I watched this, along with 2 other movies, this past week off the Lifetime Roku channel, and while the other 2 ("From Straight A's to XXX" and the Britney Spears one) were your usual laughable Lifetime fair, this one was actually pretty good. Viola Davis, who just won the "Best Supporting Actress" Oscar for "Fences", really steals the show here, showing how a judge's personal life can not only affect her attitude in the courtroom, but maybe even, to a certain extent, her sentencing? This had a really good ensemble cast for a Lifetime original; and I was sorta surprised, and maybe disappointed, that "Monk" himself, Tony Shalhoub, was kinda under-used in this?? Catalina Santino Maria (if I have that name right?), the star of "Maria Full of Grace", Dan Fogler (in a rare serious role, perhaps showcasing a future romantic leading man series of roles?), Hayden Paynettiere, etc.. co-star.
Plot summary
When a hard-working single mother, Sara Diaz, has her children taken from her after she is suspected of injuring her son, Ally Fisher, a recent law school graduate, is assigned to represent her case before Judge Martha Schulman, a veteran of the Family Court System.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
October 18, 2020 at 10:10 AM
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Tony Shalhoub was under-used; other than that, not too bad...
Not as bad as some of the reviewers say
Director and writer James Lapine did a decent job with this screenplay. Sure this story has been done many times over, but having the wonderful and impactful Viola Davis in this film gave it that extra little boost it needed. Although the slow pacing could not be saved by Viola, the story in its entirety was pretty good. Would I see it again? No. Would I recommend it? Sure, if I know someone likes this type of film. It's a 7/10 from me.
Overall: Mixed
In the film, there are a huge amount of unresolved story lines you'd like to see more of. Be it how Sara is going to help her children heal after being separated from them, how Martha is going to deal with what is happening in her personal life, between her father, husband, and son and then Alexandra's mess. Considering how her grandmother talks about the family secret and her, Alexandra, threatening to tell her dad, the fact you don't get to see the conclusion of that story-line, you almost feel like this was a pilot that didn't get picked up. However, because there was so much shot for the show, and with Viola getting major accolade nominations, Lifetime decided to edit the footage they had into a movie.
Luckily, for those who may be interested in a story like this, Shondaland is working on a legal drama which sounds oddly similar.