The Stepford Wives (2004)

I don't know if you've noticed but I've been watching a lot of crappy movies lately because I'm too lazy to pick movies so I watch whatever trash Netflix suggests me. The Stepford Wives is one of those movies and I gave it a chance because of Nicole Kidman. 

Based on Ira Levin's novel of the same name, the story follows Joanna Eberhart (Nicole Kidman), a successful TV executive. When she is fired and has a nervous breakdown, her husband, Walter (Matthew Broderick), decides to move the whole family from Manhattan to a community in Stepford, Connecticut. There's something weird going on though as their female neighbours are a bit too perfect and the men just seem to sit around in the men's club all day. 

The problem with The Stepford Wives is that the writer had no idea what he was doing. As a result, the plot doesn't make a lot of sense —if the chip is implanted in the original, what's the point of a body double?—, the twist is given away almost immediately, and the ending which was changed to please the audience couldn't be any more unsatisfying —that final twist is quite surprising though because of the direction the story was going up to that point. It's also rather confusing as one moment it says men are evil and the next one it says that women are just as evil, if not even worse. That being said, I still found the story enjoyable enough to keep watching. 

Just like the plot, the characters too are flawed. Actually, they are quite the mess as they lack characterization, backstories, and development. They don't even have a reason to act the way the act. And some characters you cannot help but hate, like Joanna's husband —and I'm still trying to figure out whether he's beyond dumb or just a man. Others, you don't know whether to laugh about or feel sorry for. 

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Surprisingly, considering the lacklustre script, the cast does a pretty good job. Nicole Kidman is very good as Joanna and really makes you root for her. Glenn Close is brilliant as Claire Wellington, the head matron. Bette Midler is fine as Bobbie Markowitz, a writer who befriends Joanna. And Christopher Walken makes up for the horrible performance by Matthew Broderick. 

Ultimately, The Stepford Wives is not a great film as the tone is often too light for the material and the message changes throughout the film. However, it's an enjoyable flick that will make you have a few good laughs.