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Ahhh, here we
go again. Having run out of original ideas
in Hollywood we continue to see remake after
remake. This didn’t happen too often
in the horror genre until just a few years
ago. Now we’re seeing more and more
remakes that are for the most part…
unnecessary. I mean really…. did we
need new versions of “Texas Chainsaw
Massacre”, “Halloween”,
or “Friday the 13th?” And now
we’re even getting a remake of “Nightmare
on Elm Street.”
Even if some of these films are decent,
they really needn’t have been made.
Well, except you can’t tell that to
the ‘suits’ who wanna make money
of a known commodity.
So this brings us to 2009’s “The
Stepfather”, a remake of the classic
1987 film about a man who marries into a
family who, unbeknownst to them… is
actually a psychotic killer.
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In the original film, we had Terry O’Quinn
(way before his “Lost” days) who did
a great job making himself appear normal to everyone
around him. It actually came as quite a shock
to learn that he wasn’t playing with a full
deck. It was a taut, exciting horror thriller
that has since become somewhat of a cult film.
The new “Stepfather” is introduced
to us in the form of Dylan Walsh who, I grant
you, looks like an ordinary guy. He meets recently
divorced Sela Ward at a grocery store and uses
his shy charm to win her over and get invited
to eat with her and her children. Their relationship
moves quickly and before you know it… he’s
living with the family and planning a marriage.
Unfortunately, her oldest son (Penn Badgley) seems
to be the only one who suspects that his mom’s
intended isn’t exactly who he claims to
be.
I have to say that while this new “Stepfather”
had its moments; overall it didn’t work
for me anywhere near how the original did. And
even without comparing it (which is hard to do),
there were some problems inherent to this version.
First off was Dylan Walsh’s portrayal. It
was certainly chilling at all the right moments,
but it was also chilling all the way through.
He really didn’t do a good job hiding his
insanity, a fact that was exacerbated by the film’s
soundtrack. Watching him, it makes it very hard
to believe that most people would buy his act.
Walsh is a really god actor, this was just not
the way to go with this character to get a really
strong payoff.
Then there was the matter of his hiding his identity.
I was able to understand it back in 1987. But
nowadays it is much, much harder to keep your
identity a secret. Especially when you’ve
done the things this guy did. I know it wouldn’t
be impossible, but it seemed highly improbable
that he could move from job to job and identity
to identity. Thanks to all of the modern TV ‘CSI’
shows, I am given the impression there are a lot
of forensic things that would have made identifying
this guy a lot simpler. But these are never really
addressed.
The recent Bluray release of “The Stepfather”
has a decent transfer. The video looks really
sharp and clear, but the movie suffers from an
overall cinematography standpoint. So it only
looks as good as the director let it look. Sound
is similar with some okay separation, but the
bass track seemed to take over a lot of the time.
As far as extra features go, you’ll find
a commentary by director Nelson McCormick, who
is joined by Dylan Walsh and Penn Badgley. It’s
a pretty by the numbers commentary, but still
a little interesting to help ‘understand’
the direction they went. There are also two featurettes
focusing on the making of the film and the stunt
work. Neither is exceptional admittedly. There
is also a short Gag Reel and a Movie IQ Trivia
Track.
“The Stepfather” doesn’t really
stand out as one of the better remakes, and if
you are forced to compare it doesn’t push
any boundaries from the first one except your
capacity to believe the events could really happen.
Directed by: Nelson McCormick
Starring: Dylan Walsh, Sela Ward, Penn Badgley,
Amber Heard, John Tenney
Extras: Gag Reel; Commentary with Penn Badgley,
Dylan Walsh and Director Nelson McCormick; Making
the Film; Visualizing the Stunts
Specification: 1080p High Definition (2.40:1);
5.1 DTS-HD MA
Studio: Sony
Release Date: 2/9/2010
MPAA Rating: Unrated
http://www.sonypictures.com
We'll give The Stepfather (Bluray) a C.
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