A different way of telling a story

What a freaking movie. So many twists and turns. Absolutely intense from start to finish.

Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

***SPOILERS**** War hero family man and pillar of the community Paul James, Adrian Hough, seems to have everything going for him until one evening while starting his car he's shot and burned, with the car set on fire, to a crisp by an unidentified assailant dressed all in black and wearing what looked like a black fisherman's cowboy hat. As the police start looking for who would murder such a great fine and wonderful individual who didn't have an enemy in the world it turns out that his wife and now grieving widow Beth James, Jamie Luner, is the prime suspect in her husband's murder. It's the cop in charge in the case of James' murder Det. Rhodes, Belinda Metz, who soon uncovers a whole load of evidence pointing straight to Beth as her husband's killer.Arrested and sent to the the Fenton court womens lock-up Beth later makes her escape when no one was looking during an electoral fire at the courthouse. Beth going undercover and in disguise is now more then determined to find her husband's murderer. Not just to clear herself but get her step-daughter Robin, Taylor-Anne-Reid, to see that she in fact didn't murder her beloved daddy Paul James. There's also insurance investigator Jerry Callhone, Chrisian Bocher, who also smells in that there's something very fishy in how conveniently Beth was connected or framed in her husband's murder and that smell eventually leads to this cabin outside of far off Indian Lake.***SPOILERS*** As we and Beth soon find out her husband was deep into debt to this mob loan shark Pete Bronski, L. Harvey Gold, who fronted as a used car dealer who owed him some 800 G's that he couldn't pay him back. Bronski and his assistant and #1 underling Doug Zwick, John Tench, were putting the squeeze on John and possibly had him murdered when he couldn't come up with the cash. It was at Indian Lake that Beth got the surprise of her life when she finally confronted her husband's supposed murderer. Now with his cover blown he ends up trying to murder Beth to keep her from revealing his identity to the police. It was Jerry Calhoun who suspected him as being the killer right from the start who finally put an end to his both disappearing as well as reappearing act.

Don't confuse this with the 1944 classic with Charles Laughton and Ella Raines or the 1987 flick with Cher and Liam Neeson. They were excellent movies. I disliked this film very much. So much that after watching as much as I could I finally escaped and turned to another channel. My main objection, along with the stupid script by Richard Leder and poor direction by Keoni Waxman, was the leading lady, Jamie Luner. I've seen her in another film down the road and disliked her then and haven't lost my thinking. She's boring and so predictable, it's a joke. From her bad reading of lines to the horrible wigs she wore, first blond, then long red hair and then a red bob. She's too bottom heavy and should never wear those tight tight jeans which make her rear look like the Grand Canyon. I kept hoping she'd lose the battle. Of course, I'll never know as I turned it off just when her step daughter decided to forgive her. I was hoping the step daughter would disown her.As for the story, if you can believe that with police all around the place she could actually escape the court house. Running around and no one sees her? Then in an attempt to be inconspicuous, she wears a stupid hat, huge sun glasses and the phony wigs. Walking around looking so obvious that any cop would think there's something weird about her. She is continuously breaking into other people's homes, offices. And still no one catches her. This ain't reality.Don't waste your time on this. Also Jamie Luner should stop acting. She's 40 plus in years and trying to look younger. Grow up. Play your age if you have to.

The Suspect is a watchable thriller that premiered on Lifetime last night. It stars Jamie Luner as Beth, a woman wrongly accused of murdering her husband, Paul (Adrian Hough). Even her stepdaughter (Taylor Anne Reid) does not believe Beth is innocent, initially. An insurance investigator, Jerry (Christian Bocher) gives her the benefit of the doubt and together they work to find Paul's real killer. The twist at the end of the film made it worth watching. Jamie Luner is in good form as usual, and honorable mention goes to Christian Bocher, who's character is likable and credible. The Suspect is nicely done and I would say it is satisfying for Jamie Luner fans. Not bad. 8/10