Nightmare Tenant (2019 Lifetime)
Stars: Lauralee Bell, Jon Briddell, Virginia Tucker
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Synopsis (via Lifetime)
Dr. Carol Allen (Lauralee Bell), a kind-hearted Ivy League alum and single mom whose high-achieving and well-rounded daughter (Heather Hopkins) gets accepted into the same university. At her daughter’s suggestion, she takes in a hard-luck student so she won’t be living alone when her daughter starts college. Rob Malenfant directs Nightmare Tenant, and Ken Sanders produced it in a reteaming with his Mistress Hunter star Bell.
Thoughts
Nikki is NERD. We know this because she wears glasses, is the valedictorian, and wants to be a doctor. (like her dad wanted to be.)When Nikki goes home to tell her dad the good news, she finds out that she didn’t get into Vanderten. (Her college of choice.) Her dad is extremely disappointed… like crying because he must have done something wrong, Nikki finds out seven other applicants from her school also did not get in, except for one girl who is a legacy….Lacey!!!!!! (Her mom is actually a doctor, Dr Carol Allen. They are both beautiful blonde ladies……….)
Struggling with empty nest syndrome, Dr Carol Allen’s boyfriend (Dr. Tom) suggest to move in and Dr Carol freaks out and tells him, no way. They kiss goodnight and tel each other that they love one another. Dr. Carol Allen tosses and turns and eventually goes to her daughters room and sleeps in her bed while hugging a stuffed teddy bear? This is weird..
Nikki is hellbent on getting revenge for Lacey unknowingly taking her spot. She makes a list:
- Get close to Dr Carol Allen
- Obliterate her reputation
- Get Lacey back home
- Make. Them. Pay.
She ten ditches her nerd glasses, puts on some make up, and gives herself a new name Melissa Waters. She then smashes her arm with a hammer to get herself admitted to the hospital.
At the hospital, Dr. Carol Allen checks on “Melissa Waters” and tells her that she should be a doctor like her. She lies and tell Dr. Carol Allen that her parents are dead and she needs to get her feet on the ground. Dr. Carol Allen offers for her to live in her house rent free! There is something about Melissa Waters that wins Dr. Carol Allen. Tom is less than enthused, especially because he was rejected, the day before.
Melissa Water packs a few things and her gun and moves in with Dr. Carol Allen. They do a tour of the house and Dr. Carol Allen tells Melissa Waters that her daughters room is OFF LIMITS. Speaking of daughter, Lacey calls to talk to her mom and is happy to hear that her mom rented a room. While they talk Nikki listens on the other line, because they are talking on landline. It is 2019.
The next morning Melissa/Nikki makes breakfast and coffee. Dr. Carol Allen is impressed and tells her to call her, Carol. (Which I never would, show some respect for yourself Dr. Carol Allen!) One she is alone in the house Melissa/Nikki goes into the forbidden daughters room and angrly looks at pictures of Lacey. Before she can do anything, her mom calls. Melissa/Nikki’s parents tell her that they miss her and are making lamb chops. Nikki realizes that her dad doesn’t want her to come back, so she will stay with Dr. Carol Allen. (and use her credit card. She does some serious shopping online.)
Melissa/Nikki makes dinner for Dr. Carol Allen and Tom. They talk about college and Dr. Carol Allen tells Melissa Nikki that a person’s education does not define them. (Spoke like a person with true white privilege.)
The next day Dr. Carol Allen gets approval to bring Melissa/Nikki to work with her for the day. It is like bring your daughter to work day, but fucked up! They make rounds together and we get lots of medical jargon. It is super Grey’s Anatomy, without the sexy male doctors. Dr. Carol Allen is very impressed with Melissa/Nikki’s medical knowledge. Dr. Carol Allen is NOT impressed when large items are delivered to her work. She
Melissa/Nikki does some more shopping with the fraudulent credit card she created and reasures Dr. Carol Allen that she has taken care of the issue. She then text Tom and arranges a dinner with him. Tom comes over for dinner, Melissa/Nikki dresses up for him and hits on him. He tells her to stop and storms off. Melissa/Nikki cries because she made a mistake. Dr. Carol Allen catches her in an emotionally vulnerable moment and Melissa/Nikki spins it that Tom attacked her and was drunk. Things keep going down for Dr. Carol Allen, Melissa/Nikki forged her signature on a medication authorization that lead to a patient’s death. She is being charged with malpractice.
Lacey hears about everything that is going on from her mom and send her friend, Ginger, to go check on Dr. Carol Allen. Ginger keys into the house and runs into Melissa/Nikki who gives her the cold shoulder. Ginger recognizes Nikki and tries to call Lacey. Nikki wrestles the phone from Ginger and then beats her with it.
Dr. Carol Allen comes home and is confused to find Ginger not there. Melissa/Nikki plays it cool and asks Dr. Carol Allen to go to a movie. She also offers to make dinner again, but Dr. Carol Allen tells Melissa/Nikki that she is going to dinner with Tom/ She wants to hear in his words what happened. Melissa/Nikkis is not into that plan and goes to Tom’s job and runs him down with her car. He get admitted to the hospital and Dr. Carol Allen is banned from seeing him.
Lacey get texts from “Ginger” but really it is Nikki. Nikki convinces Lacey to come home to help her mother, and the list of plans is almost complete. When Lacey arrives home is is surprised to find Nikki in her house with a gun, oh and Ginger’s dead body. Nikki admits to killing Ginger and says that Lacey will be next.
At the hospital, Dr. Carol Allen gets into see Tom. He tells her that Melissa isn’t Melissa, he found no record of her and tells Dr. Carol Allen that Nikki hit him with her car. Dr. Carol Allen gets a text from Lacey and realizes that she is in danger, gurl.
Dr. Carol Allen rushes home and finds Lacey tied to a chair. Nikki is waving her gun around and smiling. She tells them that she is doing all of this for her father’s approval. While giving her villain monologue, Lacey ets herself free enough to distract Nikki for her mom to struggle for the gun. Eventually it is Lacey who gets the gun and shoots Nikki. They call an ambulance and tell Nikki she is going to be okay.
Nikki is handcuffed in the hospital and her dad comes to visit her. He tells her that she disappointed him again and storms off.
Dr. Carol Allen goes to see Tom and asks him to move in with her. Movie abruptly ends. Is this a new trend? It is truly jolting.
Side Note
I was hoping for more Grey Anatomy and less General Hospital…
Minority Report: Teacher, Jean and some nurses, and people in the hospital.
Would have gotten five knives if Lori Loughlin played Dr. Carol Allen. (The Operation Varsity Blues Scandal had made this movie very timely.)
Ginger totally calls Lacey Lindsey when she is gettin beat down by Nikki.
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Overall rating
🔪🔪🔪 (3 Knifes)
🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷 (5 glasses of wine required)
*Photo Credit: © 2019 Lifetime
This was a movie review. So glad, because it gives away the entire movie. We thought is was a synopsis or a treatment for a movie idea.
Sounds interesting. The abrupt ending reminds us of how we use to end our stories when we were young.