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33 reviews in total

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6 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Never a shortage of available women for this guy., 12 April 2000
Author: yenlo from Auburn, Me

Terry O'Quinn reprises his All I want is the perfect American family and if I don't get it I'll kill everyone and try again psycho role. Once again he manages to get an unmarried woman with a child to fall for him. This time it's Meg Foster. If you're a fan of the first then you have to see this one. If nothing else then for O'Quinns performance as Henry Morrison no Jerry Blake no Hodgkins....Wait a minute, Who is he here?

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8 out of 10 people found the following review useful:
Underrated psychological masterpiece, 6 April 2003
Author: Katatonia from Missouri

I actually enjoy Stepfather 2 more than the first Stepfather movie. The haunting theme does a lot for creating a truly sinister atmosphere. Rarely does a film score stick in my head, but this one does. And then there's Terry O'Quinn who plays the character just right.

You have to remember that this film was basically made in only 4 months. That's writing the script, casting, shooting, post production, etc. It was made for about 1 and a half million dollars and originally was supposed to be a direct to video release. Some additional shots were added and changed when the studio decided it was going to run a theatrical release like the first Stepfather, and they needed a more violent "Horror Movie".

The new DVD release presents the film in it's original Widescreen format, and it's a very sharp Animorphic transfer. A great thing included on the disc is that it has many alternate and extended scenes that were from the original Director's cut. There is also a short still gallery, and a very interesting full-length commentary by the Director and Producer of Stepfather 2. The only thing missing is a theatrical trailer...albeit most Buena Vista DVD's lack a trailer so it's no big surprise there.

If you like this film then you need this DVD, it easily blows away the old VHS and Laserdisc editions. Now, if only they'd release the 1st Stepfather movie on DVD!!!

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4 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
So-SO, 11 May 1999

Author: neil ghezzar (nghezzar@bu.edu) from Boston, MA

You know what? This movie actually wasn't so bad. The premise is basically the same as most slasher movies, but this one has a twist in that the killer, is actually obsessed with having the perfect family life and in the process, this obsession drives him to murder. Nothing really original with the kill scenes or the ending, but the Stepfather's madness is somewhat interesting. A 7 out of 10.

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7 out of 10 people found the following review useful:
Excellent Thriller, Better Than First, 30 August 2003
Author: ihateeverymovieisee from United States

After reading so many poor reviews about this movie, I was reluctant to see it for myself. Terry O'Quinn's stepfather character is even more psychotic than he was in part one! Mr. O'Quinn deserves an Academy Award for this performance. But seriously, the movie is good from the standpoint that it is just a thriller about a troubled man who wants to start a family. The only problem is, he will kill to make that dream happen. Thumbs up on this one for me. Take it for what it is.

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4 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
An acceptable, but rather inferior and unnecessary sequel to the outstanding original, 2 January 2007

Author: Woodyanders (Woodyanders@aol.com) from The Last New Jersey Drive-In on the Left

This unwarranted, but passable and reasonably engrossing sequel once again features the impeccable Terry O'Quinn as the titular anonymous obsessive family killer who this time escapes from an asylum, moves into a quiet suburb, and masquerades as a family psychologist (!). The stepfather's targets here for the perfect American family here are real estate agent Carol Grayland (well played by the always solid and lovely Meg Foster) and her young son Jeremy (an engaging portrayal by Jonathan Brandis). Director Jeff Burr (who previously gave us the good'n'ghastly horror anthology sleeper "The Offspring") builds a sufficient amount of tension and there's a delightfully spunky turn by the vivacious Caroline Williams (Stretch in "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2") as Carol's nosy best friend Matty, but this follow-up falls markedly short of the first film's sterling quality because of John Auerbach's predictable script and sophomoric attempts at humor. Overall it's okay and worth seeing once, but the original was much better and more resonant.

