The Stepfather (remake) DVD Review
The Stepfather (remake) DVD Review
Daddy's home… and nobody cares.
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All Susan wants is for her kids to give their new step-daddy to be a chance. But they don't roll out the welcome mat, and boy are they sorry. While it may not be the best analogy, perhaps the same principle could be applied to the horror community's wariness in regard to The Stepfather, the first remake of an esteemed and beloved 80s cult classic. Welcome mats were most certainly not unfurled, but are the genre geeks sorry they didn't embrace The Stepfather? Probably not, but the movie's really not all bad. In fact, there's a lot to like.
For one thing, it's a huge step up from the last remake team-up by Sony Screen Gems, director Nelson McCormick, and screenwriter J.S. Cardone — their whitewashed, homogenized, and completely colorless re-dress of Prom Night wasn't very good. I certainly didn't have much faith in them for The Stepfather, but I do believe they learned from their mistake. Well, a little, at least. The Stepfather is much changed from its original source (now it's a teen son, not a teen daughter, squaring off with the title character), and it's toned down (more talking about metaphorical backstabbing, than actual stabbings to the back).
I'll get into what I did like about The Stepfather in just a moment. For those who don't know, or those who simply admire my dazzling command of the plot distillation, here's what it's about and who's in it: David Harris (Dylan Walsh, "Nip/Tuck") is a family man. So he's killed a few of his families — big deal. There's always a new family just around the corner, ready to step in. Next on the list is divorcee Susan Harding (Sela Ward, "House M.D.") and her three kids (two youngsters and teenager Michael, played by "Gossip Girl" star Penn Badgley). Susan seeks stability, and while David doesn't have a job and his past is cloudy, he says all the right things and is willing to take responsibility. Soon enough, David's façade crumbles under Michael's distrust, and Susan's sister Jackie's (Paige Turco, "Damages") prying. This is all very "disappointing" to David… and trust me, you don't want to disappoint Daddy.
The Stepfather is indeed talkier and a lot less salacious than the rated-R original, but on its own merits it is a decent psychological thriller. Collaborators McCormick and Cardone say (in the behind the scenes featurettes on the DVD) they were inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt (1943) — especially Joseph Cotten's charming viper, "Uncle Charlie" and his infiltration into an innocent family unit — as well as novelist Patricia Highsmith's Mr. Ripley character. These influences do show, albeit watered down by the demands of the PG-13 rating and "Gossip Girl" fans' demand to see Badley stripped down to swimming trunks in every other scene.
There is some good suspense. An early, taut scene involves David's diabolical disposal of the local crazy cat lady (lucky for him it wasn't the crazy pit-bull lady). Slick cinematography and a stirring score don't hurt, but kudos really must go to Walsh's acting in these scenes. It's a shame the movie was so dismissed, because a lot of people threw out the actor with the bathwater. He's really good in this! So is Ward, and so's Turco (who horror fans will probably know better from "American Gothic" than "Damages"). Now, it's not film acting — I'm not gonna go that far in my praise — but it deserves more credit than it got.
Which is why The Stepfather plays a lot better at home on the TV than it did in theaters. (In fact, I figured as much in my theatrical release review of the film.) I'd say, unless you are an absolute purist for the original or you need a lot of blood and gore, give it a go. Hopefully, you won't be "disappointed".
DVD extras include a gag reel (actually funny! Will wonders never cease?); Commentary by McCormack, Walsh, and Badgley (I didn't listen to it, but judging from their personalities I'll bet it's good); Open House: Making-Of Featurette (fast-paced, respectful nods to the original, reasonably informative about the remake); and then there's the completely random and baffling inclusion of an episode of a TV show that I've never heard of (I didn't write the name down, and it's not mentioned on the back cover of the DVD… something about a life of crime). The show actually looked pretty good (it's very similar to "Burn Notice"), but since it wasn't relevant to The Stepfather, I didn't make the time to watch it all. It must be something Sony is pushing, but a little description as to why it's there wouldn't have hurt.
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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson
Be sure and read Horror.com's exclusive set visit report, and interviews with actors Dylan Walsh, Sela Ward, and Penn Badgley
Then see our DVD review of the original The Stepfather movie