Miss Meadows

Plot synopsis:
Miss Mary Meadows is a young woman who works as a substitute first-grade elementary school teacher who enjoys taking long walks in her suburban neighborhood, wearing traditional clothing and tap-dancing shoes. Unknown to everyone, she is a secret vigilante who kills local thugs who accost her or when she witnesses them committing crimes. She always carries a small semi-automatic pistol in her purse and speaks in a childlike, innocent manner. She lives by herself in a small house and talks occasionally with her mother over the telephone about what she did during the day.
Investigating the vigilante killings is a local sheriff. He soon meets and develops an attraction to Miss Meadows due to her old-fashioned clothing and style of speech. When he begins to suspect that the woman he finds himself drawn to may be the suspect he is looking for, the sheriff is torn over whether to arrest her or protect her.
When Miss Meadows meets an ex-convict named Skylar, who she learns served time for molesting young children, she begins to fear for her young students' safety. When Miss Meadows approaches and threatens to kill Skylar if he continues hanging around the school or around her kids, he begins stalking her.
It is eventually revealed that all of the telephone conversations that Miss Meadows has been having with her mother over the course of the film are imaginary. As a young girl, Mary Meadows witnessed her mother's murder in a drive-by shooting outside a local church after attending the wedding of a family friend. This traumatic incident left Miss Meadows so emotionally scarred that she withdrew into a fantasy world in which she imagined that her mother was still alive and caused her to go after and kill criminals who she sees as a threat to society.
The various criminals that Miss Meadows kills on-screen include a trucker who tries to abduct her at gunpoint in the opening scene, a young man who committed a mass shooting at a local diner, and the town's Catholic priest who Miss Meadows finds sexually molesting a young boy.
When Miss Meadows learns that she is pregnant after a one-time sexual encounter with the sheriff, she decides to accept his proposal to get married. On the day of the wedding, Skylar kidnaps Heather, one of Miss Meadows's students, from her house, forcing Miss Meadows to go to Skylar's house (wearing her wedding dress) to try to stop him, only to end up a captive herself. When she manages to free Heather and struggle with Skylar over her gun, the sheriff, passing by after leaving the church, sees Heather running from Skylar's house as she shouts for help. Meanwhile, Skylar takes Miss Meadows' gun from her purse, aims it at her and asks, "Do you really think you can save the world? Well, try saving your self first!" Just then, the sheriff arrives and fatally shoots Skylar in the head. Seeing Miss Meadows' gun still clutched in Skylar's hand, he notes "it has his prints now". He and Miss Meadows proceed back to the church.
One year later, Miss Meadows and the Sheriff are married; she still wears her tap shoes and he has taken up the accordion. Now parents to a baby daughter, they are content to be peculiar together. As Miss Meadows prepares to go out before dinner, the sheriff tells her "be careful"; she replies "I always am", leaves the house, and does one final little tap dance on the sidewalk.

Tags: romantic, comedy, murder, flashback

Review:
Some say Holmes plays too young character for her actual age, some say the film isn't funny enough, when it should be a dark comedy and some complain the story is too predictable.
I would say she plays some sort of an everyday super hero, because she fearlessly helps and saves people in need, but she's is depicted without the clichés for a superhero character, and the film is weird enough, in a nice way, to make us think of this without putting it too obvious.
Scenography is also nice, but Katie Holmes in a elegant high waist skirt wearing white gloves and tap-dancing shoes, with cute hair strands and big eyes, this is something completely overwhelmingly cute and sure a reason to love at least a little the film.
Watch it only without prejudice, and you will enjoy Katie Holmes acting, and Miss Meadows' clothing and hairstyles..
Brilliantly directed and executed, Miss Meadows will share it's deserved place in cinema history as a film that stands out on it's own and delivers a message we should never forget.
The opening sequence of the film makes it clear that Miss Meadows (Holmes) is no ordinary school teacher cum vigilante, with victim number one clocked very early after the title sequence.
Holmes does a great job of making Miss Meadows seem the epitome of eccentricity, with, apparently, carefully created, precisely drawn and meticulously manicured manners, even at the point of the kill.Throughout the plot are moments of blissful dialogue intertwined with pauses, telling looks, and, it has to be said, the incongruous, but it does hang together if you stick with it.
The idea of a saccharine sweet, Mary Poppins-esque school teacher leading a double life as a gun-toting vigilante is a great starting off point for a subversive black comedy.
