The Stepfather (2009 film)

Last updated
The Stepfather
Stepfatherremakeposter.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Nelson McCormick
Screenplay by J.S. Cardone
Based on
The Stepfather
by
Produced by
  • Mark Morgan
  • Greg Moordian
Starring
CinematographyPatrick Cady
Edited byEric L. Beason
Music by Charlie Clouser
Production
companies
Distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing
Release date
  • October 16, 2009 (2009-10-16)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$20 million
Box office$31.2 million

The Stepfather is a 2009 American psychological horror film directed by Nelson McCormick. [3] It is a remake of the 1987 film of the same name which was loosely based on the crimes of mass murderer John List. The film stars Dylan Walsh, Sela Ward, Penn Badgley, Amber Heard and Jon Tenney.

Contents

The Stepfather was released in the United States by Sony Pictures Releasing on October 16, 2009. The film received negative reviews from critics and grossed $31 million against its $20 million budget.

Plot

In a suburban Utah house, Grady Edwards shaves off his beard, dyes his hair, and removes his brown contact lenses. As he leaves, it’s revealed that he has murdered his wife and three children. When the police investigate, it is said that another family in New Jersey was murdered in a similar manner not long ago, which causes them to believe there is a serial killer on the loose.

Susan Harding, a recently divorced Oregon housewife, is shopping in a grocery store with her youngest children when she meets Grady, who introduces himself as "David Harris", and claims that his wife and daughter were killed in a car accident. Susan, desperate for love, is charmed by David, and she rushes into an engagement to be married in less than six months.

Susan's eldest son, Michael, returns home from military school and is immediately suspicious of his mother's new fiancé. David invites him down to the basement, where he has installed locked cabinets and tries successfully to befriend him over tequila shots. However, Michael's suspicions start when David uses the wrong name when mentioning his deceased daughter. After Susan says that a neighbor warned her that America's Most Wanted ran a profile on a serial killer who looks like David, David sneaks into the neighbor's house and throws her down her basement stairs, then suffocates her.

Jay, Susan's ex-husband, angrily confronts David over laying hands on his younger son Sean. He warns Susan that she knows nothing about him. Doubts about David mount further when he quits his job working as a real estate agent for Susan's sister, Jackie, to avoid displaying a photo ID and other forms of identification. Later, Jay confronts David about an apparent lie regarding his college history. David clubs him with a vase and suffocates him with a plastic bag. He texts Michael with Jay's phone saying that David checked out okay.

When the neighbor's body is discovered two weeks later, David tells the family. Michael is alarmed because he overheard David being told by the mailman, who gave less detail than David tells them. While Michael's girlfriend, Kelly, tries to get him to focus on college applications, he grows more obsessed with the contradictions in David's stories. The situation comes to a head when David intercepts an email from Jackie about hiring an investigator. He then goes to Jackie's house and drowns her in her pool.

Determined to discover what was in the locked cabinets, Michael breaks into the basement as Kelly keeps a lookout. In the basement, Michael eventually discovers his dad's body in a freezer. David knocks out Kelly and traps Michael in the basement. The commotion awakens Susan, and he berates her parenting skills, saying that he thought she could be "Mrs. Grady Edwards". On Susan's stunned reaction, David grimaces and asks, "Who am I here?" Susan tries to snap him out of it, causing him to say, "David! I'm David Harris!"

Susan, realizing the situation after noticing the unconscious Kelly, flees to the bathroom, locking herself in. David kicks the door in, shattering the mirror behind it. Susan picks up a shard of the mirror, holding it behind her. David grabs her, they struggle, and she manages to stab him in the neck with the shard. He falls to the floor, apparently dead. Michael escapes from the basement and finds Kelly. They find Susan in the hallway across from the bathroom, thinking David is dead. Then David approaches from behind and blocks the stairs, chasing all of them into the attic, where he and Michael fight. Both fall onto the roof and then off the edge of the roof to the ground, where they lie unconscious.

When Michael wakes up, he finds out he has been in a coma for just over a month. He learns that David is still alive and fled the scene before the police arrived. The end scene shows David, who has again changed his appearance and his name to Chris Ames. He is working at a hardware store when he meets a woman who is shopping with her two sons.

