Movie Review: The Stepfather

The Stepfather (2009) 

Directed by Nelson McCormick 

Written by J. S Cardone

Starring Dylan Walsh, Sela Ward, Penn Badgley, Amber Heard, Jon Tenney 

Release Date October 16th, 2009 

Published October 17th, 2009

Must we suffer more unnecessary remakes? Ugh. With a paucity of original ideas Hollywood has been mining its history, good and bad, for movies to revamp, re-imagine and re-engineer in hopes of shaking loose a few dollars from a mass audience that likely wasn't alive or aware whent the original movie was created.

The latest case in point is The Stepfather, a remake of an exceptionally lame horror thriller about a shady creep who murders the families that take him in as a step-daddy. The 1988 movie, at the very least, had the kink of an previously unexplored premise, step-dad as psycho killer. The new film is but a shadow reflecting the ultimate lameness of the original, minus the kink.

Penn Badgely, the hard bodied star of the CW Network's Gossip Girl takes the good guy role in The Stepfather as wayward black sheep Michael. Having just returned from military school for some unseen acting out, Michael finds his family has changed. Where once his father was is now David Harris (Dylan Walsh).

David hooked up with Michael's mom Susan (Sela Ward) one day in the grocery store. Their courtship was so quick that Michael wasn't gone a semester before wedding plans began. Not that Michael cared where his father went, Jay Harding (Jon Tenney) was a cheater and given the boot about the time Michael was sent to military school.

David is, at first, an exceptionally corny and overly welcoming presence in the house. However, once Michael and other begin to probe about his past David goes from cornball to creep. Soon bodies begin to pile up and Michael has to find some way to stop the psycho from making his family the latest in a series of family victims.

As loathsome as The Stepfather is there is some terrifically off-beat work by “Nip Tuck” actor Dylan Walsh. The ways in which he forces David's normalcy on others is at once tense and humorous. His secret glowering and tics become something of a dark, inside joke between him and the audience.

Sadly, little else in The Stepfather captures that off-beat spirit. Director Nelson McCormick hues closely to the formula right down to the inevitable rain soaked battle for survival between the besieged family and the family psycho-path. The ending is typical horror kitsch right down to the knowing wink.

The Stepfather is as dopey as you would expect. You really had no reason to see the 1988 original. There is less reason to see this unremarkable remake.

Movie Review Prom Night

Prom Night (2008) 

Directed by Nelson McCormick 

Written by J.S Cardone 

Starring Brittany Snow, Scott Porter, Jessica Stroup, Johnathon Schaech

Release Date April 11th, 2008

Published April 11th, 2008 

I have seen the movie Prom Night 3 times. The first time, I dismissed it as just another PG 13 teen horror movie. The second time I was modestly impressed with the compact plotting and the director's crisp clean visuals. Now, having seen it on Blu Ray, the visuals even more pronounced, I am fully impressed with Prom Night as just the right kind of throw away Saturday night horror movie. An easy, disposable rental that may not stick with you long after it's over but will compel you while it's on.

Brittany Snow stars in Prom Night, similar in name only to the 1980 Prom Night, as Donna Keppel. Two years prior to the films events, her parents and little brother were murdered. The killer was Donna's teacher who professed to having killed them so that he and Donna could run away together. He was caught and sent to a not so high security mental institution.

Two years later, as Donna is readying for Prom Night, teach (Jonathan Schaech, a long way from That Thing You Do) has escaped and is returning for his prize. Only detective Wynn (Idris Elba), the man who put the teacher away 2 years ago, can protect Donna but not knowing whether the teacher is really coming after her, he doesn't want to ruin prom. Thus sets up a Prom Night showdown. Donna and her friends and the hidden cops all over a luxury hotel vs a determined psychopath. Let the body count commence.

Why the cops don't just close in on Donna and whisk her away to safety, prom be damned, is an admittedly weak premise, they don't want to ruin prom, but if you can put that aside, Prom Night isn't half bad. Director Nelson McCormick (TV's Prisonbreak, Nip Tuck) has a strong visual sense and takes advantage of the luxury hotel setting for some terrific use of set design.

Overcoming J.S Cardone's weak screenplay which paints the director into numerous logical corners, McCormick does a tremendous job of keeping things  fast paced, exciting and even fun, if you like horror movies.

I am generally opposed to PG-13 horror movies. I think if you are going to make a horror movie, you can't limit yourself with restrictions on gore, violence, language and nudity. Granted, not all of those are necessary for horror, but they help. Director Nelson McCormick overcomes the limitations with a sizable body count and a creeptastic performance by Jonathan Schaech.

With his dirty stubbled face and intense creep eyes, Schaech sells every inch of this character even as his intentions are unclear. Writer Cardone never figured out exactly what the teacher intended to do once he caught Donna. Run away and live sickly ever after with her as a captive? Kill her on the spot. If he is just going to kill her, why does he pass up several shots at just getting it done?

The movie irritatingly screws with the audience more than once with the teacher passing up on killing Donna at most vulnerable moments. That said, there is more good than irritating in what makes up Prom Night.

No, Prom Night is not a great movie but for a formula teen horror picture it's solid and well crafted. The killer is creepy and disturbing and the heroine is someone we don't wish harm upon. It has the basics down and given the recent track record of the teen friendly horror genre, that is all we can really ask. It's nothing more than a saturday night rental, nothing you will remember on Sunday.

Break out the popcorn and beer and enjoy 88 minutes of well crafted cheese ball horror.