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Stepmom

 Stepmom
type
TVTItem
 Stepmom
label
Stepmom
 Stepmom
page
Stepmom
 Stepmom
comment
A 1998 comedy-drama directed by Chris Columbus, starring Susan Sarandon, Julia Roberts, Ed Harris, and Jena Malone.Jackie (Sarandon) and Luke (Harris) are a divorced couple, struggling to help their kids Anna (Malone) and Ben (Liam Aiken) adapt to the new lifestyle as a result. Luke gets a new girlfriend in Isabel (Roberts), a very successful advertising director who treats her career as the most important part of her life. Anna hates her at first, but after Jackie is diagnosed with cancer and starts treating Isabel better, Anna warms up to her. Isabel, as a result, starts becoming less career-driven and more family-focused.
 Stepmom
fetched
2023-05-10T14:28:40Z
 Stepmom
parsed
2023-05-10T14:28:40Z
 Stepmom
isPartOf
DBTropes
 Stepmom / int_184e7708
type
Hands-Off Parenting
 Stepmom / int_184e7708
comment
Hands-Off Parenting: Isabel spends more time caring for Luke's kids than he does.
 Stepmom / int_184e7708
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_184e7708
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_184e7708
 Stepmom / int_20989d05
type
Parents as People
 Stepmom / int_20989d05
comment
Parents as People: Seen in varying degrees of Luke, Jackie and Isabel, but specifically the latter, who is initially a career woman that is somewhat Maternally Challenged towards her boyfriend's two children. This is also discussed in an argument with Jackie who tries to call her out on how much the children "hate" her and she defending herself, her relationship with Luke, and her career.
 Stepmom / int_20989d05
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1.0
 Stepmom / int_20989d05
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1.0
 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_20989d05
 Stepmom / int_234fa9ba
type
May–December Romance
 Stepmom / int_234fa9ba
comment
May–December Romance: Between Isabel (who's in her early 30s) and Luke (who's in his late 40s or early 50s).
 Stepmom / int_234fa9ba
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_234fa9ba
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_234fa9ba
 Stepmom / int_28cd01ca
type
Disappeared Dad
 Stepmom / int_28cd01ca
comment
Disappeared Dad: Luke always has a work excuse to leave Anna and Ben in the care of his ex-wife or his equally busy, parentally challenged girlfriend, neither of whom call him out on this. It's even mentioned that his constantly working was a root cause for his divorce with Jackie, who says he was gone from her life long before their official divorce. Only once do we see him caring for the kids on his own.
 Stepmom / int_28cd01ca
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1.0
 Stepmom / int_28cd01ca
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_28cd01ca
 Stepmom / int_2de495bb
type
Missing Child
 Stepmom / int_2de495bb
comment
Missing Child: Ben runs off and goes missing while Isabel is working and Anna has fallen asleep. He's found safe and sound in the Central Park Zoo and entertains the officers watching him with his magic tricks.
 Stepmom / int_2de495bb
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_2de495bb
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1.0
 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_2de495bb
 Stepmom / int_2e76947a
type
The Topic of Cancer
 Stepmom / int_2e76947a
comment
The Topic of Cancer: The entire family must come to terms with Jackie's diagnosis.
 Stepmom / int_2e76947a
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_2e76947a
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_2e76947a
 Stepmom / int_3126c34a
type
Insufferable Genius
 Stepmom / int_3126c34a
comment
Insufferable Genius: Isabel has a pretty bad attitude at work, which her boss points out. That said, she's still a very talented photographer, and her vision for a particular shoot turns out to be far better than what she had originally been assigned.
 Stepmom / int_3126c34a
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_3126c34a
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_3126c34a
 Stepmom / int_355e858b
type
Clothing Reflects Personality
 Stepmom / int_355e858b
comment
Clothing Reflects Personality: Career-driven Isabel frequently dresses all in black, contrasted with housewife Jackie's soft autumnal colors.
 Stepmom / int_355e858b
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_355e858b
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_355e858b
 Stepmom / int_37d99981
type
Not a Date
 Stepmom / int_37d99981
comment
Not a Date: Luke and Jackie meet at a romantic-looking restaurant, both wanting to tell the other something important. She with her cancer diagnosis and Luke tells her of his plans to propose to Isabel. Their waiter even assumes they're a married couple, asking Luke what his "wife" wants to order. Jackie quickly corrects him.
