Stepmonster

This blithely unambitious film succeeds on its own, limited terms. It's not too violent and not the least bit scary; it's a kid's movie with a hint of flesh to keep the older siblings satisfied; it's a comic-book adventure in which the most important thing in the world is finding your mom. There's even some sort of subtext about childhood traumas, though it doesn't pay to push that idea too far.

Todd Dougherty (Bill Corben) is a pretty ordinary kid. He loves his parents, even if his father George (Alan Thicke), an architect, is a little humorless. He adores his grandparents, especially his grandfather (George Gaynes), whose lively imagination makes him seem li...