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7 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
Do you want to marry me?, 9 October 2002

Author: Rainbow2003 from Montgomery, Alabama

Jonathan Brandis is terrific as Todd in this charming horror film. The supporting cast is brilliant. The costumes are nice. One of the good films in the genre, Stepfather 2: Make Room For Daddy will become a father of terror to the viewer. 7 out of 10.

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6 out of 10 people found the following review useful:
pointless, 3 September 1999
Author: Kevin (slim402003@aol.com)

You know what? This sequel was pointless but it turned out better that I thought it would. Terry O'Quinn is back and the rest of the cast is different. This sequel was actually thought up with no imagination, but it worked out well. I admit one thing, O'Quinn's performance was just as great in the original, and the rest of the cast was better than the original.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
A fun sequel, 22 March 2005
Author: Prolox from Canada

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Sequel to the original film, ditches the straight forward, horror/suspense thriller tones & instead goes for a straight out slasher film mentality, with equal doses of humour that unfortunately does not quiet match the original film, but remains a fun time either way. This time, The Stepfather escapes the loony bin & takes up the job of a psychiatrist (with a name he lifted from the very psychiatrist he killed while in the mental hospital). From there, he heads into a small town & eventually finds what he thinks might be a potentially new love interest & family in a real estate divorcée & her teenage son. But when a snoopy mail lady & friend to the heroine begins checking up on his past & her ex-husband comes back to try & rekindle their relationship, it sets Gene (The Stepfather) off on a new brutal murdering spree as he is more determined than ever to have the perfect family. Like most sequels, STEPFATHER 2 fails to live up to it's predecessor, an unnecessary sequel, that fortunately at least takes a different direction by going the horror comedy route (a very popular combination at the time) as a result, the film tends to be bloodier than last time & a lot of the situations are often played for chuckles. Mainly the comedy comes from the neighbour hood itself, which is always so bright, picture perfect & very cheerful, with even the rainy days given a certain amount of cheerfulness. TERRY O' QUINN put in another (And his last) great performance as the Ward Cleaver like stepfather from hell & I really enjoyed watching him here. Director JEFF BURR, who has quiet a few genre films under his belt, directs fairly well here & the acting is better than most films in the genre. The film as already mentioned plays more on it's slasher movie aspects than suspense, though there are a good number of scenes still that keep you on the edge of you're seat, most notably the climax, set at the wedding, where Gene's dark past is finally revealed, resulting in what has to be one of the most violent wedding days, ever put on film. Still it's worth a look for fans of the suspense/horror genre. Followed by STEPFATHER 3: FATHER'S DAY

*** stars

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
* * out of 4., 30 May 2002
Author: Brandon L. Sites (brandonsites1981@yahoo.com) from USA

Homicidal maniac from the original survives the events that occurred in part one and escapes from prison and almost immediately gets engaged to a lonely widow (Meg Foster). Cheap looking sequel still works because of Terry O' Quinn's creepy performance. The intelligent screenplay and tight direction of the first are sorely missed though. Rated R; Violence, Sexual Situations, and Profanity.

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2 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
Not up to the original, but enjoyable anyway., 16 July 2003

Author: capkronos (capkronos00@hotmail.com) from Ohio, USA

Terry O'Quinn kills a few people, escapes from an institution, steals a car and decides to move to "Palm Meadow Estates" after watching the "Dream House" TV show hosted by Bob Eubanks. His new identity is family therapist (!) Dr. Gene Clifford. He meets and dates a divorced real estate agent (Meg Foster) with a depressed son (Jonathan Brandis), then starts murdering people who threaten to come between them.

Although the script has its fair share of clunkers and cheesy wisecracks, there are enough things here to keep it on track, especially O'Quinn in another dynamic performance. There's also some effective black humor, Caroline Williams (TEXAS CHAINSAW 2) offering wonderful scene-stealing support as Foster's suspicious best friend and a great hammer/fork/knife wedding-ceremony massacre finale.

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