A Deadly Adoption

Plot synopsis:
Robert Benson (Will Ferrell) sits in his luxurious garden on a sunny afternoon chatting to his friends, with his baby in his arms. He is an author and his friends agree that his bestselling books have helped them manage their money. They toast him and wish him well on his journey as a "financial guru".Robert's pregnant wife, Sarah (Kristen Wiig) calls to him from the jetty at the bottom of the garden, "Hey! Let's take the boat out!" Robert tells his friends that the dock is rotten. Sarah is insistent and she leans back against the jetty railing which gives way. She falls, in slow motion, into the water. Robert (in slow motion) dashes into the water after her and they disappear below the surface. Suddenly bubbles arise and he emerges from the water with Sarah in his arms.As his friends stand around and watch, he pleads for her to wake up. He performs perfunctory mouth-to-mouth which appears to do nothing. He places his hand on her heavily pregnant stomach with another "Please, Sarah!", which appears to revive her.An ambulance drives her to the hospital. Robert walks into her hospital room and she shakes her head. "I'm so sorry," he cries.Opening credits begin to roll over a bird's eye view journey over a dark river and a wintery pine forest."Five years later" appears on the screen as we pan up from Storm Lake to the Benson's dark, forlorn house. The remains of the dismantled jetty are strewn across the bottom of the garden.We are introduced to Robert's office. He is typing busily and we see certificates of his philanthropic endeavours from 2010 and 2011. He is interrupted by his New York agent, Debbie. "My word, the recluse!" she exclaims. Robert discusses his desire to help people with his new book. He confirms that he is "clean and sober", when she asks him how everything else is going. However he opens his desk drawer to a large bottle of alcohol, and sighs.Sarah is at an outdoor local farmer's market full of happy, good-looking families. She is selling her organic, refined-sugar-free pies and honey. Her assistant Charlie (Bryan Safi) confirms that all the gluten-free produce went fast. "Either this town's getting hip, or it actually tastes good." Sully Benson (Alyvia Alyn Lind) runs up to her mother with Robert not far behind. It is Sully's birthday and Sarah gives her a new bike. Robert looks aggrieved and complains that they had decided to wait another year before giving her a bike. "We've talked about this, you know exactly what this will do to her blood sugar level!" he declares. He relents in the face of his daughter's excitement.At Sully's birthday party, Sarah complains to her friend Julia (Antonia Stout) that Robert babies his daughter and is obsessed with checking her blood sugar levels. "Something's different", she says. She confirms that Robert hasn't had a drink in 6 months. Julia asks how the baby search is going and Sarah is excited that the agency has a new birth mother for them to meet. She thinks that another baby will bring "the old Robert" back. Julia says she remembers the old Robert. "He used to dance around this kitchen to corny old music!"Later in bed, Robert and Sarah talk about the day. Robert says he is distracted by his book deadline and his anxiety around the day of Sarah's accident. "Robert, stop beating yourself up. You know what happens," Sarah warns. Sarah hopes that meeting the new birth mother will improve matters. Sarah and Robert cuddle.The next day Sarah is watering the garden when a car pulls up. A lithe leg in high heels emerges from the car. Bridgette Gibson (Jessica Lowndes) appears. She is doe-eyed with a dewy complexion and long luxurious locks. Her white slip covers her large, pregnant belly. The adoption agency contact, Ellen (Debra Christofferson) introduces Bridgette, who is eager to see the Benson's huge luxurious house.Bridgette and Sarah chat nervously and Sarah shows her a photo of their daughter. Robert meets Bridgette and appears taken with her. When Bridget extends her hand in greeting she drops the photo and the glass breaks. She is flustered and apologies profusely. Bridgette says she lives in Idaho Falls and had to drop out because she couldn't afford it. She says she read one of his books: "Debt: Not just a four letter word" which preaches fiscal responsibility. She says she is living in a shelter, and that it would probably be better if she could rest a little more. She is carrying a boy and is 6 months pregnant. The Bensons look at her approvingly as she declares her love for her baby, and her desire to afford a house like theirs and to give him a life like the Bensons could.As Bridgette leaves she scolds Scully for not wearing a helmet. "Let's keep that head safe so you can grow up smart like your mom and dad," says Scully gently. The Bensons are concerned about Bridgette living in a shelter. They invite her to live with them until the baby is born.Robert broods