Stepfather II

Terry O Quinn returns as the psychotic murdering family man who wants only one thing a family to call his own but that white picket fence house and perfect family he dreams about just never seems to be good enough maybe forth times the none killing charm.

The movie follows Gene (Terry O Quinn) after he escapes a mental institution where he was imprisoned for killing his last two families and almost killing the third once again changing his look and identity he moves into the perfect neighbourhood for family's and attempts to find a new family to call his own but it's not long before people start to see through his charade and he gets back to his old ways.

Terry O Quinn gives a chilling performance as the psychotic stepfather he makes this movie so memorable and creepy even when he's acting innocent in a scene you get chills.

Co Stars Meg Foster and Jonathan Brandis are great in there roles as the single mother and her son the only thing scarier than Terry O Quinn in this movie though are Meg Fosters eyes they have a strange hypnotic glow to them that I personally found very distracting.

Worth any Horror/Thriller movie fans time an underrated classic that sadly when it was released was overshadowed by bigger Horror movies of the late 80s don't miss this hidden gem.

The disturbed man looking for the perfect family, and will do anything to get it, is back at it again in 'Stepfather II: Make room for Daddy'. We pick up shortly after the original film, and see that the man formerly known as Jerry Blake is inside of a psychiatric facility serving his sentence for all the murders and attempts he committed. He breaks out early on and changes his persona yet again to a psychiatrist named Gene, this time targeting single mother Carol and her teenage son Todd. After brutally dispatching people in the way of him building a life with them, Gene makes it to the church on his wedding day ... but will he get through the ceremony without losing his mind completely?

Terry Quinn I thought 'Stepfather II' was really interesting in the sense that it separated itself from the other two films. In parts one and three, the stepchildren (Stephanie in 1 and Andy in 3) disliked the stepfather a lot. They could see that something was off with him, and it never really clicked. In this sequel, the son Todd really liked Gene the stepfather and looked up to him as a role model of sorts. His father just up and left him and his mom, so the writers did a great job of establishing Todd's need for a male figure. It kind of makes it all the more sad when it's revealed how sick Gene really is.

Terry Quinn puts in an amazing performance yet again as the deranged man who would kill for a perfect family unit. Meg Foster did really well as the mother Carol as did Jonathan Brandis as Todd. I liked the friend Maddie that they gave Carol, played by Caroline Williams. She was really good too. It lacked the intensity of the original film, but 'Stepfather II' is still very well done. The finale at the church as Gene prepares for his wedding is also very creepy.. and perhaps very bloody. I recommend this one!

7/10

The Stepfather (1987) was an enjoyable thriller telling the story of an unhinged man who joins family's, devotes himself to them but does whatever it takes to keep the family together and living by his rules.

Lost star Terry O'Quinn was fantastic and I'd only just discovered that sequels were spawned.

Following our antagonist as he breaks from an asylum and attaches himself to another single mother.

Once again O'Quinn is great, as is the always enchanting Meg Foster and the late Jonathan Brandis.

Stepfather II does not match its predecessor but is still watchable. You'll know everything that's going to happen, but that's okay.

The Good:

Terry O'Quinn

Meg Foster

Direct sequel

The Bad:

Predictable

Shadowed by the superior first movie

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Even psychos appreciate the snaps, crackles and pops

I first saw this in the early 90s on a vhs.

Revisited it recently.

While the first is one of the most effective n well acted thriller, this one is an open and shut case of pure cheating aka cashing in on the success of its predecessor.

There is nothing new in this one but once again Terry O'Quinn's performance is the highlight.

Tension n suspense is zero in this one.

The plot - Jerry Blake, the psychotic n murderous fella survives the events of the first part and finds himself being institutionalized but Blake being a family man, finds it hard to stay away from his family and therefore he escapes from the institution and later assumes the identity of a deceased publisher and poses as a psychiatrist and soon begins courting a woman eventually winning over her and her teenage son but the woman's estranged husband returns, wanting to reconcile with his wife. Blake will not sit idle n watch his future family being snatched away from him.

The Stepfather was a surprisingly classy thriller stuck at the end of the 80's slasher glut. Thanks to a smart script and a phenomenal performance from Terry O'Quinn, The Stepfather ended up becoming a cult classic.

Even though it seemed as if O'Quinn's Jerry Blake was killed off at the end of the first film, the magic of the movies brings him back for yet another round of slashings in the sake of the American Dream. Jerry's now stuck in a mental hospital. He, of course, escapes and forms a new identity - this time, a psychiatrist(named Gene) specializing in suburban women, which gives him a nice group of gals to choose from for his next dream wife.

Unfortunately for Carol (the beautiful Meg Foster), Jerry fixates on her and her son (Jonathan Brandis) and wants them to become his new family. Jerry's soon up to his own tricks, dispatching of anyone that gets in his way.

This is a movie that doesn't need to exist, so it's to director Jeff Burr's credit that he's able to make it seem as if this movie has a right for being here. Bringing Terry O'Quinn back is a huge plus and he's pitch perfect here. Joining him are genre faves Meg Foster and Caroline Williams who are equally game and ground a rather ridiculous story in reality. There's a nice dose of playful, dark humor throughout and the murder set pieces will please gore fiends without turning off those in the mood for more traditional thriller stylings.

Stepfather II might not reinvent the genre, but it's a worthy and fun sequel.