Lee Allen's Blog - Posts Tagged "satire"

The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Ira Levin’s chilling horror thriller, a satirical tale of patriarchy and latent misogyny, first published in 1972.

Joanna Eberhart has recently moved to the idyllic town of Stepford with her husband, Walter, and their two children. On the surface, Stepford is full of beauty – beautiful houses, beautiful gardens, beautiful neighbourhoods, beautiful women. Joanna hopes they can be happy here. She is a photographer and used to the bustle of city life. It isn’t long before feelings of discomfort creep in and she begins to believe that something sinister may lie beneath the veneer of Stepford.

Most of the women in town appear quite content with their roles as wives, mothers and domestic goddesses. Joanna despairs at the lack of independence, drive and substance to her female neighbours, while the men run the town from the heart of the Men’s Association. Still, she perseveres, continuing with her photography and becoming friends with two other women who thankfully are not the typical wives of Stepford.

Levin deftly builds on the underlying unease as Walter becomes more deeply involved with the activities of the Men’s Association. Tensions begin to develop in their marriage. Joanna meets some of the other members of the Men’s Association – amongst them an illustrator famous for drawing women to look their most (stereotypically) physically beautiful; a researcher of human speech; a pioneering designer of Disneyland robots. When the first of her friends undergoes a dramatic transformation over the course of a weekend spent with her husband, Joanna is both disturbed and suspicious.

Tension builds to terror as the truth about Stepford is revealed; Joanna desperately planning to escape before it is too late. The final scene is expertly disquieting, underscoring the satire in a way that is, of course, the most realistic for the time and still prevalent today.

Much like many of Levin’s novels, ‘The Stepford Wives’ has been adapted for the screen – first as a theatrical feature film in 1975, starring Katherine Ross. This spawned three television movie sequels – ‘Revenge of the Stepford Wives’ (1980); ‘The Stepford Children’ (1987); and ‘The Stepford Husbands’ (1996)’. A comedic remake, starring Nicole Kidman and Glenn Close, was released theatrically in 2004.

It has also inspired its own derogatory term – to call a woman a “Stepford Wife” is to label her submissive and conforming to the stereotypical subservient role where her husband’s needs, career and opinions come before her own. Indeed, “Stepford” has become more widely used as an adjective for anyone who appears to be blindly, almost robotically, obedient and conforms without question.

Both the novel and original film inspired much controversy – many feminist groups found it sexist and called for boycotts, despite the sub-text being very much anti-male establishment. Others may have appreciated that subtext, yet described it as a rip-off of the women’s movement. But controversy has done nothing to dent its enduring popularity; both the book and original film have become cult classics. Much of Levin’s work is hailed as a blueprint for the future of their respective genres, and ‘The Stepford Wives’ is no exception.

When you’re seeking escapism, nothing achieves it better than an Ira Levin classic – ‘The Stepford Wives’ is a taut and thrilling slice of sinister satire.



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Sliver by Ira Levin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A delicious sliver of menace from a master of suspense.

Someone is always watching. Literary editor Kay Norris moves into her new high-rise apartment, unknowingly becoming the subject of someone's obsession.

Befriending some of her neighbours and soon embarking on a relationship with one of them, Kay continues about her daily life, oblivious to the scrutiny, unaware of the increasing danger she is in.

The tenants are living a real-life soap opera - the footage live, raw and unedited. Behind the scenes is a puppet-master whose fantasies must be fulfilled, and self-preservation guaranteed, at all costs.

Novelist and playwright Ira Levin wrote seven novels; 'Sliver' being the sixth, published in 1991. A short, sharp, fast-paced erotic thriller, it deftly deals with its theme of observing the lives of others, developing into obsession, drawing parallels to ways in which viewers and readers devour fiction and the culture of celebrity. Along with her stalker, we observe Kay go about her daily life. We witness the addictive and compulsive relationship that develops, the revelations of a twisted hobby, and the growing mistrust and burgeoning paranoia as Kay unravels more of the past.

Levin's satirical take on stalking and voyeurism through the apartment block's advanced clandestine visual and audio surveillance system takes on a chilling plausibility in our days of reality TV, social media and mass use of surveillance and security cameras. Much like George Orwell's '1984', albeit in a more light-hearted and non-political way, 'Sliver' was ahead of its time in exploring the extent to which we would one day be monitored and watched, either knowingly or unknowingly, voluntarily or involuntarily.

There are echoes of some of Levin's earlier novels - notably his first, 'A Kiss Before Dying'; as well as 'Rosemary's Baby' and 'The Stepford Wives' in the dynamics of the relationships. The novel once again demonstrates Levin as a master of his craft, as he builds suspense and unease in the manner of an artist, the result always as irresistible and entertaining as it may be unsettling and thought-provoking.

The novel was also adapted for the screen for the 1993 film of the same name, starring Sharon Stone, hot on the heels of the success of 'Basic Instinct' (and adapted by its screenwriter). The plot translates well to the screen, though with changed character names and an alternate ending.

A thrilling volume in Ira Levin's compelling body of work, 'Sliver' is another portrait of the way in which evil can puncture its way into our lives, watching us, biding its time, without us being conscious of its existence.



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