over Sarah's accident. Later that evening, they decide that they like Bridgette. "If she's read one of my books she can't be that bad," affirms Robert.Bridgette arrives to her new home in a flowery slip. Sarah shows her the guest room. "It's nice, it's so big!" says Bridgette happily. Sully runs into the room. Sully asks her how the bike riding is going. "My daddy won't let me take off my training wheels," she says sadly. "Is that a baby in there?" Sully asks, looking at Bridgette's belly. Bridgette says it is Sully's baby brother and asks her if she wants to feel it. Sully shyly declines. Bridgette asks for a bowl of ice-cream. Sarah says that because Sully is diabetic they don't keep sweets in the house. "Just to warn you, I'm one of those organic people," says Sarah. Charlie arrives and meets Bridgette. "I like her!" he exclaims.Later that evening Bridgette texts someone, "I'm here." She sighs and looks at photos of the family. She sees a magazine with Robert and Sarah on the cover, and rips Sarah's photo away. ""Oh Robert, what a mess," she says, rubbing her belly.Bridgette comes down to breakfast in a tiny camisole and shorts. They discuss plans for the day. Bridgette asks if she can head down to the dock to read. The Bensons look at each other awkwardly and say that the dock is off limits. Sarah and Sully head into town and Bridgette stays at home while Robert works.Robert's agent presses him to go on a book tour to sell his new books. She doesn't understand why he refuses to go on one since his last book tour 6 months previously. He "blacked out last time" and doesn't want a repeat of his boozy book tour. Bridgette knocks on his door and nervously asks him for sunblock. She bashfully says that she must be bothering him, but he assures her he is just used to being in his own Writer's world. "It must get hard, Robert," she says demurely. "Hard?" he asks nervously. "It is sometimes," he admits. "Alone, all the time," she replies.Bridgette and Robert head into the store room. She hides the sunblock behind a bottle. "I don't see it," she says. He reaches over her should in triumph. "Found it!" She turns around quickly into his arms and they share a too-close-for-comfort moment together. She looks up into his eyes disarmingly. "If you need anything else, batteries, lighter fluid, it will be in here," he says uncomfortably.Back at the farm stall, Charlie asks Sarah about Bridgette. "You just leave her in the house with him?" Charlie wonders. "She's six months pregnant," Sarah scoffs. "Some men like that!" says Charlie, and acknowledges that though he might be gay, he knows what men like. "Although knowing Robert, he's probably hiding in his attic too afraid to even talk to her."Robert steps outside onto the patio to see Bridgette sleeping lazily in the sunshine. Her breasts heave gently, and she opens her eyes to see Robert staring at her. Bridgette says she is too tired to go into town. Sarah is disappointed to see Robert's text letting her know they are staying at the house.Later that day, Bridgette argues harshly with someone on the phone while in a coffee shop. "These things take time! Would you stop freaking out!" Charlie bumps into her, and she softens completely once he reminds her of his friendship with the Bensons. When he asks to feel her belly, she declines awkwardly. Charlie watches her walk away with a questioning look in his eyes.Later at dinner they discuss the town. Bridgette agrees with Robert that she prefers a smaller quiet lake. She tells a story about an ex-boyfriend who made her sit on the front of his large boat in a bikini "just to show me off." Sarah talks about her relationship with Charlie and how he encouraged her to expand her business. Robert says he hopes to retire. "Sarah can work and I'll stay at home with the two kids." "That sounds perfect," says Bridgette wistfully. Bridgette shares with the family that she is overjoyed her baby will have such a perfect home. Sarah says that she, too, will have a perfect life one day. "I hope it's in a town like this with a family like yours," Bridgette replies. That night Bridgette watches over Sully as she sleeps.The next morning Bridgette teaches Sully to ride without training wheels. She lets her go straight into the road as car drives by. Sully screams and disappears out of sight. She runs into a greasy looking tattooed hunk. Bridgette knows the man, Dwayne. She tells him he has to wait for her at the cabin, and leave straight away. As he leaves, Bridgette soothes Sully. "Men like that, you gotta be careful, Sully. Most of them just want to use you." She tells Sully to keep the encounter with Dwayne a secret.Later Sarah and Charlie agree that Robert has been "a little off" lately. She sends Charlie to the store for coffee.Bridgette and Robert sit watching the lake. He tells her about Sarah's accident and the loss of their child. "The worst part is, I blame her. If she just hadn't acted