Stepmom

1998 Comedy Drama

Mrs. Doubtfire director Chris Columbus continues to explore the family turmoil of divorce in the tearjerker Stepmom, a story that pits the birth mother against the new mother. Jackie (Susan Sarandon), a one-time book editor, is now the consummate soccer mom juggling the schedules of her two kids in her New York ranch outside of Manhattan. Her ex-husband Luke (Ed Harris), who gets weekend custody of the kids, is living in the city with a woman half his age named Isabel (Julia Roberts), a high-fashion photographer with a strong stylistic sense of "what's hot." Since Luke is always away at work, the burden of getting the kids ready for school when they are with their father falls on Isabel, and she just isn't the nurturing type. The story heats up, however, when Jackie learns that she has cancer. Facing the horrors of medical tests and chemotherapy, she realizes that, should something happen to her, her kids will be left with this irresponsible Isabel as their mother, especially after Luke proposes marriage to her. What ensues is part parenting lesson, part competitive parenting, but 100 percent family bonding, as Jackie must learn to allow Isabel to be part of her world and her family. more..

Director: Chris Columbus

Starring: Susan Sarandon, Julia Roberts,Ed Harris, Jena Malone, Liam Aiken

Reviews

  • A film that's sad and poignant but not without humorous moments.

    - The San Francisco Chronicle

    27 April 2013

  • Too loud, bright and shallow for its subject: a movie that pushes too many obvious buttons to build naturally to the big, heartbreaking climax it obviously wants.

    Michael Wilmington - The Chicago Tribune

    27 April 2013

  • That this is a patchwork quilt of a screenplay (written by five credited writers) is apparent in its use of little bits of this and little bits of that. Did none of them notice, looking at the big picture, that it's unbelievable?

    Angie Errigo - Empire

    27 April 2013

  • The skill of the actors, who invest their characters with small touches of humanity, is useful in distracting us from the emotional manipulations, but it's like they're brightening separate rooms of a haunted house.

    Roger Ebert - The Chicago Sun-Times

    27 April 2013

  • The movie is reasonably smart and touching when it deals with the plight of a family on the rocks, but it pushes too many emotional buttons when the ex-wife is diagnosed with a fatal illness that proceeds to take over the story.

    David Sterritt - Christian Science Monitor

    27 April 2013

Awards

  • John Williams

    BMI Film & TV Awards (1999)

  • Favorite Actress - Drama

    Blockbuster Entertainment Awards (1999)

  • Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama

    Golden Globes (1999)

     
  • Favorite Movie Actress

    Kids' Choice Awards (1999)

     
  • Best Actress

    San Diego Film Critics Society Awards (1998)