The version of this movie I saw on LMN was titled "Joy Fielding's The Other Woman". While I understand the movie was taken from Fielding's novel, I'm surprised she allowed her name to be attached to it.
There was just too much going on in the movie, with subplots left unresolved in the end, resulting in an unsatisfying mess of a movie. We have a murder, and we know who did it. But what happens to the murderer? We never find out. There is a missing son, who is found, in somewhat surprising circumstances. So how did he end up the way he did, and what happens with him next? No idea.
Then there is the main plot, which ends abruptly, leaving the viewer clueless as to what the full resolution, the complete end result of what happened, is. Part of that lack of resolution is not knowing what happens with the stepdaughter, since circumstances around her change drastically.
Adapting novels for movies is always tricky, since books can delve deeper into characters and subplots than movies have time to do. Better movies carefully choose what elements of a book to include, and what to leave out. While I haven't read the novel this movie is based on, it seems the screenwriters tried to stuff everything from the book into the movie. Then, given the limited run time they were allowed to give the movie, they just gave up, and ended it abruptly.
I never expect much from these kinds of movies, but this one was worse than most.
There was just too much going on in the movie, with subplots left unresolved in the end, resulting in an unsatisfying mess of a movie. We have a murder, and we know who did it. But what happens to the murderer? We never find out. There is a missing son, who is found, in somewhat surprising circumstances. So how did he end up the way he did, and what happens with him next? No idea.
Then there is the main plot, which ends abruptly, leaving the viewer clueless as to what the full resolution, the complete end result of what happened, is. Part of that lack of resolution is not knowing what happens with the stepdaughter, since circumstances around her change drastically.
Adapting novels for movies is always tricky, since books can delve deeper into characters and subplots than movies have time to do. Better movies carefully choose what elements of a book to include, and what to leave out. While I haven't read the novel this movie is based on, it seems the screenwriters tried to stuff everything from the book into the movie. Then, given the limited run time they were allowed to give the movie, they just gave up, and ended it abruptly.
I never expect much from these kinds of movies, but this one was worse than most.