so foolishly. Sometimes I think I may never love her the way I used to. It's funny, I've never told anyone that before." He agrees that he might feel safe around Bridgette. He asks her if she is happy. She think she will be happy, "soon". "You really are a strange girl," Robert muses. They chuckle.Charlie, on his coffee run, sees Bridgette and Dwayne arguing in the street next to his green pick-up truck.Sarah and Charlie sit by the fire in the evening. Charlie blames Sarah for leaving chocolates in the pantry. "You know the dangers of diabetic ketoacidosis!" he accuses. Sarah says that Robert has to trust Sully. "Even since you got back from your last book tour you have completely shut down! It is suffocating! What is going on?" Sarah demands.The next day Bridgette prepares to have a shower, Sully rushes into the room and sees her in her underwear. Bridgette is wearing a fake pregnancy belly. She assures Sully that some women don't show when they're pregnant and she wants the Bensons to believe her that she really is pregnant. Bridgette makes Sully promise not to tell, "otherwise something really bad is going to happen".The next day, Bridgette asks Sarah if she can take Sully to the park. "Robert's idea. Wanted to check w/ you :)" Bridgette tells Robert that Sarah asked Sully to take her to the farm stand. Robert agrees, but looks suspicious. He goes to her room, which is vacant. He feels her silky pink camisole. He finds the Debt book Bridgette mentioned earlier ("Dare to Save"). It has an inscription: "To Joni - Don't stop Daring. Robert".He flashes back to his last book tour at a busy bar. He is drunk and a red-head asks her to sign his book to her, Joni Mathers. They run out into the rain laughing and kissing. "Not here", she says and takes him to her motel room. After they have sex Robert sits with his head in his hands. "It'll be our little secret," she says. Lightning flashes and we see that Joni is, in fact. Bridgette.Robert rushes to Sarah to ask her where Sully is. They call the police. Robert is asked why he went into Bridgette's room and why she might want to take Sully. He says he is just concerned and has no idea. Sarah thinks that Robert is overreacting. The police show the adoption agency's picture of Bridgette to the Bensons. She is a different woman and not the Bridgette they know. They realise they have been duped.Bridgette/Joni drives to the cabin in the woods with Sully. "We'll get crazy money," smiles Joni.That evening, Robert admits his infidelity to Sarah. "I did something I can never take back. And it consumes me every day. I know you hate me, but I hate myself more." Sarah denies hating him for lying. "I hate you for endangering our child!"In the morning, Sully wakes up groggily as Joni watches her from the doorway. Joni has transformed: she wears heavy make-up has ratty hair extensions and is dressed in a very revealing outfit. Joni says that Sully's parents had to go and help a sick friend. Sully says that she has a stomach ache. Joni realises that she forgot Sully's diabetic medicine. Dwayne says that his brother had the same condition: "Low blood sugar. Just give her a couple candy bars". Dwayne heads into town to find candy. He tells Joni to call Robert and demand ransom.Charlie is at the police station and informs them about the fight he saw Joni having with Dwayne. Charlie can't remember anything much about the car. He describes Dwayne in detail.Robert searches through his emails to Ellen, the adoption agent. He hasn't heard anything from her. Charlie spots Dwayne in town. He follows him to the lake cabin, and calls Sarah along the way. The call breaks up.Charlie snoops around the house and is knocked unconscious by Dwayne. Dwayne just wants to leave. Joni wants to stick to her plan. Dwayne and Joni take Charlie out to the forest and shoot him.Slow motion montage of missing child posters, and sad folk music.The police tell Sarah that Ellen has been murdered. They show her a picture of Dwayne, and tell her he is wanted in Texas in connection with two murders. The policeman asks Sarah if it possible that Joni and Robert are together. Sarah is speechless.In the cabin, Dwayne is concerned that Joni is going to meet Robert. Sully is still sick. Dwayne fights with Joni. "You're not keeping the kid! I'm in this for the money," he says. Dwayne is not happy.Joni confronts Sarah in her garage. Joni reveals that she was 3 months pregnant with Robert's child. She lost the baby and was furious when she saw Robert and his family on the TV. "I hate you for stealing him away from me," she growls. They fight and Sarah is overpowered. Joni puts an unconscious Sarah in the drivers seat and pipes the running car's petrol exhaust into the car, in an attempt to suffocate Sarah.Joni finds Robert and attempts to persuade hi to run away with her. Robert demands to know where Sarah is and pushes Joni away. "Robert, you're acting very strange. Don't