 Stepmom / int_37d99981
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_37d99981
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_37d99981
 Stepmom / int_52196c03
type
Age-Gap Romance
 Stepmom / int_52196c03
comment
Age-Gap Romance: Between Isabel and the visibly older Luke. Jackie bitterly lampshades this, remarking how Luke has gotten with a woman "half his age" since divorcing her.
 Stepmom / int_52196c03
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_52196c03
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_52196c03
 Stepmom / int_5b9b4a19
type
Almighty Mom
 Stepmom / int_5b9b4a19
comment
Almighty Mom: Do not mess with Jackie when she is angry.
 Stepmom / int_5b9b4a19
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_5b9b4a19
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_5b9b4a19
 Stepmom / int_5dcb6101
type
Parental Love Song
 Stepmom / int_5dcb6101
comment
Parental Love Song: Jackie, Anna, and Ben dance and sing to "Ain't No Mountain High Enough."
 Stepmom / int_5dcb6101
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_5dcb6101
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_5dcb6101
 Stepmom / int_60df53e2
type
Suburbia
 Stepmom / int_60df53e2
comment
Suburbia: Anna and Ben divide their time between Luke and Isabel's apartment in The City and Jackie's house in Englewood, New Jersey.
 Stepmom / int_60df53e2
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_60df53e2
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_60df53e2
 Stepmom / int_618dc1ea
type
Parent with New Paramour
 Stepmom / int_618dc1ea
comment
Parent with New Paramour: A major plot point are the kids trying to adjust to their dad having a new girlfriend and wife.
 Stepmom / int_618dc1ea
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_618dc1ea
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_618dc1ea
 Stepmom / int_66cef86d
type
School Play
 Stepmom / int_66cef86d
comment
School Play: A Thanksgiving-themed concert in which Ben plays a turkey. In the original script, Anna was also in this show as an ear of corn.
 Stepmom / int_66cef86d
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_66cef86d
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_66cef86d
 Stepmom / int_79a0e313
type
Bolivian Army Ending
 Stepmom / int_79a0e313
comment
Bolivian Army Ending: The film concludes with what is presumably Jackie's last Christmas with her family and Isabel at her side, the latter whom she's now accepted and trusts to take care of her kids. (Jackie's funeral is shown in the original script.)
 Stepmom / int_79a0e313
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_79a0e313
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_79a0e313
 Stepmom / int_805b13e
type
Wacky Marriage Proposal
 Stepmom / int_805b13e
comment
Wacky Marriage Proposal: Luke presents Isabel with a small box, which she opens to find... a spool of thread. Luke ties one end of the thread to Isabel's finger and slides the ring down the other end.
 Stepmom / int_805b13e
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_805b13e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_805b13e
 Stepmom / int_863fa679
type
What Happened to the Mouse?
 Stepmom / int_863fa679
comment
What Happened to the Mouse?: The Precious Puppy that Isabel gets to appease Anna and Ben is scarcely seen after he is first introduced.
 Stepmom / int_863fa679
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_863fa679
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_863fa679
 Stepmom / int_8a1215e0
type
Bratty Teenage Daughter
 Stepmom / int_8a1215e0
comment
Bratty Teenage Daughter: Anna. She has a hard time accepting Isabel as she initially has hope her parents will get back together, even telling her teacher her parents have gotten remarried. But, she gradually opens up to her as she's forced to accept her parents' divorce.
 Stepmom / int_8a1215e0
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_8a1215e0
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_8a1215e0
 Stepmom / int_8f612013
type
Token Good Teammate
 Stepmom / int_8f612013
comment
Token Good Teammate: If considering Jackie, Anna, and Ben a "team" against Isabel, then it's Ben. Aside from being a little annoying towards her and making things hard for her at times, he's mostly following his older sister and mother's examples of disliking her and doesn't really have a problem with her. A particularly noticeable moment is when the three of them are horseback riding and he remarks to Jackie (which in turn makes her begin to realize the error of her ways) "If you want me to hate her, Mommy, I will."
 Stepmom / int_8f612013
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_8f612013
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_8f612013
 Stepmom / int_97ee273
type
Momma's Boy
 Stepmom / int_97ee273
comment
Momma's Boy: Ben. Oh, so much. Jackie says he was born premature, so she coddled him. Unlike his sister though, he doesn't hate Isabel and genuinely likes her.
