"Perfect Child" opens with a harrowing scene from the past in the life of Sarah Leslie Daniels. As a little girl, Sarah's step-sister, Amanda, died by drowning in the family swimming pool. Little Sarah discovered the body floating in the water. Now, as an adult, Sarah is still haunted by the drowning of little Amanda, for which she feels a life-damaging guilt.
The filmmakers develop a motif of water throughout the film. This is the kind of special effect that Hitchcock would use in his films to develop both suspense and horror. In the case of Sarah Daniels, the association of water with death continues to trouble her in her waking and sleeping life.
Sarah is a talented agent for a PR firm. Her company's success is due to her relationship with business magnate Paul Cranmore, who takes a liking to Sarah and eventually marries her. But when Sarah moves into Paul's house, she has to contend with a spoiled daughter named Lily.
When Sarah's life turns into a nightmare with stolen items from her laptop, the allergic reaction of little Lily to food prepared by Sarah, and interference from Paul's sultry business associate named Monica, Sarah's panic attacks increase, and it appears as if her marriage and her life are about to collapse.
The film was successful in developing intrigue in the interesting characters and suspense in the mysterious identity of the perpetrator who is attempting to ruin Sarah's life. The intensity builds to a climax in a raging storm and the dangerous rapids of a nearly river that may endanger the life of Sarah and the baby that she is carrying.
Both thematically and visually, the film was a highly watchable domestic drama with water, water everywhere.
The filmmakers develop a motif of water throughout the film. This is the kind of special effect that Hitchcock would use in his films to develop both suspense and horror. In the case of Sarah Daniels, the association of water with death continues to trouble her in her waking and sleeping life.
Sarah is a talented agent for a PR firm. Her company's success is due to her relationship with business magnate Paul Cranmore, who takes a liking to Sarah and eventually marries her. But when Sarah moves into Paul's house, she has to contend with a spoiled daughter named Lily.
When Sarah's life turns into a nightmare with stolen items from her laptop, the allergic reaction of little Lily to food prepared by Sarah, and interference from Paul's sultry business associate named Monica, Sarah's panic attacks increase, and it appears as if her marriage and her life are about to collapse.
The film was successful in developing intrigue in the interesting characters and suspense in the mysterious identity of the perpetrator who is attempting to ruin Sarah's life. The intensity builds to a climax in a raging storm and the dangerous rapids of a nearly river that may endanger the life of Sarah and the baby that she is carrying.
Both thematically and visually, the film was a highly watchable domestic drama with water, water everywhere.