Terry O’Quinn is one of those formidable character actors whose presence and prolific filmographies make them into stars of their own. Best known as John Locke in TV series Lost, he was rarely cast in leading roles. One of such rare occurrences happened when he played title character in The Stepfather, 1987 thriller directed by Joseph Ruben.
The plot begins in seemingly idyllic suburb where residents are unaware of a terrible crime that just happened. Henry Morrison (played by O’Quinn) is a man who calmly changes his appearance and walks out of house after apparently butchering his wife and young daughter. A year later, he lives in another idyllic suburb under assumed name of “Jerry Blake”. He has married a widow Susan Maine (played by Shelley Hack), enjoys successful career of real estate agent and for everyone concerned represents perfect husband and father. His 16-year old stepdaughter Stephanie (played by Jill Schoelen), however, is rebellious and at odds with Jerry’s attempts to turn her home in embodiment of traditional family values. She also begins to notice that there is something quite wrong and sinister about Jerry and tries to find something about his background. In the meantime, Jim Ogilvie (played by Stephen Shellen), brother of a Jerry’s murdered wife, suspects that Henry Morrison took new identity and begins his quest. When Jerry’s facade begins to crumble, he begins preparations to take another new identity and start another family, while also preparing to liquidate his current one.
The script was loosely inspired by the real life case of John List, mass murderer who was still at large during the production (and who would be ultimately caught few years later). The script was written by Donald E. Westlake, prolific crime novelist, known for having some of his work adapted into Hollywood films, including the classic Point Blank. It was originally envisioned and marketed as conventional psychological thriller, before producers realised that they could sell it better as “slasher film”. This approach worked and The Stepfather became a minor hit at the box office, later developing reputation of a cult classic. While the relatively low body count and amount of actual violence make it somewhat below standards of 1980s slasher films, it provides a lot of old-fashioned suspense and provides excellent character study. Terry O’Quinn is brilliant as the chameleon-like character who is helpful, smiling and understanding on the outside, while hiding homicidal darkness inside. Former Charlie’s Angels star Shelley Hack is also good as widow who can’t see past her new husband’s facade. She is however much less memorable than Jill Schoellen who plays character of teenager with sometimes irrational rebeliousness but enough wit to serve as credible Final Girl near the end. Her performance would, on the other hand, by certain segments of audience be best remembered for the shower scene near the end when she appears nude; some might see that scene as gratuitous and exploitative, while others might interpret as homage to Hitchcock’s Psycho.
Joseph Ruben directs film very well, putting Vancouver locations to good use and keeping the pace quick enough to have the whole plot neatly packed into hour and half of running time. The film, however, suffers because of the subplot involving Ogilvie, which doesn’t add much to the film except for convenient item at the end. Choice of music is, like in many 1980s film, unfortunate. Some critics saw this film, and its villain obsessed with family and traditional values, as some sort of implicit criticisms of main social and cultural trends of Reagan’s America. This makes this film somewhat dated, although it is more likely that it would be incomprehensible to modern audience because of certain technical details, like characters having to rely on newspapers as main source of information and physical mail as the main mode of communication. The Stepfather is, however, very good film that could be recommended both to the fans of horror and thrillers. Like many such hits from 1980s, it had two forgettable sequels and unsuccessful remake in 2009 starring Dylan Walsh.
RATING: 7/10 (++)
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