I'm not sure what the other reviewers were thinking when they criticized the acting in this film. It's true that Jaime M. Callica basically let his ultra-hot bod do his acting for him, but the two women at the center of the story -- Mary Grill as Jess and especially Vanessa Walsh as her "bestie" Katie -- are excellent. The tale is familiar Lifetime stuff but it's done better than average this time, and the switcheroo in the middle is a legitimate surprise even though imdb.com's synopsis is itself a "spoiler" that gives it away.
16 Reviews
The ending..
kristenrtr25 July 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I was home for bereavement because my father just passed away. Not feeling like doing much. This movie was on so decided to give it a go, not expecting much different than a usual movie. I didn't recognize any of the actors in it, looked like a more recently made movie. For the most part this movie embodied the typical Lifetime movie tone. Acting was so-so, plot of over protective/jealous friend that I had seen before. But it still kept my interest and decided to stick it out. It was all moving along and then I got to the final scenes.
The ending with the pepper spray made me laugh so hard that I woke up my fiance in the next room. Thank you Best Friend's Betrayal for giving me laughter that had been gone for the last week!
The ending with the pepper spray made me laugh so hard that I woke up my fiance in the next room. Thank you Best Friend's Betrayal for giving me laughter that had been gone for the last week!
Bad Casting Choices
Kristamw2 September 2019
This is a good script. The casting job, on the other hand, wasn't so good. The actress for the main role (Katie) didn't seem to fit the part well. In fact, I think she would have played the villain more effectively. The woman playing the villain (Katie) doesn't act unhinged, not even when no one else is looking. And the actor playing Nick seems shifty.
Writing Quality: Pretty decent for the most part. I was a bit confused by Nick at times; he seemed suspicious. At one point, he addresses Jess a little too cheerfully about an awful event and then later secretly talks to Katie as though they are conspiring. I think it was both the writer's fault and the actors' fault that Katie didn't seem obsessive with her best friend like she was supposed to. I will say that near the end there is a twist that is totally unexpected, a twist that is very well done.
Scare factor: The death scenes, the impending danger when Katie and Nick are together (somebody snooping on them) is a bit edgy.
Content (sex, language & violence): No sex, mild language (if at all). Violence is moderate with the death scenes.
Values: The search for truth and desire for loyalty.
So, an engaging plot that would have benefited from more suitable actors.
I thought I was being punked!
momontherandom15 January 2019
I couldn't even make it 5 minutes into this movie because the acting was so bad. I had to check several times to make sure it was an actual movie. I'm pretty forgiving about Lifetime movies, but this was even low for their standards. Yikes...
Not bad, but could have been better with a few details
CranberriAppl21 September 2021
Warning: Spoilers
This movie should have been more like Suspicion where Nick was concerned. I don't know if it's because the actor has an unassuming face and presence, but he didn't seem shady enough to be a bad guy. I actually thought that there would be a twist with the assistant and she would end up being the villain.
Anyway, the actual twist was unexpected and kudos to the writers for keeping that under wraps. But I do feel like the movie didn't have as much suspense or depth that it should have. For example, I don't think Nick and Jess (interesting name choices) had enough chemistry to make their whirlwind romance believable. A montage of a quick three month span of time or even a couple of weeks where viewers could see their relationship develop would have helped a lot. It was just hard to believe that he would give up career opportunities for someone he just met...even though he was in his hometown. Not to mention, both Jess and Katie seemed older than him? I'm very into feminine styles of dress with flowy dresses and both retro and modern prints (even florals), but something about this style for Jess made her seem matronly (NTTAWTT). Check out Candace Cameron Bure's style in the Aurora Teagarden Mysteries and that's the right way to do what Jess' style attempted. Anyway, it just added to the mismatch in my opinion. I've seen a couple of Lifetime flicks in the last couple of months where they used montages in place of scenes with dialogue to build up relationships. I mean, dialogue is preferable, but something is better than nothing. I just didn't buy the speed of this romance and without something scripted, the couple didn't have the chemistry to pull it off.
