MovieChat Forums > The Stepford Wives (1975) Discussion > Dead rat in the creek???

Dead rat in the creek???

posted 17 years ago by bettiegia
13 replies | jump to latest

Did anyone else notice what looked like a dead rat in the creek outside the lady psychiatrists house/office. Also, was the psychiatrist that Joanna saw actually on the husbands side secretly? thanks!

[–] Justin C 17 years ago

I just watched the movie. I noticed the dead rat too. I think it either symbolizes the death that was to come to all the housewives, or it represents the destruction that came as a result of the activities of the local industrial/technology plants (industrial runoff into streams? and the factories making robots to kill off the wives?).

I think the lady psych was on the husbands' side. She told Joanna to grab her kids and leave town, but when Joanna got back home to get her kids, her husband had already "sent them away." I'm thinking the psych told the husband about it.

[–] hezmodo 17 years ago

I noticed the rat too, and wondered the significance; perhaps a comment on the dirty reality of everyday life in the city? The dirty little truths we don't notice? I don't know about the psychiatrist. Waiting to hear what others' have to say.

[–] moonspinner55 17 years ago

I believe the psychiatrist was on the up-and-up. They weren't planning on changing Joanna that weekend, the kids just happened to be away, and when Joanna came back home all fired up it just made Walter furious.

[–] numberone_1 17 years ago

Agreed. The psychiatrist was her own person - remember Joanna sought her out herself. And, too, the changes occurred after the women had been there 4 months, and Bobbie had moved to Stepford one month before Joanna did - so there was a "rush" job on the Joanna gynoid.

[–] Karl Self 16 years ago

I guess the dead rat was just a random "still" shot, which I thought fitted nicely into the movie, its theme of corrupted beauty.

[–] nvasapper 16 years ago

Right you are. It was a dead rat floating in the water. Ugh! There's nothing to indicate that the Carol Rossen character was part of the conspiracy. She seemed to genuinely show concern for Joanna's plight and I believe she really wanted to help her. If I'm wrong, I'm insane. And if I'm right, it's worse than if I'm wrong.

[–] BRisBR 13 years ago

I think the dead rat in the creek was to further illustrate the extreme difference between The City -- or any city -- and Stepford.

The dead rat in the creek also showed the Joanna was definitely not in Stepford anymore. Joanna wanted to find a psychatrist or psychoanalyst who was in a location as far away from anything that even resembled Stepford as possible.

B

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[–] 13 years ago

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[–] preppy-3 12 years ago

OK--I just watched the movie. To me it looked a leaf SHAPED like a dead rat...but it's hard to tell because of the lousy DVD transfer.

[–] 12 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Blonde2291 11 years ago

The dead rat is just to create suspense and to make viewer think that perhaps some contamination in water is causing this behavior of the wives.

I only ask to be free. The butterflies are free. - Charles Dickens

[–] sage2112 8 years ago

Dead rat - red herring.

[–] gmwanner 8 years ago

I wonder if the dead rat, like so many things in movies from decades ago, was just a sort of "wouldn't that be cool" shot that had no deeper meaning.
I don't think the psychiatrist was shady, although I'd say that actress performed the role a bit that way. Maybe it was to give us question. I did think, however, that she sort of resembled the Child Catcher from "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang"!