Rescued by Faith: The Connie and Larry Van Oosten Story(2026 Lifetime Movie)
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Cast: Nancy Travis, Mike Pniewski, Jake Allyn
Director: Lee Gabiana
Writer(s): Conor Allyn, Benjamin Anderson
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DonateDonate monthlyDonate yearlySynopsis (via Lifetime)
Follows Connie and Larry Van Oosten who are abducted by a masked gunman and locked in a bunker while he attempts to steal their savings. Connie risks everything to alert authorities as they cling to their faith.
Recap/Wine Thoughts
Based on a true story.
The movie begins in a makeshift bunker, with, honestly, some nice satin sheets. Sure, there are also handcuffs, hidden cameras, and randomly Chickens, but hey, it also has a bible and other reading materials!
Cut to the Van Ossten family in a rural Illinois farm home. Larry and Connie are retired, wealthy, empty nesters, enjoying the quiet life of studying the bible. They are happy just living a simple life, even if Larry seems pretty reliant on that inhaler.
Their kids are grown, but still on good terms with their parents. Jeff and Amy plan to see their parents at a playoff baseball game! Someone in a black hoodie isn’t on good terms with them and has a wall full of index cards and a voice box changer.
Larry and Connie run into Chad in a flower shop, and he seems like a nice guy, which means he is absolutely going to kidnap them. Chad is happily married and went to school with their kids. They all attend the same church and are involved in the congregation.
It is the night before the playoff game, and Connie wakes up to find an intruder at the foot of her bed. Larry wakes up and shouts at the man before being tased. The intruder pulls out a gun and forces Connie to cuff her husband and then herself, but not before getting that inhailer. They are escorted to a car and thrown in the trunk as the gunman says, “Where is your God now?”
The kidnapper has Connie write down all of her passwords and logins, which is where I would die, because I don’t have any of that stuff memorized. He is sure to drop the names of Connie’s kids and grandkids to show he knows them better and could potentially come after them next!
The couple is taken to the bunker blindfolded and uses one against the other to keep them compliant. It’s super scary how detailed the masked assailant has gone to plan this out. He handcuffs them to a wall and leaves them standing overnight. Larry and Connie can’t help but laugh when they are alone. It’s surreal! They are sure someone will notice they are missing.
The next morning, the kidnapper takes Connie and has her call Amy. As she is on the phone with her daughter, he holds up index cards to prompt her on what to say. He threatens to kill her and everyone in her family if she doesn’t comply with his instructions. He wants Connie to get a cashier’s check for everything they have.
Connie makes arrangements with the bank, and as she is on the phone, there is a knock at the door. The masked assailant is masked no more, it is CHAD! His business is failing, and investors are demanding their money back. (300K!) His marriage is also crumbling, and checks are bouncing left and right. Chad screams at himself in the mirror to “GET THAT MONEY.” (Like a deranged Cuba Gooding Jr.)
At the bank, Connie gets the traveler’s check, and the bank is like, “ummmmmmmm, are you ok??????” She hightails it out of there because she doesn’t want to leave Larry behind. The bank manager calls the police and reports a suspected kidnapping. The traveler’s check is made out to Chad’s LLC, so it is not that hard to figure out.
The police, however, are not equipped to handle a case like this and call in the FBI. The FBI suspects the son right away, and the local sheriff is like, ” These are good people. They wouldn’t kidnap their parents.
Meanwhile, Connie and Larry are kept in the basement with all their favorite snacks and plenty of toilet paper. The fact that Chad is doing this to them after not only growing up knowing the family but also being the valedictorian of his class.
Chad made a pitch to them a year ago, and after they declined to invest, he began his plot to get their money one way or another. They tell him they will pray for him, which really sets him off. Connie figures out that Chad has kidnapped them, and the gig is up. Larry and Connie read the bible to pass the time because Chad is NOT going to go after their family or kill them. They are actually so unbothered now.
Chad feels he didn’t meet expectations and has lost all faith. Connie tells him he is pure evil and that he needs saving. There is only one way out of this, and Chad can’t bring himself to cross that line. He goes to a hardware store and buys a large tarp, shovel, and duct tape. (That combo should trigger an alert.)
Police detectives close in on Chad and stake out his house and rental properties. They end up getting Chad on a traffic stop and find his killer kit and a gun. He evades the office in a high-speed chase, loses control of the car, and ends up in the hospital with a concussion. Chad tells them that the devil made him do it.
With a suspect in custody and probable cause to search the properties, the cops find the index card wall, but not the couple. They have to resort to the house’s blueprints to find the bunker. Connie and Larry are rescued and reunited with their family. The 48-hour ordeal is over.
The family has dinner and says grace; they even pray for Chad. Faith can conquer fear!
STRAY Thought
Was this a Christmas movie? Random Christmas decorations threw me off.
Chad Schipper pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated kidnapping, aggravated kidnapping, concealing identity, and home invasion. He was sentenced to a 60-year prison sentence. Schipper will be 91 years old when he is eligible for parole in 2068.
Hoppy Easter! Lifetime’s religious movies are still unhinged!
Overall rating
Number of Kills: N/A ( 0 knives)
Enjoyment Level (1-5 scale)
🍷🍷🍷 (3 Glasses of Wine)
Lifetime Tropes:
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Put a Cork in It (Skip It!)
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