Secrets in a Small Town (2019 TV Movie) User Reviews

Why Do Folks Hate On Lifetime Movies So Much?

[Foutainoflife · 7/10 · 26 May 2019]

A mother and teenage daughter move to a small town where the mother has landed a position as an assistant principal for the local high school. When the daughter makes the basketball team and sets out to spend an evening with the team members, she never returns home.

This is a Lifetime flick and while a lot of folks hate on these films, I actually like them and appreciate that a lot of them are based on actual events like this one. It isn't a hollywood masterpiece but I thought it was a decent film.

Can I just say this? It is amazing that some people lack empathy. It is also amazing that kids who are raised by these folks can struggle with their sense of morality, yet find the courage to do what is right. Even if it takes a while for them to do it, considering who is raising them and the fact that they are still merely children, they deserve some credit for developing more integrity than their parents.

This isn't an awful film and I enjoyed it for what it was.

Well, I never...

[pauliecorleone-72628 · 7/10 · 11 June 2019]

The hell?

Interesting camera work? Efficient pacing? Competent acting? Unintrusive, complementary music, realistic dialogue and, to top it all of, dexterous direction leading to a solid structure and consistency in quality?

IN MY LIFETIME MOVIE?!

...Have I landed in the wrong universe again?

Over in less than 30 minutes

[isajademarilyn · 5/10 · 25 January 2021]

Less than a half hour into the movie, they gave us the plot away. New girl in town, enters a basketball team. Hazing gone bad. You are told that all the girls are there for each other, strong bound. Their coach proudly says that she knows everything that happens to them. The missing girl reminds her mom not to worry, especially about alcohol. She hates that. More obvious clues will add up, or previous ones repeated, but it is already perfectly clear.

Initiation went horribly wrong, they forced her to drink and there was an accident and they left her for dead, or she had died. All the teammates participated, and the coach is well aware of what happened. The small town will protect their team and turn against the mother. Most likely a weak link from the team will help the mother.

As they gave away the main plot, the following hour was a pain to watch, only the mother saved that part. Another movie so predictable.

Good, but...

[shilohryder · 7/10 · 15 April 2019]

Story was good, but, of course, the villian is A) ex military and B) shown to be Christian. Those had NOTHING to do with the storyline, but liberal filmmakers can't help themselves from taking their chance to vilify conservatives in every movie possible. Enough already!

The quiet town,always Hides the secrets!

[bbcspeakers · 6/10 · 6 May 2020]

The story is not, with the new topic, but the amalgamation of the actors in their roles, especially the main heroine claire "Kate Drummond" who performed the role professionally, was a good addition to the film, the occasional monotony of events, did not add anything, new except that it showed the suffering of the mother in her search for her daughter, and that the coach Ruth "Ray kihlstedt" She managed to play the role in a personal balance, for a coach educational mentor, and also for a mother who suffers from severe and Disturbing strange behaviors. The important thing is that the film is beautiful and powerful in the dimension that his personalities have granted to it! Hassan Balaouane.

5.9 rating, is there a system error?

[ks-60500 · 3/10 · 14 August 2019]

Missing girl theme is not new. The worst of the story is it's not suspicious at all. The truth come out too soon and there's no surprise and disappointed to the audience. The script writing is totally a let down.

Movie really drags

[catdaddyd · 6/10 · 3 November 2019]

I like the story and the acting wasn't bad. But the movie really dragged, should have cut an half hour off of it. Pacing could have been a lot better.

Cures Insomnia

[ferdmalenfant · 1/10 · 8 June 2019]

If you haven't slept for a while, just start watching this yawner. Why do people make these stupid, predictable, bland movies. And they have the gull to call it a "thriller" a "sleeper" is much more accurate. good night all.

Excellent!!

[kyleallencole9 · 7/10 · 26 December 2019]

This tv movie was a great thriller! Definitely didn't seem like a lifetime movie at all.

The plot is pretty simple, but unexpected.

A woman is hired as the assistant principal at a high school in a small town that she just moves to. Her teenage daughter joins the girls basketball team and goes to a team bonding party and never returns. Her mother digs through the town and the schools past in order to find out what happened to her daughter. She feels that the basketball girls may have done something to her. Very good and well made.

Seriously?

