IMAGINE the following premise: a mother in her 50s, divorced from her husband and having to share her two children with the younger woman in his life, finds out that she has a terminal illness.
No wonder Jackie (Susan Sarandon) is royally pissed off. And she shows it, by being feisty and at times bitchy towards Isabel (Julia Roberts) whom she considers a threat.
After all, Isabel, a successful New York fashion photographer, is young, beautiful and has snared the undying attention of Jackie’s ex-hubby Luke (Ed Harris). And although she has a problem with punctuality, Isabel tries her darnedest to be a good, nay, great stepmom.
So out come the claws and both women partake in spirited verbal catfights throughout the movie. Supermom Jackie thinks that Isabel is a selfish career woman who makes an incompetent parent. Naturally, Jackie doesn’t want her children to grow up to be like Isabel and says catty things like “Slugs have a faster learning curve” compared to you-know-who.
Isabel, on the other hand, thinks Jackie is a mean old cow who spoils her children rotten.
In truth, Jackie and Isabel are selfish in their own ways. Fearful of losing her children, Jackie has no qualms about turning her children against their surrogate parent. When asked by 12-year-old Anna (Jena Malone) whether Isabel is rich, she replies: “People like Isabel who think only about themselves do make a lot of money.” Meow.
Isabel, in her almost impossible mission to topple Jackie’s “Mother of the Year” position, resorts to buying the kids’ affection. She gets them a cute puppy, but Anna (who has obviously inherited her mother’s bitchy demeanor) shows her displeasure.
When Isabel asks the children to name the canine, Anna curtly suggests “Isabel.” “Well, I’m allergic to dogs and I’m allergic to you too,” she tells Isabel straight in the face.
Thus the underlying current that runs through Stepmom. Instead of slam-bang action that rips the screen, words are the ultimate weapons used to break hearts and heal wounds.
The cold war between Jackie and Isabel has a profound effect on those around them, to the extent that young Ben (cute-as-a-button Liam Aiken) tells Jackie in his confusion: “Mummy, I’ll hate Isabel if you want me to.”
The clash of wills withers (but only slightly) when Jackie has to face the inevitable reality that she will die from cancer and Isabel is the one to take over her duties full-time. As they reluctantly reach a truce, Jackie, in passing the torch to Isabel, spouts one of the movie’s most poignant lines: “I have their past and you can have their future.” Continue reading »
Jan 242013