It's not funny enough to work as a black comedy, not interesting or dynamic enough to work as a straight character study/drama, not weird or brave enough to work as a David Lynchian suburban fable and not exciting, action-packed, or shocking enough to work as a cult/horror/fun/late-night/midnight madness type movie.
The result, despite the promising premise, is a very bland, vanilla, and ultimately pretty uninteresting movie.Katie Holmes is perfectly fine in the leading role and seems to pull off this kind of character very well.
The main character is never put in any interesting moral predicaments or forced to make any tough choices, and that's really an essential element in a story like this one.Like I said, I really liked the set up and concept of this movie and even the introduction of the film;s main character--but was ultimately disappointed with the bland and lackluster way they were handled..
Instead of emulating films such as Ms. 45 and Thriller: A Cruel Picture, Miss Meadows has more stylistic and thematic similarities with Heathers, sharing an idealized suburban fairytale aesthetic, with characters and situations which are intentionally exaggerated in order to transcend the reality and escape the logic of a thriller.
From the first seconds, director and screenwriter Karen Leigh Hopkins establishes this stylized atmosphere, portraying miss Meadows as an innocent girl/woman with clothes evoking the '50s, dancing tap while walking over the streets and talking to squirrels, birds and deers who accompany her.
Katie Holmes' performance evokes enough conviction and intensity in order for us to take a vigilante woman whose doubtful mentality doesn't cloud her pure intentions seriously (in this regard, I have to point out the fact that the comparison of Heathers is limited to the visual style and narrative tone, and not to the general quality of the film).
Miss Meadows takes a similar road, but it's more focused on the main character's twisted psychology, leaving the murders as peripheral details which are necessary to the story, but without exploiting violence as a simple bloody spectacle.
In conclusion, Miss Meadows isn't a great film, and some details of the screenplay feel kinda forced, but I found it quite interesting, and I recommend it mainly because of its solid performances and good emotional endorsement.
And besides, this film reminds us of Holmes' talent: her private life darkened her career for a long time, and I wish we keep seeing her in more interesting projects which take advantage of her as an actress, and not as a celebrity..
miss meadows captured that eeriness which I relish but then the raw underbelly of her pain is revealed and with her, writer director, Karen Leigh Hopkins has created one of the great and memorable characters of the screen.
Miss Meadows (Katie Holmes) is a nice prim substitute grade school teacher on the outside but she is something more underneath the facade.
this is your movie.Katie Holmes as Miss Meadows brings the characters sweetness, vulnerability, and cruelty to life.
and yes, there were a couple of rough patches where i thought the script sort of wandered off track, but then, i didn't write it, so it might well have been exactly what they intended and that one scene or two or an exchange of dialogue just didn't resonate with me.i completely understand this genre is not for everyone and the comedy goes right over the heads of many people--too many things seem to do so these days.i apologize for the wandering 'review', but i just think it deserves 2-3 stars more than the IMDb is showing as the average.
Why else would we watch a Katie Holmes movie?So it was with great pleasure last night, that my husband and I got to see the full film.
Starting off with a fun little scene that highlights some Disney princess qualities, humored by some twisted dark comedy, we are soon drawn into the secret little world of Miss Meadows, a primary school substitute teacher who moonlights as a small town vigilante happy to clean up the streets and look pretty doing it!There is enough decent scenes to keep you watching, although while I felt myself drifting off half way through, my husband was wide eyed and hooked.
Personally, I thought it would make an incredible short film.With its description you would imagine some great action and violence, almost like the female version of the Equalizer, but instead and quite obviously in the hands of a lady director, we get a toned down version with more dark humor on kills and a very artsy looking film with plenty of drama.Miss Meadows is not perfect by any means, but it is a fun film to watch and definitely worth a go...Enjoy!.
Obviously, my feelings are going against most of the reviewers here, but that's what films often do, work for some and not others.Katie Holmes portrays Mary, a psychopathic vigilante determined to rid the world of as many evil-doers as possible, and we find out towards the end of the movie what the trauma was to make her like this.
Of course, she's a substitute elementary school teacher and sings in the church choir, but if you are that evil-doer: look out you will be getting lots of lead from that revolver in her purse.James Badge Dale plays the local Sheriff, Mike, who finds out early on that she's the vigilante the department is looking for.
