Sam Panico Can you keep a good stepfather down, despite him being shot and stabbed in the heart multiple times? Of course not. That's why even if Terry O'Quinn isn't coming back, his character definitely will in this made for HBO movie.Yes, Gene Clifford has survived being stabbed with a clawhammer in the heart and went right back into the same mental institution in Puget Sound. And he escapes it all over again, finding a back alley surgeon to change his appearance, all with no anesthesia, before killing that very same doctor.Oh yeah - now the stepfather is played by Robert Wightman, who is best known for taking over the role of John-Boy Walton from Richard Thomas.Now, he's Keith Grant, a gardener who dresses up as the Easter Bunny for a church party. There, he meets Christine Davis (Priscilla Barnes from TV's Three's Company) and her son Andy, who has been in a wheelchair since an accident. He even takes care of Christine's psycho ex, Mark, by killing him with a shovel. Once that body is buried in the garden, Keith is free to marry Christine and Andy goes away to stay with his dad, Steve.It turns out that Christine can't have children any longer, so Keith begins courting another woman, Jennifer (Season Hubley, Vice Squad) and her son Nicholas. His boss totally picks up on this, so that guy has to die.Andy is back home and he's well versed in true crime. So he starts researching Keith and his history. He's surprised when his new dad misidentifies him as Nicholas, so the typical stepfather behavior has started as he begins forgetting his identity and killing anyone who learns the truth, like that troublemaking priest!Will the stepfather find true love? Will Andy walk again? Can even the stepfather survive falling into a woodchipper? All of these questions and probably a few more will be answered by the end of this movie.If you watch this movie without looking at the screen, you may think that Terry O'Quinn is still in it. The voice is very close. But once you watch it, the acting isn't as good. In fact, Wightman is quite wooden, particularly in a sex scene with Barnes where she's sweaty and super into it. I don't mean that as a pun. But sure, you can take it that way.Andy is also the exact opposite - overacted to the extreme and given to fits of screaming. There's a near hilarious scene where they attempt to play football together that had me laughing in a completely inappropriate way. At least there's plenty of gore to make up for all the cheese.

Christopher T. Chase I know it seems kind of dishonest to comment on a movie if you haven't seen it all the way through, but trust me on this one, kids...you don't need to see this turkey all the way through to know how bad it truly is. I pride myself on being pretty knowledgeable about good movies and even good BAD movies, and this is no PLAN NINE FROM OUTER SPACE. At least that was entertaining in its own genuinely loopy way. They should feature this movie in a class on how NOT to write a screenplay. You can see foreshadowing from a hundred miles away, and plot points fall into place with all the subtlety of an anvil falling on Wile E. Coyote's noggin. Case in point: the mean, stalkerish ex-hubby vs. our title character. The only way you wouldn't know how that bout would end up, is if you've NEVER SEEN A MOVIE BEFORE! And the whole thing with 'Bad Ex' threatening good ol' 'Stepfather,' as he's turning his flower bed with a BIG shovel??? The filmmakers must've thought the only people more stupid than the jerky ex, would be the audience. And they'd be absolutely right...if you bothered watching this dog turd beyond this point, which I'm happy to say I didn't.Had I paid for the rental, I may have bitten the bullet to get my money's worth out of it, but it was on Showtime late night. Meaning I could channel surf over to a really GOOD movie, even one that's been on about a thousand times. Like the first NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, which I'm sure I've seen about a thousand times and still enjoyed it.Well, thanks to STEPFATHER 3, make that a thousand and one.So, if you want to respect yourself in the morning, do what Terry O'Quinn did way before me. Skip this mess. And if you see it sitting next to MALICE, or JURRASIC PARK or even PLAN NINE at the video store, and nothing else is in, do yourself a favor...RENT THE OTHER MOVIE.

rpzowie This movie's script, plot and acting are all so stupid (except for Priscilla Barnes) that they're hilarious. Unfortunately, this was intended to be a horror film.Unless you like movies that are so bad they're funny (a la Plan 9 From Outer Space), I'd recommend avoiding this film.

mmc123 I rented this movie with a friend and it exceeded my expectations. For a television movie it was great. I loved the Stepfather movies and it's a shame they cannot go onto a fourth chapter after this...I won;t spoil it for you but...it's a sad ending to the franchise.