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Not rated. () |
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36 |
162 |
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| Stepfather III (Stepfather 3: Father's Day) (100%) |
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| Stepfather 2 (100%) |
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Plot:
"Scary" Jerry has become the stepfather in a family of a beautiful, young widow and a lovely daughter. Unfortunately, Jerry has a very strict definition of the perfect family and his new family just m...( read more 
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Meet Other Fans
Recent Reviews
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MCT:June 21, 2008Jerry Blake: Wait a minute, who am I here?
Sue: Jerry?
Jerry Blake: That's right. Jerry Blake. Thanks, honey. -
MCT:June 4, 2008Jerry Blake (Terry O'Quinn) has the ideal life: A nice home, wife--Susan Maine (Shelley Hack), and stepdaughter--Stephanie (Jill Schoelen), all which is topped off with a terrier named Randy. Yet he should considering that Jerry has already dispatched several makeshift families throughout his life, which he kills at a drop of a hat as soon as he receives the slightest indication that his newest family's moral fiber is weakening and that the familial bond might be dissipating. Westlake is a masterful writer who possesses a gift for creating and presenting suspense, who is only rivaled in his potency and consistently by the Master of Suspense himself, Alfred Hitchcock. The Stepfather is equal parts character study, satire, and thriller as Westlake begins with one of the more readily disagreeable characters in society: the stepfather. The only aspect of The Stepfather which is arguably more harrowing than the writing or the acting is O'Quinn's transformations between families as he makes himself literally unrecognizable, the most fascinating of which is his second metamorphosis which we are allowed to witness in that it is so complete, absolute, and convincing that is causes shivers to course down the audience's spine. The manner in which the writer fleshes out his antagonist is so subtle that the viewer literally dreads upsetting Jerry yet, turning the psychological thumbscrews, once a sentiment is voiced which we anticipate will provoke the serial killer, Westlake permits Jerry to pause as he retains his composure, thus making the figure all the most dominating in his ability to control his urges, ergo allowing his malevolent actions to be all the more intense once they are acted upon. Even Jerry's lies are so thoroughly premeditated and comprehensive as to alleviate the least chance of error that the viewer needn't resort to suspending disbelief at any time during the film.
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MCT:May 24, 2008This film is actually based on the true story of mass murderer John List...
The Real Crime:
"List killed his family - his wife, Helen, 45; his children, Patricia, 16, John, Jr., 15, and Frederick, 13, as well as his 84-year-old mother, Alma. He first shot his wife in the back of the head and his mother once in the left eye that morning while the children were at school. When Patricia and Frederick came back home, they were each murdered in the same way. John Jr., the only remaining son, was at his soccer game that afternoon. List casually made himself lunch and then drove to watch John Jr. at his soccer game. He brought his son home and then shot John Jr. once in the back of the head. John List saw John, Jr. twitch as if he was having a seizure, and shot his son again. It was later determined that John had shot his older son ten times. List dragged the bodies of his wife and children on sleeping bags into the ballroom of the house. He left his mother's body in her apartment in the attic and stated in a postscript in the letter to his pastor that "Mother is in the attic. She was too heavy to move." In the letter, List claimed he prayed over them before going on the run. The bodies were not discovered for a month, due to the Lists keeping to themselves; List had also left notes for the children's schools and part-time jobs stating that the family would be in North Carolina for several weeks, and had gone to the post office to stop the family's incoming mail.
The case quickly became the second most infamous crime in New Jersey history, surpassed only by the legendary kidnapping and murder of the Lindbergh Baby. A nationwide manhunt was launched. The police checked out hundreds of leads without results."
John List
John List and his family
Hard to find DVD. Not officially released as of yet, but you can still find all region copies many places online, or even just the VHS. Try to get your hands on this movie, it's good stuff.
An excellent thriller/horror from the 80's that relies mostly on character development and storyline to creep us out, other then just violence and gore. This one's another hidden gem from the 80's that definitely needs to be seen, especially if you're a true horror fan. Terry O'Quinn truly displays a horror show of creepy proportions through his demented character. Very well done and superbly acted.
"Jerry Blake is a severely mentally disturbed man whose entire adult life revolves around his quest to have the perfect family. As a child, he was traumatized by being constantly exposed to idealized versions of the American family, while at the same time being forced to cope with his own, unsavory family. One day, when he realizes that his own family is turning into the family in which he grew up, and he faces becoming his own father, he murders his entire family, moves to another state, and marries a widow whose daughter distrusts Blake from the beginning and slowly begins to learn the truth about her stepfather's past."
Typical 80's horror cheese in some parts, but never gets dull for a single moment, and not as cheesy as most horror films of it's time. Extremely entertaining movie and a must see!
Highly recommended!
Other Reviews:
"This is a classic late 80's slasher/thriller and features many truly excellent things."
- Slasherpool
"Tight tight tight. This movie is a great nail biter and an interesting character study."
- Arrow in the Head
"An engrossing suspense thriller that refreshingly doesn't cheat the audience in terms of valid clues and plot twists."
- Variety
"It was perhaps the most scintillating of the new breed of psycho films to emerge during this time and one of the finest psycho-thrillers to emerge since indeed Alfred Hitchcock turned showering into a blood sport."
- The SF, Horror and Fantasy Film Review
"...[Terry O'Quinn's character] is so complete, absolute, and convincing that is causes shivers to course down the audience's spine."
- The Horror Review
""The Stepfather" is very effective in presenting that character."
