Reviving Ophelia (2010 TV Movie) User Reviews

Reviving Ophelia-Shakespeare in Battered Love ***

[edwagreen · 7/10 · 15 October 2010]

Jane Kaczmarek does a fine acting job as the deeply troubled mother of a teenager who has fallen in love with a physical abuser. It's basically the same old story about a guy who saw his mother abused when he was a child and is continuing his ways.

Kaczmarek is the same mother who finds fault with her niece's involvement as well as the break-up of her sister's marriage troublesome but is unable to recognize what her daughter is experiencing first hand. Both she and her husband are intelligent, thoughtful parents but were unable to see what was really going on until the situation escalated.

Apparently, teenage battering has become a major problem and this film aptly showed it.

Not bad at all

[monkey_kelstar · 7/10 · 17 October 2010]

For a TV movie, this was pretty good. Though I don't have any experience with these kinds of situations, it seemed realistic. It was also very intense and pretty creepy at times. I actually felt myself becoming frightened for the different characters from time to time.

I also learned quite a bit from this movie. I don't think I'll easily forget the signs that one is in an abusive relationship, or what to do if I suspect someone else is in one. I definitely hope I never make the same mistake that Lizzie did, though, and I hope a lot of people won't, after they see this.

All in all, the acting, writing, and directing were all above average for this movie, and I would recommend it.

Decent movie showing abusive relationship evolution

[daisyrose-58717 · 7/10 · 28 July 2016]

It's hard to fully develop this type of movie in around 1hr 30mins run time but this movie does a decent enough job. You can see the evolution of an abusive relationship and see how it can be easy to misjudge what's in front of you.

The one thing I would have wished took a bit longer was her to get out of the relationship. While some can get out quickly for most it takes time. I have no doubt that actually reading aloud signs of an abusive relationship can trigger a light bulb but it seems unrealistic that this was just so easy for the girl to say "yup we're done (when she meant it for real) and here's the reason why you're an abuser".

I think the movie does shed some light on the issue though. The girl had her family to watch over her in the sense that they were aware of when her phone was going off, could tell she was distant with her friends, but was still accountable for her well-being. An adult on the other hand would not necessarily have this making the abusive relationship that much more dangerous.

Raises good awareness

[hannahsmith-215-244458 · 7/10 · 17 January 2015]

Reviving Ophelia is a great movie for older teenage girls. A little over-dramatic (okay, way over-dramatic) and terrible acting, but raises good awareness about abusive relationships. Sometimes we don't know someone's crazy until it's too late.

I wish I had known the things this movie teaches before I had started dating. It's also important for parents to know how to handle the situation. Because it's true. If you push back on your child who is in an abusive relationship, they will only hide things from you and stay with the abuser.

For younger teenagers, there are small parts you might want to skip. No significant nudity is shown, but a mom walks in on her daughter giving a random guy from her English class oral sex. She doesn't get away with it and learns, so some parents might not mind.

Lifetime melodrama

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 31 August 2016]

Le Anne Dunley (Kim Dickens) arrives home to find her daughter Kelli having oral sex. She send Kelli to stay with her aunt Marie Jones (Jane Kaczmarek). Le Anne and Marie are sisters with differing styles. Marie and her husband Walter have Elizabeth who is around the same age as Kelli and goes to the same school. Elizabeth has possessive boyfriend Mark. Kelli starts to suspect Mark of disturbing behaviors but aunt Marie sees Kelli as the bad seed and Elizabeth as the perfect child. Mark hits Elizabeth but they pass a lie to her parents. Mark get more and more jealous of her male classmate. Cody tries to befriend Kelli but she distrusts guys in general.

This is the classic Lifetime melodrama of abusive boyfriend and abused girlfriend. There are some good adult actors. I'm not familiar with the younger actors except for Joe Dinicol. He's generally pretty good. This is a melodrama without much tension or actual drama. It's paint-by-numbers. Elizabeth's delusions are almost as infuriating as Mark's violence. This is Lifetime at its Lifetimiest.

I liked it.

[saifsattani · 8/10 · 25 August 2012]

When people say this movie was good "for a Lifetime movie" they mean it. There's a lot of substance to that statement since Lifetime network's films are so cookie-cutter that everyone comes back for another piece. But "Reviving Ophelia" was seriously different. The story focuses not only on the girl being abused (and reluctant to reject the relationship) but also a second character who has her own share of troubles, difference being that this one has the clarity to realize that her cousin needs help.

