The Stepford Wives

"Something is wrong with the women of Stepford."

1975 1h 57m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

🥫

55%

ROTTEN

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

6.9

IMDB

★6.7TMDB · 386🥫55%Rotten Tomatoes●54Metacritic★6.9IMDB · 21,457

Science FictionHorrorThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Joanna Eberhart comes to the town of Stepford, Connecticut with her family, but soon discovers there lies a sinister truth in the all too perfect behavior of the female residents.

“Something is wrong with the women of Stepford.”

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Cast

Katharine Ross
Joanna Eberhart
Paula Prentiss
Bobbie Markowe
Nanette Newman
Carol Van Sant
Judith Baldwin
Patricia Cornell
Peter Masterson
Walter Eberhart
Tina Louise
Charmaine Wimpiris
Carol Eve Rossen
Dr. Fancher
William Prince
Ike Mazzard

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Bryan Forbes
Writers: William Goldman
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $9M — a 17.4× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

51 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Stepford Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Bryan Forbes, shot by Owen Roizman. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Michael Small. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Timothy Gee shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Katharine Ross and Paula Prentiss and Nanette Newman carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Bryan Forbes directs. Owen Roizman behind the camera. Michael Small scores. Timothy Gee cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Grossed $9M — a 17.4× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
351 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Part of the "Stepford Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Directed by Bryan Forbes, shot by Owen Roizman. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Michael Small. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Timothy Gee shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Katharine Ross and Paula Prentiss and Nanette Newman carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Something is wrong with the women of Stepford.".
10IMDB entry: tt0073747 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 19 themes, including "android", "small town", "based on novel or book", "feminism".

The technical file

Cinematography: Owen Roizman
Original score: Michael Small
Editing: Timothy Gee
Production design: Gene Callahan
Costume design: Anna Hill Johnstone
Makeup / hair: Andy Ciannella
Runtime: 117 min · 1h 57m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $500,000
Box office: $8,700,000
Return: 1740% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: The Stepford Wives (1975)
Rotten Tomatoes: 55% 🥫 Rotten
Metacritic: 54/100
IMDB rating: 6.9/10 · 21,457 votes
MPAA: PG

Awards

1 win & 1 nomination total

Part of

Stepford Collection

The Stepford Wives is a 1975 American sci-fi horror thriller film based on the 1972 Ira Levin novel of the same name. It was directed by Bryan Forbes with a screenplay by William Goldman, and stars Katharine Ross, Paula Prentiss, Peter Masterson, Nanette Newman, and Tina Louise. While the film was a moderate success at the time of release, it has grown in stature as a cult film over the years. Building upon the reputation of Levin's novel, the term "Stepford" or "Stepford Wife" has become a popular science fiction concept and several sequels were shot: Revenge of the Stepford Wives (1980), starring Don Johnson, Sharon Gless, and Julie Kavner. The Stepford Children (1987), starring Barbara Eden. The Stepford Husbands (1996), starring Donna Mills and Michael Ontkean.

Also by

Bryan Forbes

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2020-08-11
★ 7/10
Slow-burn creepy 70's Sci-fi/drama A couple (Katharine Ross & Peter Masterson) moves from the Big Apple to Stepford, Connecticut, where many of the wives of the village are oblivious to the current women's lib movement; they seem wholly dedicated to their husbands, home & garden and keeping themselves well-groomed and primed for sex. The husband joins the mysterious all-male organization of the town which seems to be up to something fishy. Paula Prentiss is on hand as Joanna’s quirky new friend while Tina Louise plays another newbie resident. “The Stepford Wives” (1975) is a drama/mystery that morphs into sci-fi/horror. It’s iconic for good reason. The story’s captivating and the movie’s all-around entertaining. The story's not campy at all, like the confused 2004 version. This is serious and creepy sci-fi/drama with a bit o’ satire. It powerfully succeeds while the similar-themed "Westworld" (1973) is only passable. Unfortunately, the film takes too much time with the building mystery where some of the drama is just plain dull. Nevertheless, it’s a notable film of the 70s tarnished only by the misguided remake in the 2000s. The film runs 1 hour, 55 minutes, and was shot in Connecticut (Norwalk, Westport, Darien, Weston, Fairfield & Redding), except for the opening Manhattan scenes. GRADE: B

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