In the Eyes of a Stranger (1992 TV Movie)
Gets better due to interesting plot twists, still too much like a soap
3 October 2006
Lynn and Nancy both work in an office setting where everyone but the boss has cubicles. Nancy hates her job, while Lynn seems more dedicated but tries to sympathize with her friend.

Returning home from work on the subway, Lynn has headphones on and her music turned up loud. A frantic man runs up to her but she can't hear what he is saying. She just assumes he is a weirdo. Then Tony Franco enters with a gun. The man is shot, and a terrified Lynn flees, her clothes covered with blood.

Lynn eventually calms down while at the police station. There she meets Jack, who has long hair and a beard and gets passed over for promotions because he won't follow rules.

Tony and the man who was shot may have participated in an armed robbery where at least one person was killed, and what Lynn didn't hear may have been the location of the stolen money. The police decide to give Lynn a place to live and protection, placing a female cop in the apartment Lynn shares with Nancy. We don't see what happens in Lynn's apartment, but we sure spend a lot of time where Lynn is staying. And guess who spends more time there than anyone else? This seems like a soap opera at first, but a number of secrets get revealed (actually, that is characteristic of soaps) and numerous plot twists keep us guessing to the end. There's even some action. If you like soap opera, you might like this movie. I eventually did.

Justine Bateman has nice hair and looks good in her workout clothes (though we only get to see her jumping around for five seconds; what a shame). I don't think she has that pretty a face, yet so many male characters describe her as being so beautiful. In a movie like this, that's important. Actually, Bateman shows acting skill quite often. Just not consistently.

Colin Fox gives one of the standout performances as Richard, the man who raised Lynn after her parents died. Cynthia Dale makes an impact as Nancy in a few scenes, mostly later on.

The actor playing the head villain, though, gives the best performance of all. Since his name appears so high up in the credits, I have to assume this is Géza Kovács, though I never did catch the character's name.

There is some violence, but not too much. Obviously one of the early scenes is kind of bloody. There is mostly suspense and the fear something might happen. But mostly ... well, I can't give too much away, but soap describes it.

I actually ended up enjoying this.
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