Trivia: Right at the end, in fact the very last frame, you can see a face in the snow as the shot fades out.
Trivia: There are more than a few Hitchcock references in this movie. Most notably Harrison Ford's character - Norman (Psycho), suspecting the neighbour of murdering his wife (Rear Window), Michelle Pfeiffer falling in the shower and pulling the shower curtain down with her (Psycho). There are many others if you watch for them.
Trivia: When Claire goes to Madison's house, there is a framed picture of Madison and underneath it, there is a newspaper clipping from "The Guardian" that is very prominant. This certainly signifies what Madison was to Claire.
Trivia: There are quite a few close-up scenes filmed through glass, on the floor, with the camera on the bottom side and the actors on the top side. For example, when Claire is paralysed, Norman bends down and talks to her before picking her up and carrying her upstairs - when they are downstairs, Claire is lying on glass with the camera filming her from below.
Answer: There's no rule about how a step-father is referred to. Caitlin may simply not consider him a father figure to remain close to her real dad. Many step-children call their step-parent by their first name, regardless of how long the parents have been married. Most likely this is a plot device so that the audience isn't confused about or doesn't forget that Norman is not Caitlin's real father. Some may be offended by a father killing his biological child's mother. It makes Norman less attached to either Claire or Caitlin.
raywest ★
I am not trying to be rude, but have you seen this movie? You say that Caitlin might be close to her real dad. He is dead. Claire was "touring with a baby" after he died, and then she met Norman. Hence why I found the situation a bit odd. Norman has been in Caitlin's life since she was a "baby."
Azalea
I saw the movie some years ago and don't remember every small detail. However, my main point was that calling Norman by his first name was a plot device to keep the audience focused on him not being Caitlin's biological father. This kept his character more detached from Claire and Caitlin, and made him less sympathetic. It showed an emotional/personal divide existed between Norman and Claire and her daughter. He has less resistance in killing Claire if they did not share a biological child.
raywest ★