★ 3 / 10
Captive Hearts (NOT "Proof of Life" in made-for-tv format) 3 out of 10 stars
vnssyndrome89
Captive Hearts (NOT "Proof of Life" in made-for-tv format) 3 out of 10 stars Time to read: 1:51 minBASIC PLOT: Larry & Elizabeth Sorenson ((Tobias Mehler &…
Captive Hearts (NOT "Proof of Life" in made-for-tv format)
3 out of 10 stars Time to read: 1:51 minBASIC PLOT:
Larry & Elizabeth Sorenson ((Tobias Mehler & Tracey Gold) are starting a new life, in a new city, after Larry testified against his former employer.Unbeknownst to Larry, his previous boss had many illegal ventures, and Larry was implicated when law enforcement moved in. Larry decided to become a witness for the state, to avoid prosection. He didn't get Wit-Sec though, instead he just changed his name, took a new job across the country, and tried to start over.While at lunch, on the first day of his new job, he's kidnapped, and held for ransom by a terrorist group. They say they have a political agenda, but is that really what they're after? FBI agent Jade Marlo (Robin Givens), and Detective Jimmy Kelsoe ((Chris Kramer) aren't convinced. They think something else is going on here. Does it have to do with Larry's past? Or is it related to his new job? Can Marlo & Kelsoe stop arguing, and work together to uncover the real motives behind the kidnapping? Can they put the pieces together in time to save Larry's life, or is it already too late?WHAT WORKS:
*NOTHING! NOTHING WORKS!WHAT DOESN'T WORK:
*THE SHOTS ARE TERRIBLE The cinematography and the directing were more than bad, they were distracting!*THE ACTING IS SUBPAR ESPECIALLY FROM ROBIN GIVENS but even a real actress couldn't pull off lines like, "The perps have gift wrapped this, either it's kidnappers or terrorists, and both make it my case!" (My response to that is-in my best George Takai voice: "Oh my!")*SPECIAL AGENT MARLO DEDUCES ELIZABETH ISN'T IN LOVE W/HER HUSBAND BECAUSE SHE CAN'T FIND A RECENT PHOTO OF HIM, but that's because they just moved, and everything they own is in boxes! Wow! Top notch police work (and screenwriting)!*IT FEELS LIKE IT WAS FILMED ON A VIDEO CAMERA It's low quality video, which doesn't help this already challenged movie.*ELIZABETH IS SUPPOSED TO BE AN ARTIST and the paintings that are presented as hers are really cool, BUT they are all of black people. It is a bit unbelievable that a white, suburban woman, would mainly paint black men. Strange.TO RECOMMEND, OR NOT TO RECOMMEND, THAT IS THE QUESTION:
I cannot recommend this movie, even to other fans of made-for-tv melodramas. The acting is bad, the writing is bad, the directing is bad, the cinematography is bad, any questions?CLOSING NOTES:
*THIS IS A MADE-FOR-TV MOVIE, please keep that in mind before you watch/rate it. TV movies have a much lower budget, and so you expectations should be adjusted.*I HAVE NO CONNECTION TO THE FILM, or production in ANY way. This review was NOT written in full, or in part, by a bot. I am just an honest viewer, who wishes for more straight forward reviews (less trolls and fanboys), and better entertainment. Hope I helped you out.
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★ 5 / 10
"C'mon & (Don't) Take Me!"
kensirhan-86198
Having just tripped over the main event, so to speak, of this production reairing on Court TV 2, I had to weigh on its ... weightlessness from a mere few…
Having just tripped over the main event, so to speak, of this production reairing on Court TV 2, I had to weigh on its ... weightlessness from a mere few minutes! Whatever went on before I sought escape from some typical crappy insurance ads, I "don't know & care less" after this small, exposure, but if it's emblematic of what follows, then its unenthusiastic ratings here are truly deserved. So this fragment started with an exterior shot of a seriously tiresome - with color scheme to match - suburban McHouse that cut to some woman unwrapping stuff on a sofa, thence to a Japanese restaurant where an M/F couple were being ushered into a dining space. The onscreen program guide - sans date or actors, leading to a no-fun search here through a well-worn title - detailed a kidnapped husband, so I deduced they were the ones about to have some tempura, Rudely Interrupted as the next shot of a Ford van pulling up outside (complete with fake braking skirrtt! sound both improbable at slow speeds & a Hollywood staple SFX) carrying 2 masked bandits. In they went, stealthily stalking the peaceful place while the M mentioned to the F about his wife - oh so that ain't her - & somehow, as these Bad Men threw aside various door panels & aimed their weapons at diners who, if real could hardly have been accustomed to such greetings, responded uniformly with only a small slight scream from the female patrons. Huh? Nobody, since the gunmen moved it along quickly after not finding their target, either got on their phones (a Hot Little Number called 911) or seized a golden opportunity to skip out on the check by having to, reasonably, flee in terror (then make that hot call). Instead, after (of course) the last room is crashed in & the target dragged out, his dining partner is STILL the only person to emerge, & immediately gets picked off. Then the Charming Hostess, who had hitherto ducked into some screened doorway ("Oh goody!" she's able to make that elusive Hot Call) emerges holding who knows what - not a samurai sword, that's for sure - as the captors are booking it with their Prize Catch de la Day, & she gets taken down. (Did she make that call or what?) Great. The only 2 casualties both are women. And, despite the captive's partner managing louder screams both at that crashing invasion & when she gets it, this whole process including the shootings lacks the slightest bit of tensioned buildup to its underwhelming climactic end. Wannabe, that is. With both bullets depicted as leaving the gun with only a polite silencer hiss - so much for the short whistling "cheown!" of decades' standing - & not a trace either of exiting smoke or an entering wound, the audience are left just watching mildly (more than a few laughing, I Doubt Not) feeling no fright or concern. I definitely wasn't. After this latest B-minus lightweight, this Court TV 2 - since none appear on the reconstituted original - is in no-joke need of upgraded "crime" movie selections that won't yield rolling eyes, yawns & ROFL moments. Still these days we can all use more laughs, & this is just 1 sample of them delivering such weekly goods.
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80%
AUDIENCE
4.7/10
158