In summary, this film just never registered with me as being a dark black comedy, such as "Sightseers", which I saw last year and the lunacy in that movie appealed to me a lot more than this one..
The cover art is probably a bit misleading as it is more of a day in the life of Miss Meadows rather than a woman going out of her way to kill men type film.
Katie Holmes did a perfect job as Miss Meadows I think the casting was spot on.
Actress/writer/director/producer Karen Leigh Hopkins knows he way around kinky stories and she makes this little tale of a proper elementary school teacher who moonlights as a vigilante work on every level.
It is refreshing to see a little romance mixed with a little madness and Hopkins understands the technique of mixing childhood responses to adult behavior with adult responses to childhood trauma and make it work splendidly well.Tap dancing prim oh-so-correct in manners schoolteacher Miss Meadows (Katie Holmes) is not entirely what she appears.
Things get complicated, however, when Miss Meadows gets romantically entangled with the town sheriff (James Badge Dale – hopefully all his gross tattoos are makeup) and her steadfast moral compass is thrown off, begging the question: "Who is the real Miss Meadows and what is she hiding?" For Miss Meadows, bad behavior is simply unforgivable, as we hear from her 'conversations' with her mother (Jean Smart).Holmes is terrific, pulling off a role that could be unctuous or saccharine or simply not credible.
"Miss Meadows", well portrayed, and humorously so, by Katie Holmes, is straight out of (no, not Compton) that old school, sweet mannered, elementary school teacher mode.
A Modern Day Take with Off-Beat Style that Chooses its Words Cleverly, Succinct, Funny, and to the Point.Katie Holmes is a Wonderfully Bent Schizophrenic Vigilante, a Jekyll and Hyde Character with Hyde's Monster Motivated by Justice.Never Residing in Real-Life there are not so Subtle Hints that none of this is Happening in what could be Conceived as anything but an Expressionistic, Exaggerated Existence.
Even when the Titular Character meets Her Love Interest (James Badge Dale) the Local Law Enforcement, They address each other as Miss Meadows and Sheriff til the Very End. The Entire Beautifully Rendered Movie is Goofy like that and what makes "Miss Meadows" a Sleeper that is Destined for Cult Status is its Bona Fides with much More Going for it than just a "Girls With Guns" Appeal.Writer/Director Karen Leigh Hopkins has Crafted a Decidedly Female Rant with Feminine Machismo Charm..
I'm shocked by the overall low rating of this flick on IMDb..If your into cult classic dark comedies like Heathers this is a movie for you.
Miss meadows held my interest from start to finish with it's vigilante plot well tackling real issues with society and the justice system and still having some romance and character development.
.Katie Holmes flawless acting and a well written story will keep you enthralled throughout this film.Here's to hoping for more films like this featuring quirky vigilante types trying to right the corruption in the modern world..
It's about a lady called Miss Meadows (Katie Holmes), who lives the perfect life as a substitute teacher at an elementary school and spends most of her time caring for her garden.
The main character, Miss Meadows, was the most annoying thing about the film and the far fetched plot just made things worse.
Weird and not that great!Round-Up: Katie Holmes, 36, is mostly known for her marriage to Tom Cruise, than her actual acting.
Budget: $3million Worldwide Gross: N/AI recommend this movie to people who are into their drama/thrillers about a woman who is a school teacher by day and a vigilante killer whose seeking for justice on the side.
5 minutes into this movie and I wanted Miss Meadows to kill me next.
In trailer form this seemed like a role tailor-made for Katie Holmes (who also executive produces), but as time went on the magic wore off and she seemed too mature to be playing a person who is possibly just passing as someone much younger than she appears.
I never believed that Katie Holmes was as nice as her character was supposed to be and it always seemed like she was putting on a show rather than being a genuine person.
Still, for what little vigilante justice was doled out by the titular Miss Meadows, it wasn't too bad in that regard.
Miss Meadows (Katie Holmes) could have had more bad guys to confront, that alone would have brought on many more challenges and situations for the main character.
The basic concept looks like it tries to combine Cynthis Rothrock movie characters with Mary Poppins and a little bit of Norman Bates, yet the story ends just as just another under developed effort at dark comedy.