[tcdb-52412 · 3/10 · 4 July 2020]

Typical lifetime movie. Many angles and only some get addressed. Someone writes 'whitchhunt' on her garage door and that never gets addressed. Some crazy dad barges into the police dept. angry that another mom is scared bc her daughter is missing. No context for either. Initially all the girls on the basketball team when questioned about her disappearance, show no remorse and don't skip a beat in their stories. Later, when the basketball coach and her daughter are near the cabin where the girl is, she gets sick to her stomach, she's upset. All of the sudden she's feeling remorse? Oh and why? Why did it happen in the first place . Where's the motive?

Top-notch Lifetime movie.

[pmtelefon · 8/10 · 14 April 2019]

"Secrets in a Small Town" is a solid movie by any standard. By Lifetime movie standards, it's excellent. That's not a knock on Lifetime movies. I watch them all the time but you know what I mean. This movie was suspenseful and heartbreaking at the same time. Kate Drummond gives an excellent performance. The rest of the cast is good as well. The only demerit I give this movie is that it uses the old "true story" thing. I'm not so sure it is. But that doesn't really matter, "Secrets in a Small Town" is a very good watch.

Movies like this are hard to watch

[mikejade · 6/10 · 7 June 2020]

It is good that movies like this are made inspired by true events. Evil people killing others (half way not sure she is dead) so maybe attempting to kill others for whatever reason. This happens in real life and it is upsetting to say the least. Entertaining.

I made an account to write this review

[scottcrabtree-44082 · 1/10 · 18 June 2019]

As in my title.... I made an account just to review this film. Wow is it bad. The acting is woeful and you can figure out the entire plot in the first 15 minutes. Please don't waste your time watching this. Go watch Sharknado or something.

Very watchable thriller/drama made for TV

[kysta · 6/10 · 6 November 2021]

Good example of a made for tv movie. Solid acting, i liked the fact for this mild thriller/drama that the actions of such characters was fairly realistic to real life and expectation. Often characters and their idiotic behaviour/decision making is what ruins a movie.

The closing scenes are the only part that did not ring true for me, could have been handled differently but overall a good watch!

Nice movie for LMN

[drjumokeojo · 7/10 · 5 August 2022]

Watched this on lifetime movie network. It actually kept me alert and i was eager to see how it would end. Great acting as well. Kept me on the edge of my seat.

this movie had no strength.

[Jo-Cino · 5/10 · 10 June 2019]

I can't say i expected a lot coming in to this movie, but with the state of hollywood these days, i'm left searching through these type of low budget/indies looking for a gem... this wasn't one of them. The acting was poor, not horrible, but not anywhere near good. the cinematography was very 'made for tv', the score was soft, the story telling had a few holes... you can see how this all adds up to low score. i would honestly give this movie s lower score, but, as a single parent who moved from big city life to small town bible belt, i figured this would hit home a little harder... the only problem was this movie had no strength.

PREDITABLE

[cinerama10 · 2/10 · 25 June 2019]

We have seen it all before numerous times. Nothing original in this extremely predictable film. You can guess the ending before you are even half way through this film.

While you're here...

[chris-laughren · 1/10 · 15 November 2019]

Have you seen 'The King'? Now that's a great film. Packed with great performances, true history, battle scenes and epic location shots. Who knew King Henry V was so honourable? Oh, this film? Nowhere? Don't. Just don't. If you enjoy the opening scene screeching, then by all means, this film is for you. Films like Nowhere just make me feel empty inside. I gave it a 1 or 2. PS... 'The King' deals with adult themes like nude gorgeous women, drinking and visceral battle scenes. I gave it an 8.

Into the Viper Pit

[lavatch · 9/10 · 21 January 2020]

The ominous nickname for the sports teams of Mattowa High School is the Vipers. In this rural outpost, Claire Porter and her daughter Sarah have arrived with Claire assuming the position of Assistant Principal at the school. When Sarah practices in the first basketball scrimmage for the girls' team, she is hit with a flying elbow to the mouth by the daughter of the coach. This should be a flagrant foul, as it appeared to be intentional and could have knocked out Sarah's teeth. But the coach merely writes the foul off as good, tough play.

In this harrowing tale, Sarah attends a welcoming party by the basketball team, then vanishes. Her frantic mom receives little support from the community. Only a sympathetic deputy in the police force senses the urgency in Sarah's disappearance. The entire team recounts for the sheriff a story that is far too pat and rehearsed. But sports are the lifeblood of the Mattawa. And the highly competitive Coach Simmons is an upstanding member in the community.

