spotifeyeball Review of Cleveland Abduction

Cleveland Abduction (2015 TV Movie)

Superficial treatment of a horrendous tragedy

[3/10 · 6 May 2015]

Vapid, bland acting on the part of the lead who plays Michelle Knight, does not look like her, act like her, talk like her, I cannot understand why this untalented woman was cast as this part. She showed the least emotion of the three female actresses and I was wincing more for how bad her acting was than how horribly Michelle Knight was treated. I read Michelle's book and have studied this case and watched her interviews, this lead was horribly miscast. The male lead was not much better, he was way too good-looking to be that demon-man monster, he was too nice and not psychopathic enough at all. It was way too much of a story to cram into 90 minutes, I am not sure any movie or documentary or book will ever do justice to what happened to these girls and the daughter produced in captivity. The actresses who played Gina and Amanda were far better cast and were credible actors. As far as the storyline, it was superficial and glossed over so many important issues, like how the police ignored this man-- a man who had beaten his common-law wife to a pulp years before kidnapping these girls, how the police came to the home when there were reports of screams and noises and did not attempt to enter; how somehow this man was not considered a suspect in the circle of at least Gina's world when he had a violent history and knew her by way of his own daughter. I am stunned the police were this blind, how this man was literally hiding in plain sight for so long. My best wishes for these four victims in that home is that that their futures are filled with every good thing that they would like from now on, that they will find love and appreciation and healing and fulfillment. But if you do not know the story do not rely on this cheeseball Lifetime show. Read Michelle's book, read Amanda and Gina's book, watch their interviews. This was a waste of time and did not do them justice in any way. Someone out there make a better movie than this about what happened for 11 years in Cleveland!