Also, a longer span of time for this new relationship would have given more time for Katie to become increasingly unhinged over being less needed by her best friend. When I mention Suspicion (another whirlwind romance), even though Johnnie is Cary Grant, the movie really does work in a way where you are questioning what he's capable of right up until the moment where you're sure either way. Lina is head over heels for him but sees signs that he might not be on the up and up the entire movie. That anxious "is the man I love dangerous?" vibe is missing here. In this movie, it was clear Nick was just trying to court Jess vs. The way Katie tried to control her friend or the way Jess' ex husband Marco tried to stay in her life.
Like I said, the twist was unexpected and appreciated but the build up needed just a bit more. It wasn't a bad movie and the acting was fine.
Anyway, the actual twist was unexpected and kudos to the writers for keeping that under wraps. But I do feel like the movie didn't have as much suspense or depth that it should have. For example, I don't think Nick and Jess (interesting name choices) had enough chemistry to make their whirlwind romance believable. A montage of a quick three month span of time or even a couple of weeks where viewers could see their relationship develop would have helped a lot. It was just hard to believe that he would give up career opportunities for someone he just met...even though he was in his hometown. Not to mention, both Jess and Katie seemed older than him? I'm very into feminine styles of dress with flowy dresses and both retro and modern prints (even florals), but something about this style for Jess made her seem matronly (NTTAWTT). Check out Candace Cameron Bure's style in the Aurora Teagarden Mysteries and that's the right way to do what Jess' style attempted. Anyway, it just added to the mismatch in my opinion. I've seen a couple of Lifetime flicks in the last couple of months where they used montages in place of scenes with dialogue to build up relationships. I mean, dialogue is preferable, but something is better than nothing. I just didn't buy the speed of this romance and without something scripted, the couple didn't have the chemistry to pull it off.
Also, a longer span of time for this new relationship would have given more time for Katie to become increasingly unhinged over being less needed by her best friend. When I mention Suspicion (another whirlwind romance), even though Johnnie is Cary Grant, the movie really does work in a way where you are questioning what he's capable of right up until the moment where you're sure either way. Lina is head over heels for him but sees signs that he might not be on the up and up the entire movie. That anxious "is the man I love dangerous?" vibe is missing here. In this movie, it was clear Nick was just trying to court Jess vs. The way Katie tried to control her friend or the way Jess' ex husband Marco tried to stay in her life.
Like I said, the twist was unexpected and appreciated but the build up needed just a bit more. It wasn't a bad movie and the acting was fine.
Why?
cesoldo-8296427 March 2019
Anyone who gave this more than one star is punking you.
I quit watching after 15 minutes.
There is no acting. Story is terrible. Dialogue is unbelievable-the conversations are far from natural in their progression. How/Why the hell did anyone ever approve this for release?
Middle schoolers with a budget from candy bar sales could have done better.
Don't waste your time.
Middle schoolers with a budget from candy bar sales could have done better.
Don't waste your time.
Awful
rainbowkid-5237329 October 2019
Very hard to watch, but my main problem was with the blonde woman who looks like Katie Hopkins' twin sister! Her love interest is a suave, good looking guy and his interest in her doesn't ring true from the start! Sorry to be shallow, but that was my take-away from this rubbish film!!
Needs a minus
carnstabba-5567229 October 2019
Jaime Callica Killed this role
lauramachi14 January 2019
I've been watching Jaime Callica for years. This role showed what a versatile actor he is. It was great to see Jaime in a thriller and he absolutely killed it. Lifetime, Hallmark and all the other major networks need to keep casting him in leading roles. I can't wait to see his future work.
Acting so bad I'm in tears laughing!
blarvinkx3 July 2019
The mustache????
chiv-003385 August 2022
Laughably bad
blondeblue14 July 2019
The acting in this is so very, very bad it's just funny. And even worse than the acting are the snippets of Nick's book that are read. That garbage would never see a publisher! The scriptwriter must still be in middle school.
