Stalked by My Mother (2016 Lifetime)

Stalked by My Mother (2016 Lifetime)

Stars: Jennifer Taylor, Danielle C. Ryan, Mia Topalian

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Synopsis (via Lifetime)

When high school senior Maddy Beauregard falls in love with a college frat guy, Maddy’s over-protective mom strongly disapproves. Followed everywhere, Maddy realizes her own mother is a deranged stalker with a twisted desire to kill her new boyfriend. After a fierce argument, Maddy’s new boyfriend is found murdered. Police suspect Maddy is the killer–but Maddy is certain her mother did it! Maddy flees from the cops, embarking on a secret mission to prove her mom’s guilt. Will the police believe her? Or will Maddy go to prison, knowing her own mother killed the boy she loved?

Thoughts

The movie starts in flashback with a little girl playing with her (probably stalker mother.) They browse the library aisles and ween the mother, Claire, steps away to get a book she loses her daughter, Maddy. Claire franticly chases after her daughter as a man takes her away.

Claire wakes up; it was all a nightmare/horrible memory. Maddy is a teenager and heads to a college frat party with her cool friend Gina. (I mean she is earing a sleeveless plaid button-up, so cool.) Maddy meets a hunk frat boy named Tucker. He offers her booze and smokes weed, much to the horror of Claire. (Who is STALKING HER DAUGHTER!!!! Really, she followed Claire to the party and is hiding behind a tree.)

Eventually, Claire sneaks into the party and tries to go all Josey Grosey. Actually, Claire marches right up to Tucker, tells him her daughter is seventeen, and drags Maddy out of the frat house. Claire grounds Maddy and is controlling. (BUT NOT WRONG!) Maddy has a speech to her father asking him to have Claire stop following her around and let her live her life. Claire tries to explain her thinking is because of the almost kidnapping. Maddy doesn’t want her mother to be so overprotective. (Cue Britney Spears Overprotected here.)

Maddy meets up with Tucker at the mall and the talk about taking things slow. Then they make out in a car, and Tucker quickly loses his shirt. Ruining the mood, Claire bangs on the window and drags Maddy out of the vehicle. Maddy asks her mother why she is stalking her?!?! Claire yells at Tucker and says she will kill him if he comes near her daughter again.

Later in the night, Gina calls Maddy and tells her that Tucker is hooking up with another girl. Maddy shows up at the party and screams that Tucker is a cheater and then pushes him onto a beer pong table. Gina comforts her friend and then takes a flight out of town.

The next night Tucker apologizes to Maddy outside of her house. Claire listens in and hides behind a parked car. She watches them kiss and is ANGRY. Then Tucker gives Maddy multiple oversized stuffed animals. (Haha, WTF!) Claire follows Tucker to his frat house and asks to come in. It is the last time we see him alive.

Detectives question Maddy, due to her outburst. The detective learns about Claire disapproves and says, ” Sounds like she is being… STALKED BY HER MOTHER.” Then the detective interviews Gina. She gives him her boarding pass and says she was out of town. Gardeners find a pair of scissors with Maddy’s fingerprints and covered in Tucker’s blood. Maddy looks very guilty. Detectives start to arrest her, and she bolts. (I’ve never seen this happen in a Lifetime movie, haha. Wow. Maddy is brazen.) Detectives chase Maddy and tackle her to read her the Miranda Rights.

Maddy calls an alcoholic PI while she is in jail and offers him 300 dollars to trial her mother for two days. The PI sees Gina digging through the trash outside Claire’s house.

Flashback to Gina as a child, she is at the library with her father. He is the man Claire accused of kidnapping Maddy. It ruined his life, and he killed himself in front of his daughter. We see Gina then plot against Maddy to set her up for the murder of Tucker. Gina takes the pair of scissors, hires a stripper to seduce Tucker at the party, and then Gina confronts a shirtless Tucker in his bedroom. Gina tells him that her real name is Lucy. Then she stabs him, throws the scissors in the bushes, and plants blood on Maddy’s car door handle. (It is an elaborate, but well thought out plan. You go, Gina/Laura!)

Gina’s plan continues, all while being followed by the PI. She holds Maddy’s dad at gunpoint and forces him to transfer her money on his computer. Then she has him open the safe and steals cash and jewelry. The PI thwarts her plan; he comes behind her with a gun and demands she give him the money. Gina shoots both men, makes it look like they shot one another, and gets away just in time, but she is injured.

Claire was at the frat house and missed the whole thing. She comes home to find her husband shot and calls 911. Then she visits the jail to tell Maddy what happened. Maddy admits that she hired the PI to follow Claire and rationalizes that things must have gotten out of hand. Maddy asks her mother if she killed Tucker, and Claire denies it. Maddy says she didn’t either. So who could have killed Tucker?!?!

Gina calls her Bahamian boyfriend to make sure the money has been transferred to her offshore account. Then Gina finishes building a bomb as she sees Maddy’s father survived the shooting. (Lame reggae music plays while this scene happens.)

Detectives tell Claire three blood types were found at the scene, and they suspect her of killing her husband. To get answers, Claire visits Gina’s mother. (Though she doesn’t know that it is Gina’s mother, yes.) Claire suspects Vanessa of coming after her for falsely accusing her husband of kidnapping Maddy. That is, she did until she sees a photograph of young Gina/Lucy and recognizes a mole. Claire knows Gina is responsible and out for revenge.

Gina plants the bomb in Claire’s house and is caught in the act. Claire calls Gina a liar. Then they start fighting as the bomb clock tickets down. It is ridiculous, but the bomb does make it more suspenseful. Gina/Lucy explains her motives while she is tied up by Claire. With one minute to spare, Gina/Lucy tells Claire about the bomb and begs her to untie her. Claire almost leaves but comes back and untile Gina. Gina, of course, knocks Claire out once she is untied.

Cut to Gina/Lucy packing up for the Bahamas. Before she leaves, she gets all dolled up and burns a photograph of her father and her younger self. When she steps out of her house, the cops arrive and arrest her. Claire is there too, and watches Gina/Lucy be taken away.

Claire survived. She woke up with 10 seconds to spare and managed to run out of the house and jump into the pool as the house exploded. (No explosion is seen, Lifetime did not have that CGI budget for this one.)

The family is all together and healthy in a new neighborhood. (well dad is on crutches.) Maddy gets invited to a party immediately, and this time Claire lets her go without incident.

Side Note

Minority Report: Hot Frat Guy, Detective, Security Guard, Sydney, Doctor, New Friend

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Overall rating

🔪🔪🔪🔪 (4 Knives)

🍷🍷🍷 (3 glasses of wine required.)