 Stepmom / int_97ee273
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_97ee273
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_97ee273
 Stepmom / int_9ca738e9
type
Inconvenient Darkroom Illumination
 Stepmom / int_9ca738e9
comment
Inconvenient Darkroom Illumination: Averted: Jackie opens the door wide open when entering Isabel's darkroom, but this does not appear to cause any trouble. A rare instance in cinema where Shown Their Work means this is a Justified Trope. Jackie asks to come in as Isabel is finishing up developing her negatives. The four trays on the table are solutions to develop the print, and both prints in this shot have been "fixed," meaning exposure has been artificially stopped and light won't hurt the photo. Isabel even flips on the overhead lights while taking the final print out of the "wash" tray, which rinses the print of chemicals.
 Stepmom / int_9ca738e9
featureApplicability
-1.0
 Stepmom / int_9ca738e9
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_9ca738e9
 Stepmom / int_9e1b9a0e
type
Camera Fiend
 Stepmom / int_9e1b9a0e
comment
Camera Fiend: Isabel. Justified as it is her job, but she's seen taking photographs a lot in her downtime too. Becomes Chekhov's Hobby when it helps her bond with Jackie and prepare the kids for her death.
 Stepmom / int_9e1b9a0e
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_9e1b9a0e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_9e1b9a0e
 Stepmom / int_9f62723d
type
Get Out!
 Stepmom / int_9f62723d
comment
Get Out!: Jackie to Isabel after an argument. Also when Isabel confronts Anna after giving the kids the puppy and Isabel accidentally insults Anna.
 Stepmom / int_9f62723d
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_9f62723d
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_9f62723d
 Stepmom / int_a30c287
type
Good Parents
 Stepmom / int_a30c287
comment
Good Parents: Jackie cares for her children with such effortless competence that you'd think she has never lost her temper or screwed up in any way once. And she doesn't even drink coffee!
 Stepmom / int_a30c287
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_a30c287
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_a30c287
 Stepmom / int_add9abb3
type
The Missus and the Ex
 Stepmom / int_add9abb3
comment
The Missus and the Ex: Not by choice and only because the terminally ill Jackie needs to groom Isabel to take over for her, but bit by bit, things begin to thaw between the two, and by the time the film ends, with Jackie presumably not having much longer to live, the two have become friends.
 Stepmom / int_add9abb3
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_add9abb3
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_add9abb3
 Stepmom / int_b070362d
type
Wicked Stepmother
 Stepmom / int_b070362d
comment
Wicked Stepmother: Averted with Isabel as she couldn't be nicer. Too bad she gets a lot of unwarranted hate from Jackie and Anna (at first).
 Stepmom / int_b070362d
featureApplicability
-1.0
 Stepmom / int_b070362d
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_b070362d
 Stepmom / int_b871de85
type
Annoying Laugh
 Stepmom / int_b871de85
comment
Annoying Laugh: Ben's laugh always includes a brief but ear-splitting scream.
 Stepmom / int_b871de85
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_b871de85
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_b871de85
 Stepmom / int_b9b77618
type
Radiograph of Doom
 Stepmom / int_b9b77618
comment
Radiograph of Doom: We know the film is about to take a more serious turn when we see Jackie getting an MRI scan.
 Stepmom / int_b9b77618
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_b9b77618
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_b9b77618
 Stepmom / int_bb23703
type
Jerkass to One
 Stepmom / int_bb23703
comment
Jerkass to One: Jackie is determined to hate Isabel, especially after she gets engaged to Luke. She tries to undermine Isabel's growing relationship with her daughter by sabotaging any attempt to get closer. An example is earlier in the movie when Isabel suggests to Jackie that she takes Anna to a Pearl Jam concert. Jackie vetoes the idea, saying Anna is too young and it's a school night. Later, after Anna and Isabel get closer, Jackie steals the very idea and gives a delighted Anna the concert tickets right in front of Isabel. Granted, Isabel is the only person Jackie is so relentlessly spiteful toward, she's a very loving mother to her children.
 Stepmom / int_bb23703
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_bb23703
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_bb23703
 Stepmom / int_bb9b52f3
type
Extracurricular Enthusiast
 Stepmom / int_bb9b52f3
comment
Extracurricular Enthusiast: Anna is involved with both soccer and horseback riding. In the original script, she was also a Girl Scout with a passion for videography.
 Stepmom / int_bb9b52f3
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_bb9b52f3
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_bb9b52f3
 Stepmom / int_bba9ea51
type
Good Stepmother
 Stepmom / int_bba9ea51
comment
Good Stepmother: The film is all about a woman trying to bond with her boyfriend's leery children and to make peace with his former wife.
