Stepmom

1998
PG-13
2h 5m

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

76K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

Play trailer0:31

A terminally ill woman must deal with her ex-husband's new lover, who will be their children's stepmother.A terminally ill woman must deal with her ex-husband's new lover, who will be their children's stepmother.A terminally ill woman must deal with her ex-husband's new lover, who will be their children's stepmother.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

76K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

2,289

315

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 8 wins & 7 nominations

Trivia
The film was dedicated "In loving memory of Irene Columbus", director Chris Columbus's mother, who died of cancer the year before the movie was released.

Goofs
Isabel helps Anna get her trees to look real. She paints some leaves on the tree; they are minimal but very big strokes and exceed the sides of the tree. In the next shot, when Anna has a turn, the painting has changed - the "leaves" are tiny and there are suddenly lots of little neat ones rather than the ones Isabel just painted.

Quotes
Isabel: You know, I never wanted to be a mom. Sharing it with you... that's one thing. It's another to be looking over my shoulder for the next twenty years, knowing someone else would have done it better... someone else would have done it right.
Jackie Harrison: What do you have that I don't?
Isabel: You're Mother Earth, incarnate.
Jackie Harrison: You're... hip, and fresh.
Isabel: You ride with Anna.
Jackie Harrison: You'll learn.
Isabel: You know every story, every wound, every memory. Their whole life's happiness is wrapped up in you... every single second. Don't you get it? Look down the road to her wedding. I'm in a room alone with her, fixing her veil, fluffing her dress, telling her no woman has ever looked so beautiful. And my fear is she'll be thinking, "I wish my mom was here."
Jackie Harrison: And mine is... she won't.

Connections
Featured in Siskel & Ebert: You've Got Mail/Down in the Delta/The Thin Red Line/A Civil Action/Affliction (1998)

Soundtracks
Under Pressure
Written by David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, John Deacon, Brian May, and Roger Taylor
Performed by Queen and David Bowie
Courtesy of Raincloud Productions Ltd.
Jones/Tintoretto Entertainment Co., LLC., Hollywood Records & EMI Records UK

User reviews296

Review

Featured review

6/10

Very Beautiful

I got Stepmom for Julia Robert's performance, and I expected it to be pretty good. It did not fail me- it exceeded my expectations. This movie is beautiful.

It's the story of a husband and wife with two kids who have fallen out of love, and now the father is getting married to a new, younger woman. The mother of the kids does everything she can to make her children hate this woman who is going to very soon be a permanent part of their life.

Julia Roberts indeed gives a fine performance as the fiancée of Ed Harris, the husband. She steals your heart in every scene she's in as this young woman who is trying so hard to be exactly what those children want and need. And in the end, she's searching for acceptance and love from them as much as they are from her. And then there's Susan Sarandon, giving one of her best performances as the mother of the children who wants nothing more than to remove her children from The younger woman completely. Sarandon's character is horrible- one of the most awful and hateful people in modern movies. She backstabs, she's overly-critical, and for a long time, she finds every chance possible to turn her children against the other woman- yet you cannot help but feel for her. As nasty as she is, you sympathize with this woman who is having to deal with her children being in the care of a younger, inexperienced woman who is living with her ex-husband. It's impossible not to understand her character's mourning and confusion. For the first time in her life, this woman is not the only mother in her children's life.

Don't be surprised if you cry- more than once. It's that good, and that affecting. Truly, this film is one of the better delights of the past few years. Beautiful story, great performances, real emotions- 8/10 stars!

Jay Addison