The Stepfather
The film opens up with Henry Morrison (Terry O'Quinn) leaving the home of his family he recently murdered. Shaving his beard, Henry leaves the house, in search of what he thinks is the American Dream: a beautiful home, loving wife, and children. One year later, he has met another woman, Susan Maine (Shelley Hack). To Susan and her daughter Stephanie (Jill Schoelen), Henry is Jerry Blake, a real estate salesman who loves and cares for them very much, so Susan and Jerry get married. Stephanie has been getting into a lot of fights at school lately, along with the dislike of her new father, and Jerry isn't very happy. This enrages him to kill anyone that gets in the way of his American Dream, even his new family.
I thought this entry in the horror movie genre was fairly enjoyable and original. Many horror movies are about holidays, special events, or anything else that can be exploited. Finally, they came up with the idea of a murderous, maniacal stepfather, which was followed by two sequels. As always, I found scream queen Jill Schoelen enjoyable as the main protagonist. Worth viewing, especially if you're a true horror movie fan.
