The Boy Next Door (2008 TV Movie) User Reviews

not well written

[SnoopyStyle · 4/10 · 3 August 2016]

San Francisco novelist Sara Wylde (Dina Meyer) is having writer's block. She rents a lakehouse in the country and is taken with young Michael Ellory next door. There's the nosy house owner Marie, the bookstore couple, and the coffee house guy. Michael's father Edward is a rich and powerful man. Michael turns up dead after a date with the mayor's wife Nicole Warner. The police suspects Sara who had been spying on Michael.

The guy is not really a boy. She's older than him but there is nothing scandalous. He looks like he's in his 20's and with no great charisma. I was actually quite relieved when he turns up dead. It could be an interesting murder mystery but the characters are not well-written. The cops are too dense. Sara is not that quick either. One would expect better from a mystery murder writer who thinks about police crime dramas all day long. Cory Monteith has a minor role. This is not that good.

A paint-by-numbers made-for-TV movie

[ulrick · 8 November 2009]

This movie is a low budget made-for-TV movie produced by the Canadian movie networks. I've seen it commercial-free on The Movie Network, but it nevertheless had regular fade-to-blacks intended for commercial breaks.

It is a generic movie of the week designed for woman cable channels, without any discernible effort or deviation from the formula. You probably have already seen this story a dozen times on cable.

Sara is a beautiful and single novelist who lives an ideal life in an ideal television small town. A murder happens and she becomes the prime suspect. As per formula, the Sara will try to solve the mystery, and will be lightly threatened by someone who wants her off their track.

Sara will of course struggle to convince the good looking and well meaning policeman who's investigating the case that she's in danger and being framed.

As you must know from the formula, the actual murderer will turn out to be either a friend, the other woman, or the policeman, and you do not really get the clues to solve this mystery. It just sort of happens.

Everything is per formula. Everyone is middle class, single, beautiful, and a little stiff. Everything is clean and new. There is no violence or serious conflict, and in this case no romance. This movie will not offend or interest anyone, it is strictly a time filler for cable.

The Dina Meyer show

[Maciste_Brother · 2/10 · 25 July 2009]

Watch Dina Meyer walk.

Watch Dina Meyer work on her laptop.

Watch Dina Meyer talk on the phone.

Watch Dina Meyer driving.

Watch Dina Meyer crossing the street.

Watch Dina Meyer sneaking into a house.

Watch Dina Meyer talking to police officer.

Watch Dina Meyer look like Michelle Pfeiffer.

Watching Dina Meyer is basically what this film is. It had such a low budget that the only thing you see is a solo Dina Meyer doing mundane things.

It's basically a one woman show.

On one hand, it's the pits but on the other hand, if you're a fan of Dina Meyer you'll LOVE this film. It actually sorta fascinating on how the writers and director thought up this film vis a vis the film's budget. It sorta works as a minimalistic experience.

Dina Meyer make this worth watching

[phd_travel · 7/10 · 15 February 2019]

Dina Meyers makes this mystery watchable. A writer moves to a small town and rents a house. Next door a younger man not that much younger as the title would suggest becomes an object of interest for the writer. The guy is murdered and she becomes a suspect. The cops seem to think it was her. It's fairly diverting to see how she finds out who the real killer is. Dina is beautiful and a convincing actress.

Novelist looking for Insperation finds murder.

[mattmleonard · 8/10 · 26 March 2011]

Found the movie to be very satisfactory. I personally found Dina Meyer to be very good actress and I have never seen her before. I actually rented the movie because of Cory Monteith. The movie is basically about a novelist that moves to a small town to find inspiration for her next book. Dina Meyer's character had just been divorced and needed some time to concentrate on her book only. Her character gets inspiration for her books by taking pictures of every day life. Her next door neighbor turns out to be a billionaires son and ends up getting murdered. Dina Meyer's character is framed for the murder because she was the next door neighbor and was always taking pictures of him for her research. In the long and skinny of it all Dina Meyer's character has to figure out who is framing her for the murder. The ending isn't exactly what you would expect but also not the worst ending either. This is definitely a movie for you hopeless romantics and crime solving fans.

in ref. to quil's review

[wingedheartart · 12 August 2011]

When I decide to watch movies on Lifetime, I don't expect Oscar quality directing, writing or acting. I don't know who this Quil guy is, but he continually puts down women over 30...check his reviews. Negative, cruel and mean.

This movie isn't the best, nor is it the worst. It is VERY frustrating because the main character is trying to defend herself through out to prove her innocence. Legally, the cops couldn't do half the things they did without alerting her and providing search warrants etc. Ridiculous. What, the only person who could possibly kill the guy is a woman who is new in town, that happens to write novels, including murder mysteries? Geez. At least with the character in Basic Instinct they had a bunch of circumstantial evidence to bring her in for questioning. This poor girl barely knew the kid.

I suggest if you are ever looking for an absolutely perfect movie to watch.....don't choose Lifetime or generic TV channels. Rent or purchase movies that have been on the big screen, with fantastic writers/actors/directors or indie films etc. But, if you want a snotty, jerky, and obnoxious review from a guy who pretty much hates everything, read Quil's .....he has plenty of those.

And, I didn't think Dina's rear end was wide nor is she ugly or past her prime. Get over yourself Quil. Maybe you can start writing screenplays and can then choose the actors/actresses you would like to see in your own movies. I would love to review YOUR work.

Excellent

[frank-01612 · 10/10 · 9 August 2020]

I think this was an excellent movie and I would watch it again! Very suspenseful!

Remedy for Writer's Block

[lavatch · 8/10 · 4 November 2019]

Miss Sarah Wylde is a successful writer of mysteries who takes up residence in the sleepy little community of Christina Lake. She has left the hustle and bustle of San Francisco to find an idyllic spot to overcome a case of writer's block. As her agent is expecting a new book, Sarah hopes that the change of environment will do her good. For unexpected reasons, Christina Lake turns out to be the perfect remedy for her next bestseller.

Sarah gets inspired by her nextdoor neighbor, a big hunk named Michael Ellory, who is the son of the town's wealthiest captain of industry. By ogling Michael and photographing him secretly, Sarah is transported to write that "after such a long, long time, I feel totally alive." Then, Michael is unceremoniously murdered, his body washing up from the local reservoir. Surprisingly, Sarah is fingered as the number one suspect. As art imitates life, she how has a ready-made narrative for her book! But she also must prove her innocence.

In "The Boy Next Door," the police reach a new level of incompetency. The small police force fails to take seriously the evidence that Sarah produces, including photographs and a list of substantial debts incurred by Michael that she found on a scrap of paper. Instead, the police confiscate Sarah's laptop and believe that the draft of her fictional story is incriminating evidence.

At this point, Sarah takes charge by drawing on her storehouse of knowledge about crime. She conducts her own investigation that leads to a shady mayor whose wife was sleeping with Michael. The key to unraveling the mystery may be the black Mustang driven by someone intent on chasing Sarah down and possibly killing her.

In addition to the quick-thinking Sarah, there were other intriguing secondary characters in the film. The husband-and-wife proprietors of a local book store help Sarah run down clues. Lewis, the convivial owner of a coffee shop has a photographic memory of the kinds of coffee drunk by his regulars. This will figure in solving the mystery. Even the gossipy neighbor Marie, who will never let Sarah forget that she gave her some delicious muffins, helps to evoke the small-town feeling that has been the source of America's next number one book in the area of crime drama.