you get it? We have everything ok? We can start our lives together. This is what we always wanted. You told me you were unhappy." Robert tries to call the police and Joni shoots him in the arm. Robert tries to convince Joni to take him to Sully. He lunges for the gun and it goes off. Robert falls to the ground. Joni runs away.Back at the cabin, Dwayne realises that their plan was about Robert all along. He refuses to let Sully go with Joni. Joni shoots Dwayne. "I'm your new mommy now," Joni assures Scully.Back at the hose Robert comes to and rescues Sarah from the garage. He walks out of the slowly opening garage with Sarah in his arms to the sound of heroic trumpets. He lays her on the floor. "Sarah, breathe!" he demands as he gently touches her face. Sarah tells Robert about the cabin.Robert is determined to rescue Scully. "The only other way out of Storm Lake is across Mackinaw Bridge." "Robert, you, you can't," says Sarah faintly. Robert looks up, determined.Robert powers his boat down the lake, his wedding band gleaming in the early dawn light. He wears a look of grim determination. A distressed Sully and erratic Joni drive out of town. Dwayne is found by the police and arrested.Sully looks at Joni, crying and sick. Robert motors down the lake, parks his boat and stands in the middle of the bridge. Joni appears in Dwayne's pick-up and tries to mow down Robert. Sully squeals and pulls the steering wheel. They crash. Sully runs towards Robert. Joni interrupts their reunion angrily and the Bensons stare down the barrel of her gun. "You used me, Robert. You are never going to use me again," she declares. She demands Sully return to her. Robert whispers something into Scully's ear. "I trust you, ok?" Robert says to Scully.Scully walks hesitantly towards Joni. She stops and dives off the edge of the bridge. Robert follows her. They swim to the motor boat and struggle to start the engine. Joni takes careful aim and is about the pull the trigger. We hear a shot ring out and see a bullet wound on Joni's shoulder. Sarah stands at the end of the bridge, having mortally wounded Joni. Joni falls, in slow motion, into the water.Six months later, Scully is riding on her bike without training wheels. The sun is shining. Gospel music is playing. Sarah and Robert are in the kitchen. Robert looks on adoringly as Sarah rolls out some pastry. "She sure loves that bike. I told her she could ride it into town tomorrow," says Robert. "Look at you," smiles Sarah. "Not a care in the world!" Robert acknowledges that she can't be a baby forever. "At some point you just have to trust her."An upbeat song comes on the radio. "I love this song!" Robert exclaims. He turns up the volume. He invites Sarah to dance with him. Scully skips into the kitchen and dances with her parents. The dancing goes on. They keep dancing. Sarah boogies. Robert pretends to play the trumpet. Sarah does the twist. They continue to dance.They fade away and the words "inspired by a true story" appear.

Tags: murder, flashback

Review:
After much speculation it turned out the movie wasn't at all a comedy/parody, although some moments could've been interpreted in a funny way(the garage door opening being one of them), it is actually a Lifetime tribute with essential elements of their movies that have been popular with its audience: a life-altering accident, a fresh start after couple of months/years(it occurs twice in perfect sync at the beginning and ending of the movie), alcoholic husband, naive partner/wife, dark past that gets everyone in trouble, a crazy ex-lover, best friend who knows too much for his own good, phone that stops working in a crucial moment, police getting involved all too late, saving the day ending and lets not forget the classic handgun shooting happening between almost all characters in a row.For a Lifetime casual fan this will a great movie of their beloved genre full with all the dramatic bits that they enjoyed throughout the years involving 2 A+ listed actors who attracted attention, in order to celebrate their 25th anniversary of hilarious clichés.For non-lifetime viewers this will be a new and enjoyable experience which they could find funny in some scenes given the 2 comedy Gods involved in it, but you need to have seen at least 1 Lifetime movie to understand the replicated elements that are included in this anniversary.
Its not a parody per-se because they didn't had to exaggerate the already overly-dramatized bits which are usually found in Lifetime movies and which some of their casual viewers find hilarious, its simply a replication of those but bunched together in a single movie.10/10.
If what my wife tells me is correct, A Deadly Adoption actually has practically the same plot as another Lifetime movie not too long ago - a pregnant woman with nefarious intentions gets her way between a husband, wife and their child and wreaks havoc while seemingly about an adoption scenario.
