatic.

they couldn't even decide whether in the 2004 they were robotic or just brainwashed. the film was a mess all over.

R19 Bewitched was worse, because it just took the source material and shit all over it. Stepford was bad but it at least it didn't change the essentials of the source material.

If you want a movie to flop, just put Nicole Kidman, Halle Berry, or Sharon Stone in it.

I watched it when I was had home with the flu. It was perfect viewing. I have no desire to see it again, but on those terms, it was a success for me.

I know a bit about how it came together....It was at a point where older properties were being resold at high amounts. Rights sold for over $2 million pretty much based on the fact it the original was a classic/hit movie. Scott Rudin had paramount buy it for him, then decided Paul Rudnick would write it (or Rudnick agreed to do it). Rudnick was fully booked so it took a while for him to get to it.

Once he wrote it, it was handed off to Nicole Kidman who said yes. This was around the time of THE OTHERS and THE HOURS and she was getting $20 mil for commercial studio movies. So it moved right into production. No long development process, no second guessing the take or whether the script matched the director's vision or if the vision made any sense in 2002 based on the premise.

The idea was just to turn the familiar thriller idea into a black comedy with an updated feminist angle which in today's world may still seem backwards. I'll add more if I can remember any more.... Oh yeah, Jean Smart really wanted the Glenn Close role but Glenn got priority. Everyone was very, very well paid. Movie cost $100 million by the time it was done.

I came on here to post pretty much exactly what r22 said. It was massively misconceived, so of course the actors couldn't make sense of it.

Jean Smart would have been wonderful in that role, but Close is one of the only things that works about the movie as is.

The story itself just seems to work better as a horror tale than a comedy even if there are some really funny moments in the film. It's far from a total disaster, but it just seemed really confused as to what it wanted to be.

The wives were brainwashed... but could shoot cash out of their mouths, had Inspector Gadget arms, their tits could resize themselves, their feet turned into lawnmowers, etc. What a mess!

Funny. when I saw it, I could have sworn their brains exploded. I have no memory of the ending on Youtube.

The ATM machine wives were another big problem. It seemed like that stuff was added to make it quirkier and more of a comedy, but it just lead to more questions about exactly what the husbands do with the wives. They changed it to something about a chip being implanted in their heads or something and it was just ridiculous.

I like the original more. It was kind of scary the way the husbands wanted their wives to be these buttoned up, conservative types with no personality whatsoever. Ross and Prentiss were great together and you really hoped they'd make it out alive.

[quote]Making Glenn lose the villain

Where? Did she find it?

Bette didn't get along with Frank Oz, Chris Walken and Glenn Close. She bonded with Nicole Kidman.

Bette brings drama with her to everything. Or she did. Very few people have enjoyed working with her.

It was a retarded dumb turd of a movie.

The original was perfect.

Glenn looked hideous in that final overhead shot of her body lying on the floor. She looked like she was bald there.

This beautiful waltz written for the film is pretty much the only good thing about this disaster of a movie:

I agree with what others have said about the original - it's perfect.

I know Katherine Ross gets slagged on here for her acting, but I thought she was terrific in the original. In fact, I loved when Ross was cast as the lead in horror films because her California hippie-ish characters worked perfectly as a lead character because she was a fish out of water - and out of her depth, which worked for the story in The Legacy and the original Stepford Wives. The scene between Ross and the psychiatrist is one of my favourite all-time movie scenes. It really feels like you're watching a reals session -- Ross' fear is palpable. And, yes, Paula Prentiss was equally terrific in the original. She was perfectly cast like Ross was, especially because her character was so naturally vibrant and loved life, so when she's replaced, it's tragic.

It didn't make sense to remake The Stepford Wives when the original worked so well.

Frank Oz should release a director’s cut.

R38. Didn't give a fuck. Didn't understand the source material. Just cobbled together a vehicle for Kidman's endless quest for movie stardom, without all the yucky feminazi stuff.

[quote] The scene between Ross and the psychiatrist is one of my favourite all-time movie scenes.

Agree, r55! The tension in that scene is incredible. Your heart just breaks for Ross because, as she says, if she’s wrong about Stepford she’s crazy but if she’s right then it’s worse than if she was wrong.

I have been searching, but I can't find the interview. Somewhere I read that the inspiration for the robots was the old joke that the perfect woman would be 3 feet tall, have a flat head on which you could rest a beer, and turn into a six pack and a pizza when you were done with her. Apparently, there was an even weirder segment where Bette Midler's chest was a refrigerator. Also, I have heard is that Oz is a fan Tex Avery cartoons and the tone of the movie reflected that.

I’m perhaps in the minority here, but although the remake was messy at times, I still found it entertaining although Matthew Broderick was woefully miscast as Kidman’s husband—yikes. It had its funny moments, so I’d say it was alright.

The original was far more overtly political/feminist, which is interesting, but I also found it to be a little too slow-paced for my tastes. The acting was good, but yeah, I would’ve preferred a bit faster pacing.

