) and "blended" families (legal or partnership-based bonds like in The Parent Trap

As cinema continues to evolve, one hopes for even more diversity—more stories of stepfamilies of color, more international perspectives (the Japanese film Shoplifters offered a radical take on found family), and more comedies that laugh with the chaos rather than at it.

Overtly hostile. Stepparents are antagonists, and biological parents are either absent or passive. Core Examples: Cinderella , Snow White . 2. The Comedic Chaos Phase (Late 20th Century)

Lawrence Ganong and Marilyn Coleman (prominent experts in stepfamily research).