- Roger Ebert
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MCT:April 20, 2008
You think you know someone? You might think twice after viewing Joseph Ruben's ("Sleeping with the Enemy", "The Good Son", "Money Train") low-budget thriller, "The Stepfather". Released to little acclaim (it grossed $2.5m in 1987), this B-movie has developed a significant cult following on video over the years. It yielded two sequels ? one mildly inferior, the second hugely inferior (suffering from the absence of lead actor Terry O'Quinn) ? and has experienced a further following as a budget DVD release.
So what's it all about? Terry O'Quinn ("Young Guns", "The Rocketeer", TVs "JAG", "X Files" and "Millennium") is Jerry Blake. Jerry is a real-estate agent, a man who sells homes and with it, in his eyes, the American Dream. He's living with Susan (Hack ? TVs "Charlie's Angels", "Annie Hall", "The King of Comedy") and subsequently has become stepfather of sorts to her daughter, Stephanie (Schoelen). But Stephanie is not that keen on the man she calls "Scary Jerry". Her psychiatrist, Dr. Bondurant (Lanyer ? "Die Hard 2", "The Astronauts Wife"), tries to help Stephanie find some balance and reason in her feelings towards Jerry but she's not for turning.
And she hasn't even seen what we've seen. The opening scenes of the movie show Jerry in a house somewhere, cleaning blood off his hands, shaving his long beard, trimming his over-grown hair and swapping his glasses for contact lenses. He then leaves the house, stopping only to pick up some toys that are on the ground, leaving behind blood-soaked bodies, whistling a happy tune as he goes. The Stepfather is off to find a new family to make him happy. God help them if they fail.
Jerry is a believer in family, a home and discipline. He doesn't so much love Susan and Stephanie as love the idea of a happy family. He tries everything to win over his stepdaughter but failure only drives him in to a private rage. Will the monster inside Jerry rise again?
I know people will dismiss "The Stepfather" for numerous reasons. Its low budget, corny dialogue and unknown cast being primary of them. But there are several reasons why this horror/thriller is compulsive viewing and one of the best movies of its genre.
First amongst these is the performance of Terry O'Quinn. A familiar face on TV through the nineties, O'Quinn delivers an absolute tour-de-force as deranged Jerry Blake. Whether it is the delivery of his lines or the subtle facial expressions, he gets it down to a T. This is a frightening, thoroughly convincing, top class performance from a moderate actor ? and that makes it all the more remarkable. And O'Quinn has to be on top form because his supporting cast is under whelming at best. Schoelen is an inexperienced young actress, Hack a paperweight.
Secondly, Ruben creates plenty of tension through various techniques ? slow camera panning, sound effects (although the music is typical eighties fare) and angled-close ups on the demented O'Quinn. He shows himself to be hugely adept at maximizing the realistic performance of O'Quinn and the bizarre nature of his behaviour.
Thirdly, the interplay of the characters is intriguing. Susan knows that Jerry and Stephanie don't see eye to eye, but she assumes it is the typical teenage reaction to a stepfather. Jerry knows that Stephanie doesn't warm to him and it tears him up ? but he keeps on trying, while in the background manipulating whatever he can to try and get them closer together. To his family he seems to do it so subtly ? but unknown to them he is calculating and sick.
A criticism I can aim at the movie is the lack of depth that is offered regarding Jerry Blake. Why don't we investigate Jerry's psychosis more? He doesn't speak of his past or, more specifically, his childhood although we find that he loves 1950s TV and shows all the hallmarks of someone who had a strict upbringing. Seeing as the movie never delves into this, I've always felt that an intriguing project would be a biopic based on this fictitious character and a look at what made Jerry Blake who he is.
"The Stepfather" is a wonderful movie, a cult classic with the sort of gritty tension that is all too often lost in the heady world of Hollywood. What might be nice is a modern-day remake of the movie ? maybe Gary Oldman playing the Jerry Blake character. I'm excited by the prospect of seeing Oldman down in the basement banging his fists and screaming 'we need a little order around here!', or referring to himself by the wrong name before staring in to space and asking: 'Wait a minute. Who am I here?'.
One of my all time favourites. -
MCT:April 3, 2008Terry O' Quinn playing a character MUCH crazier than John Locke. His performance is a real treat. He reprised his role in a sequel, as well. His acting shows why he won an Emmy award last year. He is a true talent.
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MCT:February 25, 2008
The plot and acting were all very well. But the feel of the movie made it seem like a made for TV adaptation, and almost like a chick flick. But it was very good, with just a couple slow parts.
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MCT:February 17, 2008
omg! this movie was crazy. the stepfather in this movie totally freaked me out. he was a compulsive psycho who wanted everything his way, and he would kill a family if it wasn't just right. i forgot which number the family in the movie was, but they weren't the first. this guy was crazy.
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MCT:December 21, 2007
There are two versions of the movie of The Stepfather. (the theatrical
release on VHS) and the TV (cable)
version - the one i am looking for - and which has never been released
on video or dvd, but has been shown on cable. It was on FX a while ago. The TV version has new scenes with Jill Schoelen and a extra scene with Stephen Shellen .
If anyone has this version recored from TV can you please make a copy for me? I am willing to trade for it. E-mail me at sillygirl3452001@yahoo.com -
MCT:September 13, 2007
Terry O'Quinn is terrifying in this one. The original is the best, of course. I didn't care for the sequels.
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MCT:July 21, 2007
Worth a watch this, bit of a Hitchcock feel to it with some genuine suspense and a great creepy lead from Terry O'Quinn AKA 'John Locke' from TV show 'Lost'.
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I cannot disassociate Terry O'Quinn's character on The Stepfather from his character Locke on the show LOST. I keep telling my friends about his role in this movie and the sequel Stepfather II. Too funny!
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MCT:June 8, 2007
This movie is definitely underrated. Terry O'Quinn is fantastic as the psychopath obsessed with finding the perfect family.
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