This is, I'm sure, intentional on the parts of executive producers Will Ferrell and Adam McKay; they not too long ago made Casa de mi Padre, a stone-faced take-off on Spanish tela-novellas with Ferrell playing Mexican full-tilt, and Wiig herself was in a series on IFC, The Spoils of Babylon, which was also a take on soaps (the writer of this film, Andrew Steele, was one of the writers for Babylon).But what a strange, entertaining beast this is.
One may go into A Deadly Adoption with Ferrell and Wiig at the top of the cast and wonder what's up, if this is going to lampoon Lifetime movies.
There are lines and scenarios that are very funny, such as referring to the main couple's daughter's condition: "You know the dangers of diabetic ketoacidosis!" Or the fact that Ferrell's character, Robert Benson (like Bob Benson from Mad Men, I wonder, maybe just a coincidence), is now a reformed alcoholic who used to go on benders during his book tours...
But all of the other actors are the people who you would usually see in a Lifetime movie, and the director, Rachel Goldenberg, is not a Hollywood pro exactly.
Steele has more of a foot in comedy, as a writer and collaborator on SNL, though he, the director, and the actors do a remarkable thing: they completely commit to the scenario, the drama around this crazy 'new woman' who comes in to turn everything upside down and cause violence and kidnapping and affairs revealed and shocks galore.
And I wouldn't want it any other way.I thought about other made-for-TV cable movies that come out, like the Sharknado movies and the like on the SyFy channel, which probably have about the same self-awareness as A Deadly Adoption.
Ferrel, Wiig and company aren't out to make anything cheap or silly here (though maybe the last scene is goofy, perhaps just like a Lifetime movie).
The funny thing is, because Ferrell and Wiig and co-star Jessica Lowdnes play everything completely straight - and Ferrell and Wiig are better actors than a Lifetime movie should ever deserve - and it's all believable, sometimes verging on maybe, kinda, sorta being dramatic in a *good* way...
until one realizes what they're saying, more often than not, is absurd, as are the situations they get themselves in.The tropes are all recognizable if one is into Lifetime movies, and that's also the idea, from the happy white family and the "bad" girl that comes in to make things chaotic.
It's not something that can be easily parsed into 'Oh, it's just a parody' or 'Oh, it's actually just another Lifetime movie with these actors'.
Lifetime wanted to make fun of itself by doing a very typical Lifetime movie starring two comedic kingpins, but play it deadpan so that nobody will actually know what's what.
Although there are a few moments that seem to be a parody of a Lifetime movie, mostly it is just played straight and the result is just a really poorly written plot orchestrated by two very talented actors.
Ferrell and Wiig play this straight and that is what makes this work.
This is no spoof and Kristen Wiig and Will Ferrell are merely playing a standard Lifetime script totally straight.
It can have a life of it's own as bad Lifetime but it's not really bad enough.I don't know why Ferrell and Wiig did this movie.I will say, however, that Lifetime, had a coup with this because it is has created a stir in social media and that may have been the outcome desired all along..
However, whether the complete film is meant as a parody, satire, comedy, or straight drama, it's pretty darn bad.
Kristin Wiig is actually a very good straight actor but if she's really going legitimate here, she can't overcome what she has to work with.
I know he's trying "to take the stuff (word prohibited" but he's a seriously bad actor, in a so far dull movie.
Great movie - first time watching an entire Lifetime movie!
Quality directing, producing, casting, all around good judgement for everyone who was involved with putting this film together.This movie was an excellent treat and I thank Lifetime, for what felt like a night out at the movies for free..
If you watch Lifetime movies of the week you can guess they tend to be overwrought, supposedly true life melodramas with a cookie cutter story.The script and acting are no great shakes.A Deadly Adoption could had gone for the parody route like Scary Movie, Austin Powers or Naked Gun films.
Will Ferrell plays a financial management guru with a string of successful books.Kristen Wiig is his wife who sells organic food in market stalls in their small town.
Some years later as the story progresses they meet Jessica Lowndes who is homeless and giving her baby up for adoption however she is not all sweet and innocent and her path has crossed with Ferrell before.Ferrell and Wiig play it straight.
In a sense Ferrell and Wiig just made a better Lifetime movie than Lifetime normally manage to do.
