Tagline: "Do you know who your family is?"

Translation: Never, ever get remarried!

The Verdict: The original version of The Stepfather, which starred John Locke Terry O'Quinn as a homicidal psychopath with a penchant for single moms, was one of the better B movies of the late eighties. Even though it only pulled in $2.5 million at the box office, word of mouth about the film's taut storyline and O'Quinn's masterful performance as an evil stepfather helped turn it into an underground hit in video stores (remember those?) all across the country. So when we first got word that it was inline for a reboot, we'll admit that we allowed ourselves to get our hopes up that lightning could strike twice. Well, after seeing this trailer littered with marginally talented TV actors like Dylan Walsh and Gossip Girl's Penn Badgley trying to make a quick buck while their shows are on hiatus, our hopes have officially been dashed. Whereas the first film teemed with subtext that poked at the burgeoning conservative "family values" political movement, the deepest thing in this film appears to be the swimming pool in the family's backyard.

Penn Badgley Is About To Not Hit The Big Time [Videogum]