The Stepfather

Maybe people are expecting more and more from films-its just a movie-its not your life. I thought as something to sit down and watch for a bit it was fair game. I have a technical mind and I always think about how many times they did a certain scene or how many scenes were left on the cutting floor for the finished product. Longer than usual, it was not very bloody which was kind of a relief, and it probably had more in common with the thrillers made in the 1950s, than something out of the modern age. In real life stepfather's can be an unwelcome event, so in that sense this movie taps a vein of something unsettling in the real world. Above average acting helped.

Dylan Walsh is a strong actor, but the material he's been given doesn't help him attempt to go toe to toe with Terry O'Quinn's iconic performance in the original. The stepchild's gender has been switched and Penn Badgley brings a lot of welcome vulnerability to the role while Sela Ward's concerned wife and mother doesn't get as much to do nor does Amber Heard as the concerned girlfriend.

The script has more cliches and bad scares than the original which hurts it a lot, but it's entertaining enough if you just want to decompress and watch something that doesn't require you to do much thinking.

I have a strict policy that states movies featuring either (a) a cat suddenly jumping out from a corner accompanied by an ominous sounding music chord or (b) a mirror that is empty of anyone but one character who turns away, then turns back and suddenly sees the killer in the mirror behind them...well these movies are only going to be so good. This movie has both, within about 60 seconds of each other. In spite of this, I have to say it's really not all that bad. I've seen many people complaining about the lack of originality, but when you're remaking a horror film from the 80's, it's almost inevitable that you're going to give the audience something they've seen before. That wasn't really bothersome to me though because the characters and anticipation overshadowed it for the most part.

Dylan Walsh plays the stepfather in a role that was actually likable for the first part of the film. He meets a single mom played by Sela Ward and all is picture perfect until her bad boy son comes home from military school. We only know he's bad by the way because someone tells us. He's a pretty normal, well adjusted kid considering that his dad is no longer around and his mother has engaged herself to a stranger in the span of 6 months. Far as I could tell, his behavior is still within normal range. It might have made for a more interesting film though if he really was a wild child.

So past that everyone knows what follows with the story. There is not a lot of gratuitous violence; even the killing scenes are low key which I don't really mind. If anyone is looking for lots of gore and clever death shots, this is not the film for them. The excitement is in the buildup, the experience of the characters finding out for themselves who the stepfather really is; especially when you have the one obligatory character, in this case the wayward son, who seems to intuit everything about the man from the first time he sets eyes on him. That standard plot device, a character who has it all figured out and NO ONE will believe him, well it's beyond old but it's moderately effective here.

The mindless and unnecessary adolescent dialogue, together with the many gratuitous bikini shots of the son's pale and too skinny girlfriend, tend to bring the quality of the film down. They were neither necessary nor helpful. But if you can look past that and the lack of originality (is it fair to expect that in this film really?) then you'll find an adequate film that's worth a couple hours of your time. I've seen much worse in the horror/thrillers in the past few years.

6/10

Of all the films to remake The Stepfather (1987) starring the excellent Terry O'Quinn seems like a really peculiar choice.

I personally enjoyed the original and to an extent its two sequels but went into this assuming the worst. I felt like it would miss the point of the original and overly gloss it with Hollywood sparkle.

Well, it's somewhere inbetween. The Stepfather is a bigger budget version of essentially the same tale, but simply not done as well. So it looks all pretty pretty but doesn't have the same impact that Terry O'Quinn provided.

As a thriller this is passable, just try to forget that its a remake and don't compare it to the superior original.

Dylan Walsh is okay in the role and the film also includes a young Amber Heard on the upswing of her career.

Watchable stuff, but it simply didn't need making.

The Good:

Surprisingly excellent soundtrack

Passable performances

The Bad:

The whole thing feels so unnecessary

Not as good as the original

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

We shouldn't live in a world where we need to background check potential partners, but we probably should

'The Stepfather' is a fairly decent thriller and slightly-slasher film in a time where films like this are horribly made. I've never seen the original 'Stepfather' film, but from what I can tell, this remake isn't too shabby. It has strong leads and a decent and straightforward script with good pacing. I loved the introduction of the film, where it explains how the "Stepfather" killer is able to kill a family and get away with it so many times. I like how there's never really a slow or boring part in the film. We like the main son, Michael, and his girlfriend. I think Penn Badgley and Amber Heard were good in their roles. I especially liked Dylan Walsh as the stepfather. Walsh made the character both likable and hated, and made him interesting. I didn't like how clueless the mom was; she's a complete idiot. One of the biggest problems the film had was the actions some of the characters took that didn't make sense. No one would logically marry someone they knew nothing about; it's just unrealistic. And there's one part where the stepfather walks out to his front lawn while there's a bunch of policemen right across the street. If you're a mass murderer on the run, I'm pretty sure you wouldn't make yourself that noticeable to the police. Also, the stepfather should have had the cell phone turned off from the beginning, not when someone's trying to call the cell phone. It's ridiculous. The stepfather's supposed to be a smart and clever guy, but we don't see that when he's with this new family. With all of this said and done, I felt that this remake of 'The Stepfather' didn't offer anything new, but it does entertain. I did like the ending and what happens to the stepfather; I felt it was a fairly good and interesting conclusion to the film. Though the ending may have felt rushed and quick, I was fine with it.

PS: This remake of 'The Stepfather' in a lot of ways felt like 2007′s 'Disturbia' (3 Kents out of 4!). I was constantly reminded of 'Disturbia' while I was watching 'The Stepfather.' However, I like 'Disturbia' more and think it was made better and more interesting. The third act of 'Disturbia' wasn't great, though, which I think the remake of 'The Stepfather' succeeds in – having the film go through a constantly interesting pace.