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The Stepfather

The Stepfather

Horror · Thriller · 1987

Seemingly mild-mannered Henry Morrison has just murdered his entire family. After adopting a new identity and skipping town, he begins building a new relationship with a widow and her teenage daughter. However, he soon begins struggling to hide his true identity and maintain a grip on reality.

Movie details

The Stepfather

“He wanted a perfect family in a perfect town. But they couldn't measure up...Neither could the others...”

1987 Horror · Thriller 1h 29m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.5 / 10

Community rating

Seemingly mild-mannered Henry Morrison has just murdered his entire family. After adopting a new identity and skipping town, he begins building a new relationship with a widow and her teenage daughter. However, he soon begins struggling to hide his true identity and maintain a grip on reality.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Stepfather?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Fright

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Young babysitter Amanda arrives at the Lloyd residence to spend the evening looking after their young son. Soon after the Lloyds leave, a series of frightening occurrences in the gloomy old house have Amanda's nerves on edge. The real terror begins, however, when the child's biological father appears after recently escaping from a nearby mental institution.

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Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Joseph Ruben

Written by

Donald E. Westlake · Brian Garfield · Carolyn Lefcourt

Terry O'Quinn

Terry O'Quinn

Jerry Blake

Jill Schoelen

Jill Schoelen

Stephanie Maine

Shelley Hack

Shelley Hack

Susan

Charles Lanyer

Charles Lanyer

Dr. Bondurant

Stephen Shellen

Stephen Shellen

Jim Ogilvie

Stephen E. Miller

Stephen E. Miller

Al Brennan

Robyn Stevan

Robyn Stevan

Karen

Court is in session

Put The Stepfather on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Big-Idea Head

“Its refusal to behave is the point.”

The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.

The prosecution The Sentimental Softie

“Oddness is not depth.”

A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.