So I was a little bit disappointed when I got around to actually watching 'A Deadly Adoption' only to find a slightly above average movie by TV standards.
Her role wasn't written overly well and didn't give her a lot to do, however the scenes she did have she handled well and overshadowed Ferrell in the acting sense I'd have to say.There's a lot of "by the book" writing involved and the clichés are a little bit overbearing at times (ie.
Kristen Wig is only a little better.I know it is a Lifetime movie and we expect less because the plots are predictable, the acting less than stellar but we usually adjust because we know the actors aren't A listers.Will Ferrell is great as a comedic actor and one of his best movies was "Elf".
I'm not sure what this a was trying to be, I think like most people with Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig attached I went into this expecting a parody of Lifetime movies.
The problem is the parody is missing so all this is, is a Lifetime movie.Yes every cliché is used and emphasized just a little bit more (slow motion tragedy scenes, overbearing mood music, bright happy outdoor scenes, the gay best friend etc) and I did laugh a couple of times (Robert's little indiscretion while drunk off his ass during his book tour, "based on a true story" tagged on at the end) but this is not funny ha, ha like you'd be expecting.
Wiig and Ferrell play it straight up until and for the most part including the final super HEA musical scene.I guess really the only parody thing this has going for it is how predictable it is; story, music situations.
Ferrell plays Robert Benson a successful (bearded) author, wearer of bad khaki pants and husband to Sarah of organic food fame, Together they have a daughter 'Sully' and are expecting another when tragedy strikes (in slow motion) and Sarah loses the baby.
Will Ferrell's version of dramatic acting looked like he was trying to work out a math problem in his head.
What I could not process was watching Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig attempting to do drama, and Lifetime drama at that.At first, you would think they lowered themselves to sign on to this crap.
It's a parody, after all, and Ferrell makes the mistake of playing it too straight, apparently believing that being good at being a bad actor will make it funny.
I figured it was meant to be a parody on a lifetime movie, however, was the content or the waste of time the joke?
You could think otherwise when you see that Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig are playing in it but don't get fooled.
Looks like he wants to play it straight so who knows, might be good.
Now I Enjoy will ferrell's movies (anchorman being the one), but this lame, disjointed, disappointed and mean-spirted spoof of lifetime TV movie is so incredibly hapless and silly that it makes you think twice about getting out of your seat, farrell and wiig playing a couple who want to adopt a child with deadly results, they kill and many more, the whole TV movie is embarrassing, farrell is completely wasted here, the teleplay is a mess and brings us nothing to work it, the writing is very cheesy and predicable and everything else falls flat on it's face, now i enjoy TV movies with suspense and all, but this thing is dull and not that good at all, a deadly adoption is a pointless mess and another candidate for one of the years worst Television.
Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig, like a number of comedians and writers associated with Saturday Night Live, have been intrigued by the original movies produced the cable channel Lifetime.
Instead, viewers who come to this 90-minute TV movie due to the announced presence of two prominent American sketch comedians are likely to be disappointed by how seriously it's all played.Will Ferrell plays a money-management guru who writes mass-market books on financial responsibility.
Jessica Lowndes plays a pregnant woman who is down on her luck, and wants to give her baby up for adoption to this family so it has a better chance at life.
The plot then enters standard TV movie fare with gunplay, kidnapping, and a police investigation.All of this is played straightforwardly, with the only humour being the unintentionally risible elements that are found in every Lifetime original movie: bad stunts, hammy acting, a small-town America where everyone is financially secure and gets along swimmingly, with none of the social and economic issues that we know millions of Americans must grapple with daily.Now, if you are aware of the flaws inherent in what Lifetime does, then this production with two famous actors, who do an excellent job of hiding their long experience in comedy, may make you chuckle.
Middle-aged writer Will Ferrell (as Robert Benson) and his attractive blonde wife Kristen Wiig (as Sarah) are expecting a second child.
Since this is a "Lifetime TV Movie", you can expect things will not go smoothly for the growing family...Getting a vision of Ferrell, at home, watching "Lifetime" TV Movies involving sexy young surrogate mothers who seemingly go psycho.
So, you have an average "Lifetime" TV movie.***** A Deadly Adoption (2015-06-20) Rachel Lee Goldenberg ~ Will Ferrell, Jessica Lowndes, Kristen Wiig, Jake Weary.