Cast

Production

Terry O'Quinn, who portrayed the stepfather in the 1987 original and its 1989 sequel, was approached by director Nelson McCormick to appear in the remake in a cameo role, but according to producer Mark Morgan, O'Quinn turned down the offer. [4] Filming was completed on April 15, 2008. [5]

Release

Theatrical

The film was distributed by Screen Gems. [6] It was released in cinemas on October 16, 2009. [7]

Home media

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released the film to DVD and Blu-ray on a special Unrated Directors Cut containing a few more special features and depicting each death in the film in a more graphic tone. [8]

Reception

Box office

It grossed $29.1 million in North America and $2.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide gross of $31.2 million, against its budget of $20 million. [9] The film opened #5 at the box office, grossing $11.6 million in 2,734 theaters, with an average of $4,236 per theater. [10]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 13% of 63 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 3.5/10.The website's consensus reads: "This tepid remake of the 1987 cult classic lacks the tension and satirical undercurrents of the original." [11] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 33 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. [12]

Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter wrote: "This remake turns a fondly remembered horror/thriller into a mild and tedious suspense film." [13] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times wrote of the film being "a handsome, thoughtfully crafted production that generates a mounting terror securely anchored by assured performances, consistent psychological persuasiveness and believable dialogue." [14]

Related Research Articles

<i>A Nightmare on Elm Street</i> (franchise) American supernatural slasher franchise

A Nightmare on Elm Street is an American supernatural slasher media franchise consisting of nine films, a television series, novels, comic books, and various other media. The franchise began with the film A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), written and directed by Wes Craven. The overall plot of the franchise centers around the fictional character Fred "Freddy" Krueger, the apparition of a former child killer who was burned alive by the vengeful parents of his victims, who returns from the grave to terrorize and kill the teenage residents of the fictional Springwood, Ohio in their dreams. Craven returned to the franchise to co-script the second sequel, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), and to write/direct Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994). The films collectively grossed $472 million at the box office worldwide.

<i>An American Werewolf in Paris</i> 1997 film

An American Werewolf in Paris is a 1997 comedy horror film directed by Anthony Waller, screenplay by Tim Burns, Tom Stern, and Waller, and starring Tom Everett Scott and Julie Delpy. It follows the general concept of, and is a sequel to, John Landis's 1981 film An American Werewolf in London. The film is an international co-production between companies from the United States, France, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg.

<i>The Stepfather</i> (1987 film) 1987 American psychological horror film

The Stepfather is a 1987 American psychological horror film directed by Joseph Ruben and starring Terry O'Quinn, Jill Schoelen, and Shelley Hack. O'Quinn stars as an identity-assuming serial killer who marries a widow with a teenage daughter. Having killed his previous family and changed his identity, his murderous tendencies continue after his stepdaughter becomes suspicious of him. The film is loosely based on the life of mass murderer John List, although the plot is more commonly associated with slasher films of the era. The film was written by Donald E. Westlake, from a story by Westlake, Carolyn Lefcourt and Brian Garfield, with an uncredited rewrite by David Loughery.

<i>Stepmom</i> (1998 film) Film by Chris Columbus

Stepmom is a 1998 American comedy-drama film directed by Chris Columbus and produced by Wendy Finerman, Mark Radcliffe, and Michael Barnathan. The screenplay was written by Gigi Levangie, Jessie Nelson, Steven Rogers, Karen Leigh Hopkins, and Ronald Bass. The film stars Julia Roberts, Susan Sarandon, and Ed Harris. Its plot follows a terminally ill woman dealing with her ex-husband's new lover, who will soon be their children's stepmother.

<i>Kings Ransom</i> (film) 2005 American film

King's Ransom is a 2005 American black comedy film directed by Jeffrey W. Byrd and written by Wayne Conley, who was a writer for the Nickelodeon TV series, Kenan & Kel. The film stars Anthony Anderson, Jay Mohr, Kellita Smith, Regina Hall, Donald Faison, Nicole Ari Parker, Charlie Murphy, Loretta Devine, Brooke D'Orsay, and Leila Arcieri. King's Ransom was released in the United States on April 22, 2005, and was a critical and commercial failure, grossing $4,143,652 against a budget of $15 million.

<i>The Omen</i> (2006 film) 2006 American film

The Omen is a 2006 American supernatural horror film directed by John Moore and written by David Seltzer. The fifth installment in The Omen series, it is a remake of the 1976 film of the same title, which was also written by Seltzer. This version stars Julia Stiles, Liev Schreiber, Mia Farrow, David Thewlis, Pete Postlethwaite, Michael Gambon, and Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick in his feature film debut.

