Greenes Please don't spend money on this.

Twilightfa Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Brennan Camacho Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Matt Smitty This movie is like a decent lifetime movie. It isn't really horror, more like a hitchcock style of horror or mystery. A woman and man basically move to a town and at the end of the movie discover that all of the wives have been turned into robots. Thats literally all there is to the storyline, a very basic and simple storyline. The movie is also fairly simple but what carries it along is the dialogue, it is feminine and has an ASMR quality.. Not a bad movie.

Red-Barracuda The Stepford Wives is an adaption of an Ira Levin novel. Another of his books had previously been transformed to the screen in a highly successful manner, namely Rosemary's Baby (1968). Both films share pretty clear similarities, they both focus on a woman who has moved to a new place where she finds strange new neighbours who convince her husband to conspire against her in order to work with them to facilitate a scenario where he will also be rewarded. It's a pretty specifically similar set-up but this is ultimately a film which explores quite different areas with this premise. A woman and her family move from New York to a small 'idyllic' town called Stepford because her husband insists. When there, she soon realises something is wrong once she encounters the women of the town who are unnaturally placid, vapid creatures who are unconditionally devoted to their husbands, obsessed with domestic chores and unable to talk about anything other than trivialities. When her best friend from the area suddenly also succumbs to this condition she accelerates her investigations, fearing she must be next.The ideas interwoven into the fabric of this cult movie have seeped into western culture to such an extent that the term 'Stepford Wives' has known meaning to those who haven't even seen the film. I guess this goes some way in showing that this is a movie with a very memorable premise that clearly struck a chord. While it is a sci-fi film and it does have horror elements – albeit with a tone more of uncertainty and dread that full on horror – these genres are more working (very effectively) in the background, with the main focus a satire of suburban life and the sexist expectations put on women. When it was released these ideas were set against the backdrop of the Women's Lib movement which was gathering steam, a situation that seems to have made many men rather uncomfortable. The men of Stepford represent these kinds of males and they are a hugely unappealing collection of individuals who have gone to extremes to curb feminism and maintain the patriarchal system. It's these underlying ideas that have made The Stepford Wives more than simply a creepy sci-fi horror movie. Although it still operates very well as that too, with its story of slowly unfolding dread, sinister individual moments such as the kitchen scene where one of the 'Wives' goes haywire and the decidedly nihilistic conclusion. Katharine Ross is excellent in the main role and very successfully gets us on board, which makes this ending all the more downbeat. If I had to put forward a criticism of the film it would be that it does have some pacing problems, meaning that it feels like it might be a little overlong. This issue aside though, this is a pretty effective example of a genre film with quite a lot of interesting things to say. It's definitely worthy of its iconic reputation.

George Wright The Stepford Wives was a huge disappointment. I expected something much more riveting. Rosemary's Baby, also based on another Ira Levin book, was far better. This one dragged from start to finish. Even accomplished actors Katharine Ross and Paula Prentiss couldn't rescue this slow motion movie. I'm not saying that this isn't an interesting period piece. Made in the early 1970's it shows the disquiet of young, educated women about marriage and becoming a domestic robot. Many women of the time expressed the need to avoid becoming kitchen queens, keeping a perfect house and being sexually attractive. Some of the dialogue makes this very clear in a humorous and mocking way. Some of the scenes of the women are quite pointed. For example, conversations about domestic cleaning solutions at a serious meeting where Katharine Ross and Paula Prentiss try to encourage some awareness raising about the emptiness of their lives. The supermarket scene of the wives dressed like domestic sex goddesses was like fodder for the college crowd in 1975. It was genuinely funny. There is some over the top drama where Katharine Ross tries take a stand against the town's conspiracy to make all families into robotic commercial style icons of the advertising world. Clearly the movie had points to make but lacked coherence and was marred by an overlong and far fetched story that wouldn't connect with the audience then or now.

bowmanblue Okay, let's just get the 'remake' starring Nicole Kidman and that other guy out of the way – it's rubbish. Ignore it. Yes, the seventies Stepford Wives may be just a little bit dated (play 'spot the flared trousers etc), but, if you're serious about horror, then there's no comparison.If you don't know... a family move to the quiet, secluded little American town of Stepford where the man of the family joins the (secretive) 'Men's Association,' leaving the woman of the family to make friends with some of the most submissive and prim women ever. Coincidence, or something darker afoot? It's something darker, but then as it's a horror film, you probably could guess that anyway.On the off chance you haven't seen 'The Stepford Wives' I won't say too much about the plot. You'll only get the one chance to see it without knowing what happens, so I won't spoil it for you. Just know that it is a masterpiece of 'understated' horror. It doesn't need 'torture p0rn' or anything gruesome and bl00dy to scare. It's just scary in a whole different way.If I had to pick one gripe with the film, I'd say the editing is a bit choppy. Some scenes seen to cut or fade into another a bit randomly. Still, it doesn't take away from the film too much.Also, while you ignore Nicole Kidman's remake, it's probably best to ignore all the 'Stepford sequels' – none of them are up to the original.