A deadly adoption is a Drama with some Mystery/Thriller elements thrown in there, and stars Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig in roles that you would not be used to seeing them in.
And i would have to say they did a pretty good job in these serious roles, Will Ferrell especially i thought for the most part got me to see him as a serious character rather than the funny guy, so i wouldn't mind seeing him do more of this.
After that you start to get a little bit of mystery and before you know it the tone flips again and you are almost watching a completely different movie.
This was just a very weird movie, i'm not sure what the director was trying to show but it looked like they just got it all wrong.
Apart from some good convincing acting from Ferrell and Wiig, and some intriguing mystery themes in the second act, the whole film was a complete mess and it made it hard to stay interested for long periods of time.
It pokes fun at Lifetime movies: the moronic plots, the stereotypical characters, and the predictably happy endings (the painfully long happy dancing at the end subtly asks the audience, "did you catch the joke?") How many times had you asked yourself, "WTF?" An author's book signing tour becomes a debaucherous drunken spree, where he scores as much tail as a rock star?
(WTF?) Other reviewers caught most of the funny moments that I recall, like the slow-motion heroic garage door opening scene, the intense look of concern and determination on the slow-motorboating Ferrel's face, the psycho's high heels following her off the bridge as she plunged to her death from her fatal shoulder wound...
I came in late in the movie, where the family was eating breakfast, but by the time the scene with Ferrel and the girl in his study took place, I knew from the dialog that the film was tongue-in-cheek: "IT must get HARD sometimes..." she says provocatively.
Looked forward to seeing Wiig and Ferrel either in a spoof or in serious roles.
There's a reason I dislike Lifetime movies..The ONLY reason I even watched this movie was because Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig was in it.
"A Deadly Adoption," in my opinion, found that perfect formula.The film looks and feels like a real Lifetime Original (only with far better acting) and in that realism is where the film becomes very funny.
This Lifetime movie never sits there and childishly mocks these specific types of film like you'd get from a "Scary Movie" or equally poorly produced parody.
Not to mention, it's just cool that both Kristen Wiig and Will Ferrell are refusing to allow their comedic talents to become stagnate and repetitive and it's pretty neat that Lifetime has a good enough sense of humor about itself and allowed this all happen..
This TV movie was a bit of a strange one, it was advertised is if it was a serious dramatic film, but you cannot ignore the fact that two comedy stars are in the leading roles, which made you question whether this film is a joke, I had to watch and decide for myself.
Ferrell and Wiig are reasonably good at playing serious, Lowndes is too soapy to be believable as an antagonistic bitch, this apparently is supposed to be a humorous imitation of those late 80s and 90s films with twisted affairs and evil characters playing happy families, it does have moments inspired by Fatal Attraction or The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, but it is not quite executed as well as it could have been, you can see the funny side of it though as it is awash with clichés, not a completely terrible parody psychological thriller.
It's got A list movie stars like Will Ferrell and Kristin Wiig in a lifetime thriller.
An evil woman scams a couple into thinking she's giving up her baby for them to adopt.Will Ferrell rising from being shot and going after the bad guys is just laugh out loud.
I'm convinced that it was meant to be a parody.I'm married so I've watched more of the Lifetime adoption/nanny/dream-spouse gone bad movies than I'd like to admit.
When compared to other movies in this genre, this one is actually less cheesy, but with the main characters being played by Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig, I was never able to shake the feeling that something hilarious was going to happen.
Somewhere in the middle of the movie there is an off handed comment from a minor character that Will Ferrell's character doesn't dance to silly music like he used to.
This is also written to bring closure to those who have spent the two hours watching it.The overall plot was used previously in another Lifetime movie no doubt.
Sitting through a real Lifetime movie is difficult work at times.
If anyone is looking to kill two hours, this flick will do the trick, just like any real Lifetime movie, but with the added subtext of some extremely subtle humor..
When I saw the trailers for "Deadly Adoption" I thought it was interesting that Will Farrell and Kristen Wiig were taking on dramatic roles instead of their normal comedic roles.
I give the movie a 6.5 just for Wiig's, Jessica Lowndes and Alyvia Alyn Lind's acting.
(I thought that was a mistake.) I got through 3/4 of this movie thinking it was a worse-than-normal LifeTime movie.However, when Will Ferrell is kneeling over his unconscious wife and the cheesy music kicks in and he looks up and stares, it hit me.