The Stepmother

I like weird 70's movies a lot, but this is weird even by weird 70's standards. It takes about half the movie, for instance, to even figure out why it's CALLED "The Stepmother"--it, at first, seems to be a movie about a jealous middle-aged, Mexican-American architect who murders a business associate after he finds him in bed with his younger gringa wife (and unbeknownst to the wife). By a weird coincidence another more lower-class Mexican also murders his wife in the same area and is framed for both murders. But the cops begins to suspect the architect, and his continuing jealously causes him to accidentally kill his partner and best friend (played by "MASH's" Larry Linville). He then has to fend off the amorous advances of the friend's widow before the cops grow even more suspicious. Got all that so far?

So why is it called "The Stepmother"? Well, about halfway through the man's son shows up from Mexico City, and he also starts messing around with the young wife (his stepmother)and the off-kilter plot REALLY goes into over-drive.

There are a few reasons to see this. First, if you're a weird 70's film completist. This film is kind similar to early 70's bizarro flick "Swinger's Massacre", which was equally ridiculous but had a less random plot. Second, if you're a fan of Larry Linville, he's actually pretty good here and acts circles around the rest of the unknown cast. The best reason perhaps though is this was the first appearance of cult drive-in queen Claudia Jennings. Jennings has a cameo role as a stoned-out hippie chick who has one hilarious line where she tell the cops she was "way too ripped" to remember what happened the night of the murder. (And if that isn't worth the price of admission, she also has her typically gratuitous full-frontal nude scene). Weird, weird movie, but if any of this sounds interesting to you, check it out.

Ban, a sacred prohibition by which certain people or objects are considered untouchable, certain actions unperformable, certain words unspeakable. The sinful relationship between the stepmother and her stepson is the film's breaking point, revealing the dark side of desire and sexual repression. The marriage founders because of this betrayal and the lies used to hide it. The violence stems from domestic evil, not from external enemies, but from within the home. The protagonist is violent and kills in the grip of jealousy, unleashing a spiral of guilt, cover-ups, and lies. He doesn't even seek redemption, driven only by insane jealousy. The female figure is not only a seductress, but also an element of fragility, using sensuality as a mask for her existential unease.

Real estate developer Frank Delgado (Alejandro Rey), returning home from a business trip, finds a friend at home who confesses to having sex with his wife, Margo (Katherine Justice). Enraged by jealousy, Frank kills him. From that night onward, his partner Dick Hill (Larry Linville) begins to suspect something is afoot, but in an accident, he falls from a building during an argument with Frank and dies. Dick's wife, Sonya Hill (Marlene Schmidt), becomes his new partner, raising Inspector Darnezi's (John Anderson) suspicions of an affair between her and Frank.

Director Howard Avedis (4.0) attempts to craft a Hitchcockian thriller, but his success is limited, partly due to the modest means available; the screenplay (5.0) by the director himself alternates between a slow pace and sudden accelerations, with some "disjointed" or redundant sequences and an excessive use of freeze-frame; from a technical standpoint (5.0), Robert Steadman's cinematography stands out, despite its technical limitations, it manages to create a sufficiently realistic atmosphere; Audrey Granville's soundtrack is melodramatic, contrasting too much with the delicate song "Strange Are the Ways of Love" by Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster (nominated); the cast (4.0) is very disappointing, out of character, stiff, and unbelievable, with the only exceptions being the two female leads, Justice and Schmidt.

Best moment: Probably the beginning, where the film presents itself for what it is: poor acting, a morbid plot, technically modest, but with a beautiful song that proves that even in a pigsty, a beautiful flower can grow. Worth watching when you have nothing better to do, or you want to fall asleep listening to a voice that keeps you company.

Architect Frank Delgado returns to his home in Mexico. His wealthy client Alan Richmond forces himself on his wife Margo. Frank runs into Alan on his driveway. Suspecting them having an affair, Frank kills Alan and buries his body. He escapes without being seen by a fighting couple. The police investigates Alan's strangulation death but also the young Mexican woman. Dick Hill arrives with company to talk his business partner Frank into going to a beach house which belongs to Alan.

This movie starts off well with a murder. However the tension that is build up by the opening is lost as the movie struggles through a slow boring slough. This is possibly the worst looking movie I've ever seen that is nominated for an Oscar. Alejandro Rey is a pretty awful actor. The movie has a few good actors and Larry Linville could have been an interesting lead. The staging is very static and the bad direction drains away all of the tension.

Awesome. I did a double take when I first saw him in this quirky little independent ditty from the early 70s. Just out of curiosity I looked at when he started work on MASH, and it was the same year. That explains his appearance, as I don't believe he would do this after international stardom, but I don't know if all the research in the world wide web could fully explain the movie.

It's really a movie in two parts: the first half(ish) is story of a husband with a temper and jealous streak and throughout the second half the title of the movie is explored a little more and fleshed out (pun intended). Typical incoherent, excuse for a young filmmaker to get his name out by throwing in gratuitous walking-out-of-bed or to-and-from- the-bathroom-shot drive-in cinema with a director that never graduated from the genre in his short (directorial) career. There are moments of interesting story or character development, and the title song was amazingly nominated for an Oscar, but overall this is only worth watching for someone with an interest in films from the 1970s.

In the 70's, you would see a lot of skin in drama and thrillers. Then there's the sex factor that goes along with it. In "The Stepmother", there is plenty of that. Alejandro Rey("The Flying Nun") plays Frank, a successful building contractor who catches his client with his wife while he was on a business trip. He kills him, then buries his body at a beach. Unbeknownst to him, there's a fighting couple that comes up later. After getting rid of the evidence, the police comes up and tells that there are two bodies at the beach. Frank knows that he killed his client, but the other body is female. That makes him more uneasy. If that is bad, it gets worse when he accidentally kills his partner in the business. That makes him more unstable. For this one, business and pleasure, don't mix. It has a great cast. But the ending was a letdown. It's worth the watch in certain ways. Only on a certain occasion. 2 out of 5 stars