 Stepmom / int_bba9ea51
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_bba9ea51
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_bba9ea51
 Stepmom / int_d2ddb362
type
ReasonYouSuckSpeech
 Stepmom / int_d2ddb362
comment
"Reason You Suck" Speech: Isabel writes one for Anna to deliver to her "ex-boyfriend" after he humiliates her by publicly dumping her in front of their classmates and starts bullying her. Her speech is noted as being quite mature and graphic for a 12-year-old, but it knocks the boy down a peg in embarrassment and the other girls cheer Anna and applaud her come-back.
 Stepmom / int_d2ddb362
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_d2ddb362
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_d2ddb362
 Stepmom / int_d47f35de
type
First Father Wins
 Stepmom / int_d47f35de
comment
First Father Wins: Gender-flipped.
 Stepmom / int_d47f35de
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_d47f35de
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_d47f35de
 Stepmom / int_d9d864e2
type
Stage Magician
 Stepmom / int_d9d864e2
comment
Stage Magician: Ben.
 Stepmom / int_d9d864e2
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_d9d864e2
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_d9d864e2
 Stepmom / int_e2137615
type
CareerVersusFamily
 Stepmom / int_e2137615
comment
Career Versus Family: Both Isabel and Jackie dealt with this in varying degrees.
 Stepmom / int_e2137615
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_e2137615
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_e2137615
 Stepmom / int_e303d198
type
Whole-Plot Reference
 Stepmom / int_e303d198
comment
Whole-Plot Reference: A TV movie titled "The Other Woman" released a year earlier had the exact same plot, with the exception of it being two daughters rather than a son and a daughter.
 Stepmom / int_e303d198
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_e303d198
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_e303d198
 Stepmom / int_e4c0b2b6
type
Primal Scene
 Stepmom / int_e4c0b2b6
comment
Primal Scene: Offscreen, Anna walks in on Luke and Isabel having a Shower of Love.
 Stepmom / int_e4c0b2b6
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_e4c0b2b6
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_e4c0b2b6
 Stepmom / int_e52a0409
type
Calling the Old Man Out
 Stepmom / int_e52a0409
comment
Calling the Old Man Out: When Anna becomes distraught over Jackie's diagnosis and gets angry with her for lying about it, she runs up the stairs in tears, Luke yells at her to come back:
 Stepmom / int_e52a0409
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_e52a0409
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_e52a0409
 Stepmom / int_ebf8fc6
type
Not a Morning Person
 Stepmom / int_ebf8fc6
comment
Not a Morning Person: The opening scene depicts Isabel bumbling her way through the kids' Morning Routine until the perfectly groomed Jackie picks them up.
 Stepmom / int_ebf8fc6
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_ebf8fc6
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_ebf8fc6
 Stepmom / int_f0f69743
type
Drugs Are Good
 Stepmom / int_f0f69743
comment
Drugs Are Good: Jackie smokes medical marijuana to ease her cancer pains.
 Stepmom / int_f0f69743
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_f0f69743
featureConfidence
1.0
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Stepmom / int_f0f69743
 Stepmom / int_fdc1e848
type
Will They or Won't They?
 Stepmom / int_fdc1e848
comment
Will They or Won't They?: A non-romantic version, as the two main females have opinions that change so often in the course of the movie that the movie might have changed writers every five minutes.
 Stepmom / int_fdc1e848
featureApplicability
1.0
 Stepmom / int_fdc1e848
featureConfidence
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 Stepmom
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Stepmom / int_fdc1e848
 Stepmom / int_fe614133
type
Beauty Is Never Tarnished
 Stepmom / int_fe614133
comment
Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Aside from some mild pallor, the cancer-stricken Jackie looks as pretty and healthy at the end of the film when she's now bedridden as she's looked throughout the entire film.
 Stepmom / int_fe614133
featureApplicability
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 Stepmom / int_fe614133
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Stepmom / int_fe614133
 Stepmom / int_name
type
ItemName
 Stepmom / int_name
comment
 Stepmom / int_name
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Stepmom / int_name
 Stepmom / int_name
itemName
Stepmom

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 Stepmom
hasFeature
Chick Flick / int_9a6cc405
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Films of 1995–1999 / int_9a6cc405
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Left the Background Music On / int_9a6cc405
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Primal Scene / int_9a6cc405
 Stepmom
hasFeature
Suburbia / int_9a6cc405
 Stepmom
hasFeature
The Missus and the Ex / int_9a6cc405
 Stepmom
hasFeature
We Named the Monkey "Jack" / int_9a6cc405
 Stepmom
hasFeature
You're Not My Father / int_9a6cc405