Bad Stepmother (2018 Lifetime)

Bad Stepmother (2018 Lifetime)

Cast: Sofia Vassilieva, Kristy Swanson, Logan Huffman

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Synopsis (via Lifetime)

When Verity and Jonathan’s father dies of a mysterious heart attack, Verity must return home to their sprawling estate in New Orleans. Upon her return, the siblings discover an off-kilter stepmother who will be receiving all of their father’s inheritance–except the house. Their stepmother, Louise, will do anything to get the entire estate… even murder.

Thoughts

The movie starts with a man falling off a balcony while a woman screams on the phone with 911.

Verity wakes up hungover from a one night stand with a shirtless, long-haired hunk. Her phone rings incessantly. When Verity finally answers, she is surprised to learn that her father has died. Her estranged brother Jonathan tells her to come home ASAP.

In New Orleans at the family mansion, Verity is greeted by her housekeeper, Cara. (Problematic depiction here for 2018, I know it is the south but come one.) Jonathan and Verity are shocked to learn that their father married his assistant named Louise. (The fabulous Kristy Swanson.) Louise and her hunk son recently moved into the estate… like a week ago.

Verity ignores her brother at the funeral because he got engaged to a woman named April and didn’t tell her. This family is terrible about keeping in touch. Verity doesn’t ignore hunky new stepbrother, Eric. They skip the wake and go out drinking and dancing. They hook up.

At the reading of the will, Louise gets everything. Well, everything except the house that is in their mother’s name. Johnathan can see that Louise is upset that she didn’t inherit the mansion and kicks her out angrily. The will’s Executor is sleeping with Louise, and she gives him a BJ in exchange for him figuring out a way to keep the house. (She did that backwards.)

Louise moves into a new apartment, and she is seething mad. It gets worse when she learns that with her husband’s debt, she stands to gain nothing. She rages out and stages a house fire to get back into the house. Verity sympathizes with her and lets Louise and Hunk Eric move back into the house. Jonathan is suspicious and tells his sister that she made a mistake and hires a PI. He also disapproves of her relationship with Eric.

Against his better judgment, Jonathan takes Eric out sailing and confronts him about his mother. Eric admits that he hates Louise too and wants to date Verity because he likes her honestly. Eric seems like a good guy, I hope. There is a boating accident, and Jonathan is knocked off the boat and killed. Was Eric responsible?

The Private Investigator is murdered once Louside finds out about him. The PI wasn’t only working with Jonathan; he was also working for the Executor’s wife. She tells April and Verity that he is cheating on her with Louise. They kick her out of the house again. Verity wants to sell the house because she can’t handle the confrontations with Louise. She is ready to get back to LA and her partying ways.

April shares the news that she is pregnant with Jonathan’s baby. Verity is pleased and makes an about-face on her plans. She won’t sell the house and stops drinking. She is going to be an aunt after all. They finally check a voicemail the PI left incriminating Louise for the murder of her husband.

Louise and Eugine (he has a name now.) make a run for the Mexican border. Eugine doesn’t make it far and is murdered by Eric. Louise stabs Cara when she walks in after hearing the commotion. Then Verity comes downstairs, and Eric plays innocent again. He fixes her a drink with roofies in it, but Verity refuses. (She is going to be an AUNT!)

Verity realizes Eric is a bad guy and smashes him in the face with a bottle of vodka. Then April comes downstairs with her gun and shoots Eric. He cries for his mother as she makes a run for it in her fancy car.

A car chase scene happens, and Louise makes it onto the ferry. Verity and Louise kind of fight? Louise swings a suitcase full of money around and falls off a ledge. Falling to her death, ironically. Other passengers on the ferry randomly take pictures of her dead body???? The funeral happens, and April and Verity talk about baby names.

Side Note

Minority Report: April, Cara,

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Overall rating

🔪🔪🔪 (3 Knives)

🍷🍷🍷 (3 glasses of wine required.)