The Stepford Wives (2004)

Summary: After Joanna (Nicole Kidman) is fired from the network and suffers a subsequent nervous collapse, she moves with her husband, Walter (Matthew Broderick), and their two kids to the quiet, upscale suburb of Stepford, Connecticut. Joanna has immediate difficulty fitting in with the 1950s husbands and wives of Stepford, embodied by Claire (Glenn Close) and Mike Wellington (Christopher Walken) and finds solace in the town's only other outsiders, the effeminent Roger (Roger Bart) and the outspoken Bobbi (Better Midler). The more Joanna learns about the wives of Stepford, the more she seeks to escape from what becomes a maximum security country club.

Oh, alright, since you know anyway, the husbands turn their wives into completely subservient androids. There, you know the truth now.

Now, I've got to tell you that my mom warned me not to see this movie. She thought it would "upset" me. I don't know how exactly it was supposed to upset me, but I considered myself forewarned. Maybe the original upset her. The case of the video of the original upsets me, but that's another story.

I can tell you truly that I was not upset. Okay, Jon Lovitz made this really rude and slightly frightening joke, and, while everyone in the theatre was laughing, I said, rather loudly, "That's not funny." That was the only part that upset me though.

For the record, having never seen (but knowing the entire thing) the original, what drew me to this remake was the stellar cast. I was not disappointed in that department. Close and Walken are two of the most talented people out there, and neither one of them miss a single beat. Close brings a psychotic refinement to a woman who cheerily exclaims that Stepford is a place with "no crime, no poverty, and no pushing." Oh, to be in a land without pushing.

I know this is going to sound horrible, but I am kind of glad that Kidman and Cruise got divorced. Finally, finally is a woman so obviously so much more than just another pretty face getting a chance to display her talent. She brings a quiet elegance to her every movement and a depth to every syllable that is almost unparalleled.

Also, good for Broderick. I really like him all grown up. Sure, like every other person alive I still like to think of him as Ferris Buller, but he really is a believable actor. I remember not too long ago someone I know referring to him as a B-List star married to an A-Lister (Sarah Jessica Parker). B-List, my eye!

And I don't know exactly why, but I just love Midler and Bart. Sure their stereotypes (a Jew and a flamboyant gay man) are milked for all their are worth by Paul Rudnick's over cooked screenplay, but that's hardly the point.

The point is that Frank Oz directs! I had no idea! I have even seen his movies, and I had no idea. In case you are wondering, Oz is pretty much the voice of The Muppet Show and Sesame Street. Turns out he directs, too! And he's not half bad. His previous work, The Score, is a study in intrigue in a heist film. This movie did suffer from moments of over-the-top insanity, but it's still quite good.

So, see it if you want. I liked it, and I don't regret spending $6.95 to see it. But you won't be missing out if you wait for the DVD.

Oh, and I watched thirteen again last night: still as horrifying as ever.

On a completely unrelated note, Have you no decency, Sir?