Nicole Kidman looked terrible in that movie, her face looked more plastic than a Stepford Wife

Original 1975 film like 1972 book barely skirted by thanks to the nascent but growing women's "lib" movement. There was just no way some thirty odd years later a remake with same sinister undertones was ever going to come out of Hollywood.

The men of Stepford desire to return their wives back to those early years of marriage, when they were obedient, docile and eager to please. So after they produced children and so forth their robot equals are created then wives killed off. Yeah that was really going to fly in 2000's Hollywood much less America.

In right hands remake of Stepford Wives could have been an even more dark and sinister horror film, but then you couldn't get around violence towards women and that was a non starter.

You were never going to have this sort of ending in 2001....

Tidbit.... Those flowing long Gunne Sax dresses, gloves, high heels and floppy hats came about when Paula Prentiss was cast as Bobbie Markowe. Original fashions called for things with shorter skirts and bit more skin revealing as were popular in 1970's. Ms. Prentiss was deemed a bit, well too "old" for such things hence change to different fashions.

As for Connecticut scores of young (or youngish), white, fit, blonde (or light brunette), perfectly dressed, coiffed, manicured etc... showed up when film was casting for extras. They arrived driving BMWs, MBs, Audis, etc... and no, they weren't dressed any better than they usually would, it was their daily uniform so to speak.

Cannot recall where saw the quote but think it was around time Stepford Wives was being remade; someone said took train up to CT and getting off at station was amazed (and frankly slightly creeped out) by all the beautiful, white, blonde, fit etc... wives waiting at station for their husbands all driving late model German vehicles.

[quote]Get Out was a lazy, beat-by-beat remake of Stepford Wives... yet somehow it won an Oscar for original screenplay.

It was a rip off of The Skeleton Key.

Katherine Ross was perfectly cast as the heroine who finally puts two and two together and doesn't like the final sums.

Many today don't give 1970's horror films enough credit. Just because there isn't blood and guts being spilled every several minutes they get slagged.

Films like Stepford Wives kept you on edge of seat or at least thinking about the horror what was unfolding. The drama and horror comes mostly in your head, which isn't a bad thing IMHO.

Did Ross get any Oscar buzz?

That year (1975) was notoriously short of potential Best Actress nominees. I'd think she'd have made a fine contender (Prentis too)

Miss Kidman's wigs irritate.

The opening of the sequel with her addressing a crowd of some sort of TV personal seems like a homage to Miss Dunaway in Network.

The short wig made her looked Kidman look so bad she was hard to watch

Going through the motions, borrowing bits of different films to stitch a starring role for Kidman together. R71. Uninspired. Lifeless.

This is a guilty pleasure movie for you. It’s a perfectly enjoyable, mindless way to spend a Saturday afternoon if you’re hungover.

The original was brilliant. In a scene toward the end when Katherine Ross is back in New York trying to explain to a psychologist what she thinks is going on in Stepford is truly heartbreaking. (She had to get back to get her kid). William Goldman who wrote the adaption wanted it to end in a bloodbath but the director had more poetic ideas and they had a big fight over it. I hope a THIRD version will be made someday, again as a drama and this time using Goldman's ending. It makes more sense and with it the the advances in AI and robotics from the 1970s it would no longer come off as a fantasy.

I've not seen the original, but I found this version was moderately enjoyable. It's no cinematic masterpiece, but I've seen much worse from each of the principal actors before (Bewitched, Biloxi Blues, Jinxed, etc.).

The scene with the psychologist is one of the best depiction of therapy ever in a movie. The doctor is so kind and accepts her feelings though far fetched sounding. I just wish she had told her to leave the kids there. The weren't hurting the kids.

Just drive Katharine and go back and get the kids later with help.

But you have to just accept the movie for what it is. I mean otherwise could they really create robots that functional? And would they kids as they grow up start to wonder why mom still likes 35 when dad is 80?

Biloxi Blues is actually one of Broderick's better films. He has quite a list of bad ones.

I wonder if he ever fantasizes about having SJP Stepfordized or at least her head mounted over the fireplace.

R78 Why would he keep the head? It is by far the least attractive part of her.

The original was far superior.

Wrong, r65. It was when director Bryan Forbes cast his wife Nanette Newman (I'll just die if I don't get this recipe) that they had to rethink the look of the wives. Paula Prentiss was actually a last second replacement in the movie. Joanna Cassidy was originally cast in the role and actually filmed for about a week before being replaced. The costume design would have long been in place by the time Prentiss got involved.

[quote]R7 Just drive, Katharine, and go back and get the kids later with help.

At LAST someone here’s spelling her name correctly (!)

R38/PPT, PP is always perfection.

"Where the Boys Are"; The Parallax View"; "The World of Henry Orient"; "Catch-22."

And so on!

Katharine and Paula wore sexy, earthy 70s clothes in The Stepford Wives. The other women were fully covered in quaint, modest clothing that covered most of their bodies. The original is funny in some moments. The women's empowerment meeting devolves into a discussion about laundry and cleaning.

But yet, the dresses were somewhat tight, emphasizing their curves and breasts…