Wonderfully offbeat film!

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

The Stepford Children is the second sequel to the cult 70's movie The Stepford Wives. This is the only sequel I have seen but I am aware they are all made for TV movies. The angle that this instalment takes is that now it is the children of Stepford who are being re-made to fit the ultra-conservative model favoured by the men of the community. I guess its underlying message is a warning against regimented conformity and the pursuit of an idealised 'perfection'. In this sense it's no different really to the first film but because the focus is now on teenagers as opposed to women, it takes the message away from the misogyny of a male dominated society to the angst of teenagers growing up and trying to remain individuals in a society that tries to mould them. It's the kind of themes that remain very relevant.The story focuses on a family who move to the town of Stepford from the big city. The two kids do not fit into the community at all well, seeing as all the other teenagers from the town seem to be lifeless automatons. Although, it does have to be said that these two are the most 80's looking teenagers imaginable – it's hairspray, indoor-shades-wearing and headbands all the way! Anyway, before long their father becomes a member of the ominous Men's Association and he is soon convinced to have his wayward children 'corrected'.This is overall a fairly decent film. The Stepford set-up is an interesting one and more leverage is engineered from the basic premise. But obviously the sense of mystery from the original movie is long gone and this does detract from the film's impact somewhat. We know from the outset why the women and children act so strangely, so it does mean that the amateur sleuthing by the new family is sort of wasted on us. But even taking this into account it's still an effective enough movie. The acting performances are pretty decent and there are some individual good moments, most of which involve scenes of the robotic replicas acting oddly. It's only towards the end where we see the sinister goings on behind the scenes. It's perhaps a pity there wasn't a little more made of this though as the ending itself is a bit too rushed for much of an impact. But all-in-all The Stepford Children is a decent enough TV chiller.

The third entry in the "Stepford" franchise, but apparently the three made-for-TV obscure sequels are incredibly obscure and hard to trace down, whereas the 70's original as well as the blockbuster remake with Nicole Kidman are commonly known and very popular. I haven't seen either the early 80's "Revenge of the Stepford Wives" or the mid 90's "The Stepford Husbands", but this "The Stepford Children" is a quite charming and highly entertaining little film. It's basically the exact same film as the original; obviously less mysterious yet much cheesier and incredibly 80's to the nth degree. The main difference here, like the title implies, is that not just the liberated wives but also the rebellious and punk teenage offspring in town undergoes the typical and highly effective "Stepford treatment", licensed by the local Men's Association. For some reason the scenario attempts to uphold the Stepford mystery until late in the film, even though nobody is likely to watch this sequel before having checked out the original and presumably everybody also knows about the denouement. The Harding family is all packed and ready to move from the grisly city of New York to the small and peaceful community of Stepford. Particularly father Steven is excited about their new life because he already lived in Stepford and always wanted to go back ever since his first wife, whom his new wife Laura and adolescent children Mary and David know very little about, died under mysterious circumstances. The town is almost too perfect, with picturesque neighbors and model students, and especially the modern teenagers face huge difficulties to adjust. Their efforts to modernize the place and take the local youth of Stanford in tow cause confrontations with the eminent townsfolk, particularly the members of the Men's Association, and put the familial relationships under a lot of stress. David meets and falls in love with the last "normal" girl in school Lois, but when even she transforms into a domestic dummy overnight, David can convince his skeptical mother to investigate the sinister Stanford secret. The first hour of "The Stanford Children" is slow-paced and rather tame, but the finale is trashy and cheesy like the VHS cover promises and like a late 80's thriller ought to be, in fact. The modus operandi behind the Stanford secrets is illustrated in greater detail, and I think horror fans and lovers of the original film will appreciate that. At least, I did. The overall plot still doesn't make a lot of sense and the script is chock-full of irrational aspects, but it's nonetheless an engaging formula and undoubtedly one that evokes an atmosphere of suspense and fear. The acting performances are far above average. Especially the arrogant and obnoxious members of the Men's Association depict plausible characters and even teenage players Tammy Lauren and Randall Batinkoff give away impressive performances. Recommended without hesitation!

The Stepford Children, besides being a very good made for TV movie, shows the very disturbing result of indoctrination. It is quite a statement about how being made to act within the confines of what is considered "Good" behavior can destroy whatever it is that makes a person unique and an individual. I think that this is a movie that parents who want to maintain some semblance of the thought that loams within the hearts and minds of youngsters should watch with their children and discuss what the movie is saying. I don't know if that was in any way the intent of this movie but I have always been of the opinion that it is one of the best movie devices against the wish to have children conform to an unrealistic and domineering pretense of what is in the best interest of anyone other than that of the children themselves. I hope to one day see this movie on DVD. I am at the starting gate... waiting.

It has been 15 years since I first saw "The Stepford Children" on TV, so I'm a little fuzzy on the details. But from what I recall, this chapter in the saga was much better than the uninspired "Revenge of the Stepford Wives." The "Children" TV movie tried to combine the best of both previous ventures with an enjoyable result (for TV-fare). Barbara Eden did a fine job as the new wife in peril. Keeping kids in line has never been so fun! Unfortunately, as this movie had no big stars other than Ms. Eden, it has never seen the light of day on VHS or DVD. That is too bad. "Revenge" at least got a VHS release due to Don Johnson being in the credits. Maybe we will be lucky enough to get a better quality transfer to DVD for the 30th Anniversary edition of the original with the two TV movies added in a box set... Now that would bring a smile to Dis' face up there in the Men's Association.