Above all else, the film offers a moving portrait of a mother's love for her daughter and her relentless effort to discover the truth about her disappearance, despite all the odds. The aesthetic choices of the filmmakers included beautiful still photographs of a majestic landscape, supported by lyrical scoring. The imagery worked in counterpoint to the tawdry story of a hazing ritual followed by what can only be termed attempted murder.

There were especially effective details in the scripting and characterization that evoked the horror of the secrets of the small town. A sleazy funeral director pays Claire a visit long before her daughter has been declared dead. The hard-as-nails girls' basketball coach recalls her experience in Iraq, where, on her first tour of duty, she was assaulted and considered herself a survivor. Both Claire and Sarah imagine a lullaby from the past, which the two characters sing as they are separated; it is as if they are connecting spiritually while apart. The ironic name of the spot where Sarah may have died is called Trusted Cliff.

At one point in the film, Coach Simmons reminds her daughter Kat that "when you've lost in your head, you've lost the game." In a grim struggle for survival to escape the apparent death sentence of having to live in a small town, human values have been skewed, and the mentality that produced the tragic hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials has co-opted human values in the modern age. On many levels, "Secrets of a Small Town" is a story of survival after having fallen into the viper pit.

Extremely Predictable and Boring

[lololguys · 2/10 · 6 February 2022]

2 stars for a good story concept, but the execution was awful.

You can very easily predict how the rest of the movie will play out after the first 30 minutes because the movie beats you in the head with obvious hints about what will happen in the remaining hour. Some examples:

• It is very obvious who the kidnapper(s) will be within the first 15 minutes of the movie. The villain (who is already shown to be shady) hits the kidnapped girl on purpose, so you can clearly tell who it will be.

• Within the first 30 minutes, the villain offers someone shady looking gloves while right next to the known crime scene, which turns out to be right next to a cliff. The cliff is blatantly discussed by the characters. Wow, what a coincidence, what could have ever happened there and by whom /s?

• The main villain(s) are officially revealed around halfway through the movie, instead of at the end as is usually done in these kinds of movies to keep the suspense going.

There aren't even any red herrings dropped in to keep you guessing in this one. The storyline pretty much ends 30-40 minutes into the movie and the rest is a waste of time to watch because you know exactly what is going to happen and to whom it will happen.

"Drop the gun!" "No!" "Drop the Gun!" "NO!"

[lovelyonyx719-943-600910 · 5/10 · 20 October 2022]

Really? The coach is pointing a loaded weapon directly at a mother and daughter and the cop, gun drawn and pointed at her, simply waited by the tree to see how everything turns out. Really? I can think of numerous "other people" who would be shot dead on the spot. Too unrealistic for me. Or.... was it?

But, over all, it wasn't too bad of a movie. I sort of got sick of the mother's expressions and the lunatic coach too.

It's a shame it takes DAYS for the girl to get catch a case of regret and conscience. But, I guess when you're raised by a lunatic, it takes time to overcome the fear of doing the right thing.

perfect and realistic beginning, bad usual ending

[NijazBaBs · 8/10 · 19 April 2019]

This is one of those movies where ending is so typical in form of shooting, killing, arrest, and twist. Also explanation and details are not enough clear and not well explained and not realistic. Explanation is one of those happened first, explained later with holes in the story. But beginning is perfect. We can see very realistic life, behaviors, talk, meetings, and emotions. In fact, this is one of the best and most honest beginnings in all the lifetimes movies I've seen. Only beginning keeps you motivated to watch the whole movie. But everything else is so low quality and usual and boring. Not complete and not good enough. Acting of victim was also too fake and not explained. Unrealistic.

fantastic thriller

[bouhanamarc · 10/10 · 15 September 2019]

Don't listen to the bad reviews this is a fantastic thriller not predictable , good suspense i love it and i will see it again and it is a tv movie incredible

Worth a watch

[tt202 · 8/10 · 2 May 2021]

Aye ya'll this movie was lit for a Lifetime movie! It kept my attention. Kind of kept me guessing. Also the ending was cool. A nice chill at home movie to watch.

Secrets In A Small Town Canadian Film

[Kbinbusiness · 10/10 · 3 September 2021]

The acting in this film was really great. Katie Drummond was awesome. Very moving and had a 100% feel for a North American film. Very touching and highly recommend if you like a film that has a lot of drama.