Desaparecida?

The movie about Jennifer Dulos, the Connecticut mother of five who vanished in 2019, falls short of expectations. While the real-life case is gripping and tragic, the film struggles to do it justice. The acting is average, and the storytelling lacks the emotional depth and suspense necessary to convey the complexity of the case, including the contentious custody battle and the investigation into her husband, Fotis Dulos. Overall, the true story is far more compelling than this lackluster adaptation. I suspect there's a 20/20 or Dateline documentary out there that is actually better. Oh well; made a decent snow day movie.

I read the book (The Dollhouse Murder) and the movie just does not hold up. The children are almost ignored and they play a much bigger part of the real story. The script does not do justice to the terror and abuse caused by a narcissistic husband. I realize that a movie cannot include everything from the book but this movie just glided over the real story.

Relatively well done though the last 15 minutes lack spark. Sad story and fairly different from Dateline type coverage.

ABOUT MY REVIEWS:

I do not include a synopsis of the film/show -- you can get that anywhere and that does not constitute a meaningful review -- but rather my thoughts and feelings on the film that hopefully will be informative to you in deciding whether to invest 90-180 minutes of your life on it.

My scale: 1-5 decreasing degrees of "terrible", with 5 being "mediocre" 6- OK. Generally held my interest OR had reasonable cast and/or cinematography, might watch it again 7 - Good. My default rating for a movie I liked enough to watch again, but didn't rise to the upper echelons 8- Very good. Would watch again and recommend to others 9- Outstanding. Would watch over and over; top 10% of my ratings 10 - A classic. (Less than 2% receive this rating). For Lifetime Movies for Chicks (LMFC), drop the above scale by 3 notches. A 6 is excellent and 7 almost unattainable.

There's a real absence of dramatic tension here.

It feels like the story could have been told in 30 minutes. At around 90 minutes, the characters just amble along and events unfold so very slowly. It really feels like this goes on for hours and hours and hours. And it's such a boring and formulaic story, even if it is based on real events.

Gone Mom is completely intriguing from the first minute. I kept wondering what was next throughout. I enjoy Lifetime movies to varying degrees but THIS ONE was a standout, Annabeth Gish was perfectly cast in the leading role. She was believable and strong throughout. The actor who played the husband was also very good. It made me anxious and nervous wondering what was next. I would recommend it to anyone.