Review of The Stepfather (1987) by Tim B — 10 May 2011

It's been ages since I watched the original Stepfather. I finally had a chance to sit down with this classic again and got so much out of it. The movie starts off with a bang, establishing the lead as a badass early on and then quiets down to scope the characters out before giving us an ending that picks right back up and brings on the terror.

The plot was well played out here and I got to care about each of the family members, including the Stepfather himself. It would've been so easy to just establish him as some guy with a penchant for killing but his character was so well written.

The movie gave him many layers as he almost had sympathy from me in parts! Throwing the movie in such a realistic manner made the violence hit even more when it did pop up. There was a lot of blood but it never got graphic.

The idea of the brutality was what made me uneasy throughout. Joseph Ruben plays it subtle, with some great panning shots and has a great handle on the suspense factor. If this was too flashy it would've taken me out of the movie so I applaud him for underplaying it.

Good work! I'm glad Terry O'Quinn got his big break in Lost because I've been following him since the flick and his performance was unreal here. He had to portray sad, pleasant, deep and insane all in one shoot.

He pulled all those off amazingly. Jill Schoelen also underplayed it and I was rooting for her the whole way. I loved the fact that she wasn't really glamorized here. That added to the realism of the picture even more.

Shelley Hack also plays it straight and comes across as a real, loving and concerned mother. All three actors felt like they were a real unit. On top of all this you get a great 80s soundtrack (Pat Benatar, Divinyls) some nudity to please both parties, and a sense of tension throughout.

The Stepfather is an excellent, classic horror flick and it was great to watch again. More views from yours truly await this one.