The movie itself was intense though predictable. The single father of a young teenage daughter begins a relationship with an attractive young woman who has another attractive woman as his business partner with feelings for him. When he decides to take the relationship to the next level, his daughter and business partner aren't too thrilled to say the least and strange but scary things begin to happen that makes her look suspicious. It goes to show anyone who marries someone with a young teenager beware and be careful. It's best to get some counseling and deal with feeling on both sides or else trouble comes your way. Life is so hard in itself for a teenager dealing with hormone levels, a loss of her mother, a doting dad who is always there for her. It seems as if the dad is in a hurry to try and replace the mother his daughter lost. He really should have been trying to raise his daughter and putting her first before he got involved with any other woman as this was not fair to his daughter. She felt every time he brought in another woman that this woman would try and put her out or send her away. The woman knew he had his daughter as a priority and both should have waited before getting involved. Sometimes the stepmother does try and get rid of his children from a prior marriage and always ends up tragic. The father and woman in this movie acted selfish and didn't consider the young girls feeling at all and as a result trouble happened.
6 Reviews
The title ruins the movie!!!
PhantomAgony31 January 2010
Warning: Spoilers
I usually don't watch Lifetime movies because more often than not they follow a formulaic thriller plot line that makes for a snoozer of a film but I made an exception due to Rebecca Budig's starring role as Sarah, who I have always loved on All My Children as the sassy Greenlee Smythe.
Well, the movie was bad and predictable and boring and your usual run of the mill Lifetime Thriller with an ending you can see coming miles away. Paul, who has a daughter Lily, marries Sarah and bad things start to happen - things that make Paul question Sarah's intentions since many of the things are done by Sarah herself albeit unintentionally (an accidental allergy attack for example) and makes Sarah suspicious about who is setting her up.
Monica is Paul's business partner who has feelings for him and makes it known to Sarah whenever Paul turns his back. She makes comments about how she will be there for him after Sarah is well and gone. Monica is also conveniently around whenever things go awry as the movie works overtime to get you to suspect her of foul play. Things get even worse when Sarah learns of Paul's last girlfriend dying after being electrocuted in his home while taking a bath. Sarah works to find out the truth about her death/possible murder and who is setting her up for a fall.
The problem? The movie's title of THE PERFECT CHILD gives it all away. Hmmm.. who could really be the bad seed? Could it be.. Lily? Paul's daughter? Ding! ... and it's painfully obviously the whole time which makes the anvils the movie is dropping trying to get you to suspect Monica, the jealous business partner, even more annoying.
4/10 and that's only b/c of Budig. Had she not been in the movie, I probably would have shut it off mid way, if that.
Well, the movie was bad and predictable and boring and your usual run of the mill Lifetime Thriller with an ending you can see coming miles away. Paul, who has a daughter Lily, marries Sarah and bad things start to happen - things that make Paul question Sarah's intentions since many of the things are done by Sarah herself albeit unintentionally (an accidental allergy attack for example) and makes Sarah suspicious about who is setting her up.
Monica is Paul's business partner who has feelings for him and makes it known to Sarah whenever Paul turns his back. She makes comments about how she will be there for him after Sarah is well and gone. Monica is also conveniently around whenever things go awry as the movie works overtime to get you to suspect her of foul play. Things get even worse when Sarah learns of Paul's last girlfriend dying after being electrocuted in his home while taking a bath. Sarah works to find out the truth about her death/possible murder and who is setting her up for a fall.
The problem? The movie's title of THE PERFECT CHILD gives it all away. Hmmm.. who could really be the bad seed? Could it be.. Lily? Paul's daughter? Ding! ... and it's painfully obviously the whole time which makes the anvils the movie is dropping trying to get you to suspect Monica, the jealous business partner, even more annoying.
4/10 and that's only b/c of Budig. Had she not been in the movie, I probably would have shut it off mid way, if that.
Mildly Entertaining
djcolzz6 December 2023
I'm not sure where other reviews get the 'kept guessing up to the end' part. You know almost instantly who is responsible for what is going on. Easily the single most predictable movie of the decade. Primarily based on 'The Bad Seed'.
You know the plot, and the writers go with the usual red herring between two characters, but the blatant attempt to get you to think one way is badly written and executed. You know who it is and are never really swayed from that opinion.
This being said, the film is a vehicle for the main character, Sarah Daniels. Rebecca Budig does great with a weak script. Nicole Munoz also shines. Lochlyn Munro and Jody Thomson are ineffectual throughout.
The best this movie is that it passes a lazy afternoon, if you happen to stumble upon it. Despite its weaknesses in script, Terry Ingram directs well and presents us with a mildly entertaining afternoon, where we don't have to put much thought into the process of watching.
You know the plot, and the writers go with the usual red herring between two characters, but the blatant attempt to get you to think one way is badly written and executed. You know who it is and are never really swayed from that opinion.
This being said, the film is a vehicle for the main character, Sarah Daniels. Rebecca Budig does great with a weak script. Nicole Munoz also shines. Lochlyn Munro and Jody Thomson are ineffectual throughout.
The best this movie is that it passes a lazy afternoon, if you happen to stumble upon it. Despite its weaknesses in script, Terry Ingram directs well and presents us with a mildly entertaining afternoon, where we don't have to put much thought into the process of watching.
Perfect Child-Back to 1956's Bad Seed ***
edwagreen14 January 2013
Warning: Spoilers
In the 1956 "The Bad Seed," no one else was suspect other than the famous character that Patty McCormack brought to life. In this version, everyone in the cast has had something to make you look over your shoulder twice when you see them.
Our divorced father was in the house when his girlfriend got electrocuted in error. His associate, a cunning woman, once beat up another woman. Then, he meets a woman who had guilt feelings for not watching her step-sister in the pool causing the death of the latter.
Our guy and gal quickly marry and there is mayhem that follows. People are getting poisoned, computers are getting hacked and attempts are made to murder one another.
After a while, you know where this interesting thriller is heading.
Our divorced father was in the house when his girlfriend got electrocuted in error. His associate, a cunning woman, once beat up another woman. Then, he meets a woman who had guilt feelings for not watching her step-sister in the pool causing the death of the latter.
Our guy and gal quickly marry and there is mayhem that follows. People are getting poisoned, computers are getting hacked and attempts are made to murder one another.
After a while, you know where this interesting thriller is heading.
Water, Water Everywhere!
lavatch23 October 2019
Warning: Spoilers
"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.
The Bad Seed revisited
ferrierd20 September 2011
Warning: Spoilers
Basically this movie is a remake of the movie The Bad Seed. The storm scene at the end is remarkably like the storm scene at the end of The Bad Seed, but with a different outcome. The element of tension is well-preserved while the many "accidents" happen to the principal characters and their friends. You are kept guessing up to nearly the end as to who is the person responsible for the "accidents". There is a remarkable similarity to a Greek tragedy, in that various characters have "fatal flaws." The doting father lets his daughter get away with murder. His new wife is wilfully blind to various clues. The husband's bitchy female business partner seems a prime suspect but she may be just bitchy, not homicidal.
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