<i>The Texas Chainsaw Massacre</i> (2003 film) 2003 slasher film directed by Marcus Nispel

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a 2003 American slasher film directed by Marcus Nispel, written by Scott Kosar, and starring Jessica Biel, Jonathan Tucker, Erica Leerhsen, Mike Vogel, Eric Balfour, and R. Lee Ermey. Its plot follows a group of young adults traveling through rural Texas who encounter Leatherface and his murderous family. It is a remake of Tobe Hooper's 1974 film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and the fifth installment in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise. Several crew members of the original film were involved with the project: Hooper and writer Kim Henkel served as co-producers, Daniel Pearl returned as cinematographer, and John Larroquette reprised his voice narration for the opening intertitles.

<i>Night of the Demons</i> (1988 film) 1988 American supernatural horror film by Kevin S. Tenney

Night of the Demons is a 1988 American supernatural horror film directed by Kevin S. Tenney, written and produced by Joe Augustyn, and starring Amelia Kinkade, Cathy Podewell, Linnea Quigley, Hal Havins, and Alvin Alexis. The plot follows a group of high school students who throw a party inside an isolated funeral parlor on Halloween night. While attempting a séance, they accidentally release a demon locked in the crematorium that begins to possess them one by one.

<i>Waking Ned</i> 1998 film by Kirk Jones

Waking Ned is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Kirk Jones and starring Ian Bannen, David Kelly, and Fionnula Flanagan. Kelly was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for his role as Michael O'Sullivan. The story is set in Ireland but was filmed on the nearby Isle of Man.

<i>Stepfather II</i> 1989 psychological horror film directed by Jeff Burr

Stepfather II is a 1989 American horror film directed by Jeff Burr and written by John Auerbach. It is a sequel to The Stepfather (1987) and stars Terry O'Quinn as the title character. The cast includes Meg Foster, Caroline Williams, and Jonathan Brandis.

<i>Castle Freak</i> 1995 American horror film directed by Stuart Gordon

Castle Freak is a 1995 American direct-to-video horror film directed by Stuart Gordon. The film stars Jeffrey Combs as John Reilly, an American recovering alcoholic who inherits an Italian castle when a distant relative passes away. John stays at the castle with his estranged wife Susan and blind daughter Rebecca, but a freakish monster locked away in the basement escapes and commits a series of murders.

<i>Amityville 3-D</i> 1983 film by Richard Fleischer

Amityville 3-D is a 1983 supernatural horror film directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Tony Roberts, Tess Harper, Robert Joy, Candy Clark, Lori Loughlin and Meg Ryan. It is the third film based in the Amityville Horror series, it was written by William Wales, a pseudonym for David Ambrose. It was one of a spate of 3-D films released in the early 1980s, and was the only Orion Pictures film filmed in the format. It’s an international co-production between the United States and Mexico.

<i>Quarantine</i> (2008 film) Film by John Erick Dowdle

Quarantine is a 2008 found footage horror film directed and co-written by John Erick Dowdle, produced by Sergio Aguero, Doug Davison, and Roy Lee, and co-written by Drew Dowdle, being a remake of the 2007 Spanish film Rec. The film stars Jennifer Carpenter, Jay Hernandez, Columbus Short, Greg Germann, Steve Harris, Dania Ramirez, Rade Šerbedžija, and Johnathon Schaech. It follows a reporter and her cameraman assigned to a pair of Los Angeles firemen who follow a distress call to an apartment building where they discover a deadly mutated strain of rabies spreading among the building's occupants; escape becomes impossible once the government descends upon the building to prevent the virus from spreading beyond it, and the pair continue to record the events that unfold inside, of which the film itself is the result. Quarantine features no actual musical score, using only sound effects, and differs in its characters, dialogue, and explanation of the virus from its source material.

<i>A Nightmare on Elm Street</i> (2010 film) American supernatural slasher film by Samuel Bayer

A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 2010 American supernatural slasher film directed by Samuel Bayer, written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer, and starring Jackie Earle Haley, Kyle Gallner, Rooney Mara, Katie Cassidy, Thomas Dekker, and Kellan Lutz. Produced by Michael Bay and Platinum Dunes, it is a remake of Wes Craven's 1984 film of the same name, as well as the ninth overall installment of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. The film is set in a fictitious town in Ohio and centers on a group of teenagers living on one street who are stalked and murdered in their dreams by a disfigured man named Freddy Krueger. The teenagers discover that they all share a common link from their childhood that makes them targets for Krueger.

