All in all, it was your pretty typical Lifetime movie. Teenagers behaving badly and a mom desperate for answers. I've seen better and I've seen worse. The acting was sub-par, but what really got me was the plot. It was rather dull, which is strange considering the subject matter. It has all that you need for a good Lifetime thriller, two teens kill their best friend AND it's based on a true story. In my opinion, here's what went wrong, they should've told a story that more closely resembled the real one. Not just because it would've been more truthful, but because the real story is actually much more interesting.
In the film two girls, Jade and Sara, who have been best friends forever, meet a cool new girl named Ashley. The girls invite Ashley to hang out with them and the three become quick friends. It then becomes clear that Ashley and Sara don't see eye to eye and Ashley obviously wants Jade all to herself and after overhearing Sara saying some mean things about her, Ashley tells Jade they should get rid of her. Jade agrees, thinking they'll play a cruel prank on her or something along those lines so she and Ashley convince Sara to sneak out of her house one night so the three can hang out. Jade then drives to a secluded warehouse where Ashley takes Sara inside and promptly begins to stab her while Jade waits outside until she hears her friend's screams. When she runs inside, Sara as begging for her life, Jade is in tears, hoping to help her, but her friend quickly dies. Ashley convinces Jade to cover it up, but Jade is feeling immensely guilty and after a few days she tells Sara's mom the truth and eventually the two go to jail.
Now, I know that Lifetime movies that are based on true stories are often over-dramatized and changed for television, which I get, but why change a story so much when the truth is so creepily fascinating? The real Sara, a girl named Skylar Neese, was a victim of completely pre-meditated murder by BOTH of her best friends. The girls had been planning it for months and on the night of the murder they brought along knives, bleach, shovels etc. completely prepared to brutally stab their best friend. They lured her to a place in the woods where the three had smoked pot together, then when her back was turned, the two stabbed her over 50 times. They hid her body under a bunch of leaves and went home like nothing had ever happened. When Skyler's body was eventually found, one of the two who committed the murder even posted a picture on twitter, honoring the friend she had killed. I mean, this story is just plain FREAKY. A group of totally normal friends turned to murder. These girls were clearly sociopaths, the story received such a large amount of media attention for a reason, it was completely insane. According to the girls, they killed her because "they didn't like here anymore." Some believe that their friendship became torn because Skyler witnessed the two having a secret lesbian relationship. So my question is, why change it so much? The real version of what happened sounds like a Lifetime movie within itself, so why alter it for television? I just think the films could've been much more captivating if it closely resembled the real story. In my opinion, there wasn't a need for the changes, they were dull and uninteresting.
The one aspect of the movie that I enjoyed was the story line involving the parents. Ashley's mom being an alcoholic gave the character some depth and an explanation for her madness. Sara's mom's commitment to finding out the truth about her daughter was also interesting, but again, I think that the girl's characters didn't need to be changed so much. I don't understand why they tossed out reality in favor of something less stimulating. All in all, the film had potential, but sorely lacked.
In the film two girls, Jade and Sara, who have been best friends forever, meet a cool new girl named Ashley. The girls invite Ashley to hang out with them and the three become quick friends. It then becomes clear that Ashley and Sara don't see eye to eye and Ashley obviously wants Jade all to herself and after overhearing Sara saying some mean things about her, Ashley tells Jade they should get rid of her. Jade agrees, thinking they'll play a cruel prank on her or something along those lines so she and Ashley convince Sara to sneak out of her house one night so the three can hang out. Jade then drives to a secluded warehouse where Ashley takes Sara inside and promptly begins to stab her while Jade waits outside until she hears her friend's screams. When she runs inside, Sara as begging for her life, Jade is in tears, hoping to help her, but her friend quickly dies. Ashley convinces Jade to cover it up, but Jade is feeling immensely guilty and after a few days she tells Sara's mom the truth and eventually the two go to jail.
Now, I know that Lifetime movies that are based on true stories are often over-dramatized and changed for television, which I get, but why change a story so much when the truth is so creepily fascinating? The real Sara, a girl named Skylar Neese, was a victim of completely pre-meditated murder by BOTH of her best friends. The girls had been planning it for months and on the night of the murder they brought along knives, bleach, shovels etc. completely prepared to brutally stab their best friend. They lured her to a place in the woods where the three had smoked pot together, then when her back was turned, the two stabbed her over 50 times. They hid her body under a bunch of leaves and went home like nothing had ever happened. When Skyler's body was eventually found, one of the two who committed the murder even posted a picture on twitter, honoring the friend she had killed. I mean, this story is just plain FREAKY. A group of totally normal friends turned to murder. These girls were clearly sociopaths, the story received such a large amount of media attention for a reason, it was completely insane. According to the girls, they killed her because "they didn't like here anymore." Some believe that their friendship became torn because Skyler witnessed the two having a secret lesbian relationship. So my question is, why change it so much? The real version of what happened sounds like a Lifetime movie within itself, so why alter it for television? I just think the films could've been much more captivating if it closely resembled the real story. In my opinion, there wasn't a need for the changes, they were dull and uninteresting.
The one aspect of the movie that I enjoyed was the story line involving the parents. Ashley's mom being an alcoholic gave the character some depth and an explanation for her madness. Sara's mom's commitment to finding out the truth about her daughter was also interesting, but again, I think that the girl's characters didn't need to be changed so much. I don't understand why they tossed out reality in favor of something less stimulating. All in all, the film had potential, but sorely lacked.