A story that let Nicole Kidman down

Radically revisiting a little-known dark, conspiratorial suspense drama also called The Stepford Wives, the new film works hard with uneven success to present a horror comedy starring an interesting cast.

Director Frank Oz, who has made some fine comedies including Bowfinger, and actress Nicole Kidman, among others, are ill served by an unimaginative script. It is not subversive enough to be an indictment of suburban life. And it doesn't produce enough horror and comedy like Little Shop of Horrors did in 1986. That was directed by Oz, too. 

Yet, the film, because of its star cast and appeal to women, could emerge a medium range success. Those who expected the $90 million film to be the first big summer turkey may have to wait for another film to earn that dubious distinction.   

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The original chiller released nearly 28 years ago is not anyone's inspiration for a remake, but perhaps producer Scott Rudin is a good fan of the Ira Levin novel. He must have thought, giving it a radical twist could produce some magic. 

While the original film was anything but a classic, it still conveyed the book's subversive theme -- of how a group of white males living in their awesome suburban houses are turning their wives into robots, so that their vision of the nuclear family is not challenged by the growing feminist movement -- reasonably well.

Kidman, who somehow rises about the lunacy of the script, is Joanna Eberhart, a seemingly smart and aggressive television executive who loses her job when her female-dominated game shows and reality TV flop. Just then, her nerdy husband Walter (Matthew Broderick) gives up his web job and decides to move the family to a new suburban life in Connecticut.

When Kidman finds the women around her sweetly subversive and the rich men seem to be living it up rather than working, Walter assures her that is how life ought to be lived.

The homemakers are led by Claire Wellington (Glenn Close) who, along with her controlling husband Mike (Christopher Walken), seems to know how life has to be designed in their suburban paradise.

But Joanna soon finds that she is not the only one who thinks something is wrong in the paradise. The doubters include newcomers Bobbie Markowitz (Bette Midler), who has been writing pro feminist books, and Roger Bannister (Roger Bart), an architect trying to save a relationship with his politically conservative partner Jerry (David Marshall Grant).

As the film wades through comic situations that aren't funny and horror scenarios that never chill, the only big question seems to be whether Joanna succeeds against the evil men. Even that question doesn't get a satisfactory ending.

Joining Kidman in the heroic task of saving the film is Midler, who is quite a bit of fun. Bart, too, has a handful of fine moments, but Broderick is wasted in a one-dimensional role. Close and Walken, fine actors that they are, also get little respect from the script.

CREDITS
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Matthew Broderick, Bette Midler, Christopher Walken, Roger Bart, David Grant Marshall, Faith Hill, Glenn Close
Director: Frank Oz
Screenplay: Paul Rudnick based on the novel by Ira Levin
Rating: PG-13
Running time: 1 hour 33 minutes