Terrible..
kvnnagel9 March 2020
Acting is Bad.. Script sounds like it may have been written by a child. It's like I knew what was going to happen before it happened right down to the Terrible Ex being named "Marco" ... Arent all bad exes named Marco. Basically more proof that anyone can write a sub par script and make a cookie cutter Drama.
One of Lifetime's Most Outrageous Offerings!
lavatch13 October 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This dicey film unfolds in the style of high camp with two inseparable friends, Jess and Katie. The pair have bonded on the common ground of the misery of their failed romantic experiences, and their relationship is an ongoing support team for each other.
Their special connection is challenged with the arrival of a best-selling mystery writer who sweeps Jess off of her feet. Katie attempts to rein in her friend and convince her to proceed with great caution before committing to a writer whose forte is violence in his works of fiction.
The small-town ambience of Kirkwood Falls plays a major role in the narrative. The mystery writer, Nick Moore, is returning to his roots as a native son, and he falls instantly in love with Jess and wants to settle in permanently.
The man whom Jess is divorcing, known in the community as "Darko" Marco for his violent proclivities, returns and threatens Jess in her own home. But Marco dies a strange death, pushed over a balcony by an assailant in a hoodie. The key to unlocking the mystery of a string of "accidents" in the town is to identify who shoved Marco down the motel stairs.
This well-crafted film builds in suspense as the details and the subplots become increasingly bizarre. The best scene in the film is an unforgettable sequence of events in a bar when Anna, the young assistant of Jess, decides to kiss Jess on the lips. The scene is witnessed by the major suspects in the murder of Marco, each of whom is driven into a jealous frenzy by observing the kiss.
There is a nice directorial touch with the repetitive sound of boiling water to make tea and coffee. The sights and sounds of the sizzling liquid becomes a metaphor for the passions that are bubbling over and culminate in a dazzling final scene. As a potboiler, "Best Friend's Betrayal" has to be one of most spellbinding of any "guilty pleasures" ever concocted by the writers and producers of the Lifetime Channel. Not to be for the outrageous banter between the two soul mates and the light macabre undercurrent in every scene!!!!
Their special connection is challenged with the arrival of a best-selling mystery writer who sweeps Jess off of her feet. Katie attempts to rein in her friend and convince her to proceed with great caution before committing to a writer whose forte is violence in his works of fiction.
The small-town ambience of Kirkwood Falls plays a major role in the narrative. The mystery writer, Nick Moore, is returning to his roots as a native son, and he falls instantly in love with Jess and wants to settle in permanently.
The man whom Jess is divorcing, known in the community as "Darko" Marco for his violent proclivities, returns and threatens Jess in her own home. But Marco dies a strange death, pushed over a balcony by an assailant in a hoodie. The key to unlocking the mystery of a string of "accidents" in the town is to identify who shoved Marco down the motel stairs.
This well-crafted film builds in suspense as the details and the subplots become increasingly bizarre. The best scene in the film is an unforgettable sequence of events in a bar when Anna, the young assistant of Jess, decides to kiss Jess on the lips. The scene is witnessed by the major suspects in the murder of Marco, each of whom is driven into a jealous frenzy by observing the kiss.
There is a nice directorial touch with the repetitive sound of boiling water to make tea and coffee. The sights and sounds of the sizzling liquid becomes a metaphor for the passions that are bubbling over and culminate in a dazzling final scene. As a potboiler, "Best Friend's Betrayal" has to be one of most spellbinding of any "guilty pleasures" ever concocted by the writers and producers of the Lifetime Channel. Not to be for the outrageous banter between the two soul mates and the light macabre undercurrent in every scene!!!!
Jaime Callica kills this role
lauramachi14 January 2019
I've been watching Jaime for years! I've gotta say, this role showed just how versatile an actor Jaime is! So great to see him in a thriller, he absolutely killed it!! Lifetime, Hallmark and all the other major networks need to keep casting him in leading roles! Can't wait to see his future projects.
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