I really enjoyed this little gem.it's a departure for Katie Holmes and she is more than up to the challenge.she is utterly convincing in her role of mild mannered teacher/vigilante.you could really sympathise with her character even if you feel you shouldn't.but she also has a lot to work with.the acting of her co stars is very good here.and I thought the writing was very good especially the dialogue.i also liked the look of the film,the use of colour.i found the film to be unpredictable and I didn't see the end(as subtle as it was) coming at all.when you add it all up,it's a very well done film.i give Miss Meadow an 8/10.
Did not expect Katie Holmes to do a good job like this..
STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning Miss Meadows (Katie Holmes) is a gentle mannered, affable young woman who lives on a quiet suburban American street, and minds her business as best she can.
But then she shakes her life up a bit by starting a relationship with the town sheriff, and when she falls pregnant, it unlocks a chain of events from her past that sets her on a collision course with a convicted child molester who's been sent to live in the area.Once in a while, there comes the odd off-beat film that no one quite knows what to do with or make of, and that seems to be the case with Miss Meadows, Karen Leigh Hopkins's first theatrical feature in over fifteen years.
I've always liked what little of Katie Holmes' work I've seen.
I really don't want to hate on Katie Holmes, but fact is, it was her performance that made many scenes of this movie unbearable.
James Badge Dale tried to save the day and actually did save some parts (like the hilarious dance scene), but not the whole movie.
I recommend this movie only for absolute Katie Holmes fans or at least people who are able to completely shut her out, which could become difficult because you know...
Katie Holme's as executive producer stars as a charming but oddly pert, proper, but with a secret that develops into almost fanciful character, one of the most unique in film history.
Katy Holmes looks the part and clearly gives her sincerest effort but with hardly a shred of character development and an overuse of incoherent dialogue, she simply wasn't given the tools needed to make the role shine.
Miss Meadows (Katie Holmes) is an elementary school teacher with an apparent heart of gold.
Then she starts a relationship with the town's sheriff (James Badge Dale) and her whole life gets turned upside down which leads her to face up to the past as the inevitability of the future looms ever nearer.Now I rather enjoyed this 'quirky' film, it has a sort of charm and is very stylish – especially Miss Meadows – she even has 'clothes on sex', but is has been criticised for being right wing.
Katie Holmes stars as Miss Meadows, who seems to bring the 1950's back with saddle shoes, tap dancing, classic cars, classic dress, & classic values.
Katie Holmes portrayed an school teacher vigilante who leaves viewers wanting more.
another thing that really caught my eye in this film was the development of Katie Holmes' character.
Katie Holmes was fantastic and pulled her character off like no other could.
(no offense to them) but I wish there was a bit more craft to what she does, perhaps in part 2 (fingers crossed for a sequel) Apparently she moved around a lot because she kills often, but in the movie it didn't seem like she was bringing enough experience to the table in terms of her character, KH herself is a great actress though.
Katie Holmes and James Badge Dale feel good together as they find love in a damaged world.
Liked It Enough To Buy It. God bless Katie Holmes and all the Miss Meadows out there.
Anyone who saw this movie and described it as dark comedy is probably one of the Goats and needs to sit down for tea with Miss Meadows.
"Miss Meadows" is a really strange movie.
In the first scene, Miss Meadows is skipping along in her ridiculous outfit, and a dirty old man talks to her as if he's trying to lure a child into his truck (with Katie looking over 40).
Yet, for a child molester, Skylar is far more interested in Miss Meadows than the kids.The entire movie is unbelievable, from beginning to end.
Maybe this stiff, unimaginative film was a perfect fit for a stiff, unimaginative actress like Katie Holmes.
So okay, 3 minutes into this movie, we have Miss Meadows, this strange woman in her mid 30s who skips along the street in a dress a five year old would wear.She tap dances and is so happy.
If it had just been Miss Meadows, I might have watched a bit more but it was the presence of the cop I found really annoying.If a movie hasn't grabbed me in the first 20 minutes it loses my attention.Goodbye!
Miss Meadows (Katie Holmes) is described as a "Mary Poppins vigilante." She is very polite and precise in her speech.
This is a quite different type of movie for Katie Holmes.
It opens with Katie Holmes as Miss Meadows walking and tap dancing along the sidewalk in her usual little-girl clothes when a rough- looking man pulls up in his pickup truck, opens the door, and makes lewd invitations.
The DVD also has a nice 5-minutes Q&A with Holmes about her role and the movie in general.SPOILERS: After the opening killing, and she and the Sheriff begin to be a couple, they end up in bed in a very humorous love-making scene, which seems like it might be her very first time.