So I watched both versions of the Stepford Wives back to back. And, of course, the original is better but not for obvious reasons. Basically the newer version is a wannabe Tim Burton movie that fails on all levels.But whatever, this is a review for the original, which is a well made semi-horror film. But the film doesn't work if you know the ending because the film is more of a mystery than a horror. You know something isn't right with the wives living in Stepford, but you don't know just what and you're trying to figure it out with the lead actress. But woah, this film must have sparked a lot of controversy back in the days. Even by today's standards it seems almost as extreme as "Get Out." And boy how we need "Get Out's" with all the madness going on, must have been the same deal with women back then, or maybe Hollywood was late to the party considering this came out in the late 70s. Whatever. It is an entertaining film if you go into it knowing as little as possible.

Ira Levin wrote the book. It involves the town of Stepford where a male dominated culture reveals that all the wives are completely under the thumbs of the men, devoting their lives to pleasing them. The predictable turn of events is that a woman who is quite amazed at this gets into the mix. When she tries to befriend these women in a time of liberation, she is astonished at their willingness to act in this way. However, we find out that there's much more to their actions than she supposed. Somehow we have a kind of manipulation of the women, even replacement with androids, that sets the rest of the film. The problem here is that when dealing with human beings, the secrets seem impossible. The men are the ones I see as blowing the lid on this thing. it's an interesting premise, but awfully hard to swallow.

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.

"...we do this because we can"This is a film that reminds me of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde". No, it isn't because of the personality changes of the characters. Both stories are excellent BUT it seems that so many people know the twist at the end that much of the wonderful impact is lost in the movies when you see them today (or read them if you're reading "Jekyll"). I wish folks could watch this without knowing--it would make the suspense so much greater.The film begins in New York City. A family is moving to the country and once there, they see that things are practically perfect in every way. While Walter Eberhart seems to take all this perfection in stride, his wife, Joanna (Katharine Ross) is simply going bananas! Most of the housewives only talk about cleaning their homes and baking--and are very bland but beautiful women. However, there are three women (Paula Prentiss, Tina Louise and Ross) who are 'normal' and haven't succumbed to whatever's changing the women of Stepford into whatever the crap they are! This is a well made and chilling movie. If you DON'T know the twist, I'd rate it an 8 or possibly a 9. If you DO, it's still worth watching but only garners a 7. It was certainly original when it first debuted.By the way, although the movie was rated PG, today it probably would earn a PG-13 due to some sexual content and brief nudity.