She's No Angel

When I read the Plot Summary: "A young woman on the run allows grieving parents to believe she is their late son's wife." I immediately thought that they had taken the movie -"Mrs. Winterbourne" - and changed the title for TV. WRONG!!! The plot summaries could be used to describe both movies. It as at this point the resemblance ends. The movie is slow, predictable, and at times - down right boring. There are very strong actors in the movie, but apparently the director did not know how to utilize their talents. The blame should be shared equally by the screenwriter. The script is "sappy". Somehow I felt that I should connect with the lead character (played by Tracey Gold) but I could not decide whether she should be liked, disliked or even pitied. The character's motivation was revealed too late in the story to justify the ending. In "Mrs. Winterbourne" the last ten minutes were the best in the movie, the plot and subplots all came together based on good character development. In "She's No Angel" it felt like the writer and/or director (or possibly even the film editor) realized that the film was running long and they wrapped up the story line in the remaining allotted time. I believe that when watching a movie the viewer has a responsibility to suspend reality and that filmmakers are allowed to use poetic license. I think their license should be suspended for this one.

This movie is a remake of "No Man of her Own", starring Barbara Stanwyck (1950). "Mrs. Winterbourne", starring Ricki Lake (1996), was also a remake.

The original story was by Cornell Woolrich: "I married a Dead Man".

It was also a French movie "I Married a Dead Man" ("J'ai épousé une ombre")in 1982, starring Nathalie Baye. I have enjoyed this movie in all three American incarnations. I have not seen the French version, but now that I know it exists, I will try to find it. The best version, of course, was the one starring Barbara Stanwyck. However, I thought both Ricki Lake and Tracey Gold did a fine job of portraying the poor girl, who wound up in circumstances not of her own making. I like happy endings, and all three American versions had happy endings.

In 1996, Ricki Lake and Brendan Fraser starred in a movie along with Shirley McLaine entitled "Mrs. Winterbourne". In the movie Ricki plays a girl named Connie. Connie is 18, pregnant, and deserted by her boyfriend. She has nowhere to go and boards a train in an attempt to find shelter. On the train she meets Hugh (Fraser) and his wife, Patricia (played by Susan Haskell) who generously take her into their quarters. The train wrecks, she is mistaken for the benevolent wife, and winds up living with Hugh's mother, who wants to take care of her new "grandchild." She's living up the rich life, thinking nothing can go wrong, and then *bam* -- here comes the ex-boyfriend to ruin things for her. Substitute a truck wreck for the train wreck, put rapists in place of the ex-boyfriend, and take out the pregnancy. Then you've got a brand new movie called "She's No Angel". I can't believe how much this movie is a copycat of "Mrs. Winterbourne". I won't say it's a bad movie; it's not. It's just not a "Lifetime Original Movie"

In 1982, A novel written by American Author William Irish, under the title of "I married a dead man", gave rise in France to a Film called "J'ai épousé une ombre" starring Nathalie Baye, Richard Bohringer, and Francis Huster. A pregnant woman fleeing a violent boyfriend, boards a train and is taken into care by a newlywed couple returning to the Bordeaux region (the husband has yet to present his new wife to his parents who are rich wine-growers). The train crashes, the couple are killed and the girl is taken for the dead newlywed wife because she was wearing her ring at the time the crash happened ! The story "She's no Angel is identical to this, except that it is a car crash, and not a train crash but every other aspect identical, even down to the fact that the welcoming family are winegrowers ! So there has to have been some copying somewhere. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed both "J'ai épousé une ombre" and "she's no angel" though I suppose the credit must first of all go to William Irish as 'tis he who wrote the original novel Quite entertaining !

This TV film captured my interest from the very beginning to the very end. Tracy Gold,(Liddy Carlyle),"Wanted",'99, played a young gal who was just plain down on her luck, having been raped and without any money or possessions. She does manage to get herself a breakfast for $1.75 and wound up getting it for nothing. She was also told that she should make a wish for better Luck! She managed to get a ride from a newly wed couple and then the story starts building into lots of suspense and mystery. Kevin Dobson(Donald Shawnessy),"Restraining Order",'99 has a winery and teaches her the business along with his wife, Dee Wallace Stone,(Maureen Shawnessy),"Dead Canaries",'03, who tries to be a mother and gives a great supporting role. If you can find this TV Film, it is definitely worth your while in viewing this very entertaining FILM.