Locke Harrison divorced his wife and was called Jackie. Harrison began to think of associating with his fashion friend Isabelle Kelly after his divorce to his wife three years ago. After their meeting, Kelly meets with Harrison's children for the first time in order to restore their lost mother's tenderness, but perhaps the children were not in a state of strong acceptance or loyalty except for their divorced mother. Isabelle could not bear the burden left by Harrison, and may turn into a major family crisis for children as well as people within the family.
It's as cool and shameless a piece of emotional blackmail as any movie has ever produced.
Susan Stark
Detroit News
January 01, 2000
Not since 1979's Kramer vs. Kramer has a mainstream movie more accurately, insightfully, humorously or tear-jerkingly dramatized family life in our time than Stepmom!
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice
March 03, 2002
Conveys many of the difficulties inherent in the stepfamily arrangement and the insecurities we all tend to feel when we compare ourselves to others.
It's a film that takes valid, complex family dynamics regarding divorce, remarriage, and parenting and reduces it all to bitchy catfighting, obvious button-pushing, and tawdry clichés.
A sloppily scripted, formulaic tear-jerker about spoiled rich people who whine a lot. I defy you to feel anything for these characters other than the desire to slap them--even Sarandon's obligatorily terminally-ill Mom.
Todd McCarthy
Variety
January 01, 2000
It's merely a soap opera with elevated production values and a sterling cast.