<i>The Karate Kid</i> (2010 film) 2010 film directed by Harald Zwart

The Karate Kid is a 2010 American and Chinese martial arts drama film directed by Harald Zwart and produced by Jerry Weintraub, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, James Lassiter, and Ken Stovitz, from a screenplay written by Christopher Murphey, based on a story conceived by Robert Mark Kamen, the writer of the first three Karate Kid films. It serves as the fifth film in The Karate Kid franchise, and stars Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan in the lead roles, with Taraji P. Henson, Wenwen Han, Zhenwei Wang, Luke Carberry, Zhensu Wu, Zhiheng Wang, and Yu Rongguang in supporting roles.

<i>Just Go with It</i> 2011 romantic comedy movie directed by Dennis Dugan

Just Go With It is a 2011 American romantic comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Allan Loeb and Timothy Dowling, and produced by Adam Sandler, Jack Giarraputo, and Heather Parry. It is a remake of the 1969 film Cactus Flower, and stars Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. It tells the story of a plastic surgeon who enlists his assistant to help him woo a sixth-grade math teacher.

<i>Psychosis</i> (film) 2010 British film

Psychosis is a 2010 British horror film directed and written by Reg Traviss, with story by Michael Armstrong. It is a remake of the "Dreamhouse" episode from the film anthology Screamtime (1983).

<i>A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddys Revenge</i> 1985 film by Jack Sholder

A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge is a 1985 American supernatural slasher film directed by Jack Sholder and written by David Chaskin. It stars Mark Patton, Kim Myers, Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger, and Robert Rusler. It is the second installment in the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. The film follows Jesse Walsh, a teenager who begins having recurring nightmares about Freddy Krueger after moving into the former home of Nancy Thompson from the first film.

<i>Poltergeist</i> (2015 film) 2015 American film by Gil Kenan

Poltergeist is a 2015 American supernatural horror film directed by Gil Kenan, written by David Lindsay-Abaire, and produced by Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert, and Roy Lee. It is a remake of the 1982 film of the same name and is the fourth installment overall in the Poltergeist franchise. The film stars Sam Rockwell, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jared Harris, and Jane Adams, and follows a family who arrive at their new home and begin experiencing paranormal occurrences.

<i>It Follows</i> 2014 horror film by David Robert Mitchell

It Follows is a 2014 American horror film written and directed by David Robert Mitchell. It stars Maika Monroe as a young woman who is pursued by a supernatural entity after a sexual encounter. Keir Gilchrist, Daniel Zovatto, Jake Weary, Olivia Luccardi, and Lili Sepe appear in supporting roles. It Follows debuted at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival and was later purchased by Radius-TWC for distribution. After a successful limited release, the film had a wide release two weeks later on March 27, 2015.

References

  1. ↑ "The Stepfather (2009)". AFI Catalog of Feature Films . Retrieved 14 March 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 "THE STEPFATHER". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  3. ↑ Zimmermann, Samuel. "Director talks missing STEPFATHER action". Fangoria. Archived from the original on October 21, 2009. Retrieved October 19, 2009.
  4. ↑ "How Dylan Walsh makes the new Stepfather a killer remake". Sci-Fi Wire. July 2, 2009. Archived from the original on July 4, 2009. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
  5. ↑ Gingold, Michael (October 16, 2009). "The Stepfather (2009; Film Review)". Fangoria . Archived from the original on October 18, 2009.
  6. ↑ McKendry, David (October 20, 2009). "FROM the FILES of FANGORIA: I Guess You Are My Real STEPFATHER". Fangoria . Archived from the original on October 23, 2009.
  7. ↑ "The Stepfather Remake Comes Home". Dread Central. December 14, 2009. Archived from the original on December 17, 2009.
  8. ↑ "The Stepfather remake DVD Artwork". Dread Central . December 28, 2009. Archived from the original on December 30, 2009.
  9. ↑ "The Stepfather". Box Office Mojo . IMDb . Retrieved 2023-01-15. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  10. ↑ "Weekend Box Office Results for October 16–18, 2009". Box Office Mojo . IMDb. 2009-10-18. Retrieved 2009-11-01.
  11. ↑ "The Stepfather". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved 2023-01-15. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  12. ↑ "The Stepfather". Metacritic . Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
  13. ↑ Honeycutt, Kirk (2009-10-16). "The Stepfather -- Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on 2009-10-20.
  14. ↑ Thomas, Kevin (2009-10-17). "'The Stepfather' Movie Review". Los Angeles Times . Archived from the original on October 20, 2009. Retrieved 2009-11-01.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.