The Stepfather Review

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Stepfather Promo Picture

By Raimundo Ortiz

If you're looking to get into the Halloween mood by checking out a scary movie, don't bother seeing "The Stepfather".

The Stepfather stars Dylan Walsh as David Harris, a charming, handsome man who picks up an equally attractive Susan Harding, played by the beautiful Sela Ward, in a supermarket.

The relationship moves quickly between David and Susan and they abruptly marry. Soon after the wedding, Susan’s son Michael returns home from military school less than thrilled with the new man in the house. Despite David’s veneer of perfection, Michael suspects that David’s not all he’s cracked up to be.

You can probably fill in the rest, and that is the true flaw with this film.
At no point does "The Stepfather" surprise anyone, or throw the audience for a loop. Each logical progression can be predicted well in advance of it happening, and the scares in the film are few and far between. Even when they do come, they are cheap and tacky.

Nothing in this film is truly scary, even though the premise of the movie is one of the most frightening situations fathomable. That’s an indictment of how predictable and boring "The Stepfather" is.

This isn’t to say the movie is terrible. It just isn’t exciting. Those looking to scream should save their money for something scarier.