Stepmom 3 Stars (Out of 4) Reviewed by Mac VerStandig Critic@Moviereviews.org Http://www.moviereviews.org
Every holiday season a film will come out that is attempting to be the next Miracle on 34th Street or It's A Wonderful Life. The content will be values and morals. And the plot's predictability will be none less than that of this annual event. Recently, director Chris Columbus has been behind several of these films such as Home Alone and Mrs. Doubtfire. So, as tradition may have neither gaps nor breaks, this year's wannabe movie is Stepmom, directed by, appropriately enough, Chris Columbus.
The unadvertised plot of Stepmom is coping with the harshest of things that life has to offer; in this case it is cancer. The advertised plot is dealing with divorced life and the children involved; which does fall under the larger theme as well. And of course, just to insure that this movie doesn't break the trend, there are scenes that will cause you to laugh, and others to cry.
Jackie (Susan Sarandon) and Luke (Ed Harris) have made the decision to divorce long before the film starts. They have 2 children, one is a 12 year old girl, Anna (Jena Malone), and the other a significantly younger boy, Ben (Liam Aiken). Their lives seem to have adjusted to this divorce, and just when a degree of stability is beginning to exist, Luke has his younger girlfriend, Isabel (Julia Roberts), move in. Devoted to her work as a photographer, Isabel never dreamed of playing Mom, but now living with 2 children part of the time, she will be forced to adjust. That is where the movie picks up.
Stereotypically, the kids don't want to except Isabel, and in their minds she will never stack up to the job of their full time mother, Jackie. The movie becomes an artificial study of acceptance in life, and plays out several very two dimensional Hollywood type scenarios. But then, just when you have calculated the ending, and can predict every scene ahead of time, the movie inserts it's one bold surprise. (WARNING: Partial Plot Giveaway) As viewers of Terms of Endearment once saw, those who see this will as well. Jackie is terminally ill with cancer. Although this is the one non-predictable move of the film, everything related to it is. And so it that the lives of these 5 people are changed, and they must cope with just another situation on top of all those that they currently do.
When you put 3 talented people like Susan Sarandon, Ed Harris and Julia Roberts together on screen, there will almost always be chemistry and extraordinary acting. This is no exception. Sarandon gives her best performance since her Academy Award winning role in Dead Man Walking. Roberts is solid as well, and seems to enjoy playing her young, rock n' roll obsessed character. The kids' roles don't have much room to shine, but the relatively new Jena Malone (Contact) is wonderfully charming. However, the real treat is Ed Harris in his second great job of the year (The Truman Show). He is believable, enjoyable, and all around great in his role.
When all is said and done, Stepmom offers very little that is new or unique, beyond some great acting. However, as worn out as it may be, the overly predictable plot is still enjoyable and entertaining. Adding a serious twist with Jackie is a bold, fairly new step for this genre that deserves applause. Is it worth the time and money? I suppose so, but waiting for video wouldn't hurt either.
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