Rebecca Williams is really, really great as Elizabeth (aka "Ophelia"; Shakespeare reference) because of how real she seems. The kind of viewer I am, I get mad at characters who, say, allow themselves to get abused and STILL stay in the relationship; but Williams's portrayal made sense and made me understand what some women endure.

I don't reread books or re-watch movies but for some reason I DVR'd this flick and watched it again. Definitely watch if you're into a drama w/ a solid plot and believable characters/actors.

Overall good, but I did have a problem with it

[vgrace01 · 28 May 2011]

I HATED the way that Kelly and her mom were treated by Lizzie and her mom. It was obvious from the start that Lizzie thought she was better than her cousin and her mother thought she was better than Kelly's mom. Several references to this throughout the movie. And through it all, Kelly was still kind to Lizzie and her mother was still kind of Marie. Even when Marie said that she must be happy to learn that her daughter (Lizzie) is even more screwed up than Kelly, Kelly's mom didn't say anything. Sorry, but you don't treat family like that. The rivalry between the girls I can understand, but between their mothers? Too much for my taste.

Also, the actor who played Mark wasn't the best actor.

Other than that, I thought it was a good movie, an important one.

Reviving Ophelia is so full of problems that it's main message that "that abuse is bad" gets very lost in the middle of it.

[alexcomputerkid · 5/10 · 24 June 2014]

Elizabeth (Rebecca Williams) is a typical teenager who's found what's seems to be a great guy in her boyfriend Mark (Nick Thurston). The relationship starts to turn sour once Mark starts to be abusive and controlling. Reviving Ophelia is Lifetime movie trying to convey the dark sides and dangers of relationships.

I am all for a film trying to show how important to be safe in relationships even if it's only a television film. I think it is important to expose this important issue and in the most serious manner which maybe could even save a life and the Lifetime channel would seem to be the perfect place for a TV film like this. The Lifetime channel seems to have a wide audience and they have made many films.

So why then is Reviving Opehia so cheesy when it's dealing with a such touchy and important subject?

Even though she is a victim of assault, Elizabeth is hard character to root for because she can get away from her abuser Mark and she is clearly something of a button-pusher. You obviously can't like Mark either because he is a guy beating up a woman and not taking responsibility for his actions. Keil (Carleigh Beverly) Elizabeth cousin, is the character in the middle who's supposed be trying to help Elizabeth get away from Mark but the two unlikable characters are in the way of her character realizing her full potential. Even Jane Kaczmarek as mother Marie Jones, previously known for good stuff like Malcolm in the Middle and Part of Five, falls short and her acting here is far from where it usually is. The cast does have some chemistry though everything is toned down due to this being a TV film. The plot really has only one subject and it really has little substance.

Reviving Ophelia is so full of problems that it's main message that "that abuse is bad" gets very lost in the middle of it. After that, it is a bit laughable and you keep watching because you have nothing else to do. We watched this in my high school Relationships class as we spent a whole unit learning about abusive relationships. Frankly, just about whole class laughed at this movie and my buddy next to me cracked some sex jokes and commented about all the attractive actresses that appear in this film. It did make this bad TV film seem more bearable.

Excellent Movie but Overbalanced Towards the Feminine

[rob-riches · 8/10 · 23 May 2012]

This is one excellent movie. The characters have been stretched from real life people towards easily recognizable stereotypes that create an emotional tension which invites audience participation (what would you do?) and which heightens the issues and of teenage infatuation, 'love' as ownership, being overly agreeable as an unworkable position, and the traps that girls fall into by caring too much (among others).

The writers were women, so the characterization of the female characters was outstanding, but they clearly don't understand the emotional conflicts experienced by males (who does, actually?), so the male acting was unpotentiated which, if it had been with more emotional beef would have made this a first class movie.

Masterpiece

[ThunderKing6 · 10/10 · 25 October 2020]

The movie is about a girl that stays in an abusive relationship because she has no power to leave. Even when she kind of does her abuser stalks her for blood.

The movie is a small budget but great film that is based on true stories of weak girls being unable to leave abusive, toxic relationships or even wanting and enjoying abusive relationships.

It's not relatable to me, yet to many others like abused or currently abused girls can relate and learn from it. Or would they?

The acting is mildly fine. The stalker-abuser did a terrific job in portraying a psycho stalker Ex-boyfriend.

It's a fine lovely film that can be used for social and mental studies.

Verdict: A Movie done well.

A GREAT MASTERPIECE TO EVERYONE OUT THERE..

[josephinaoseibonsu · 10/10 · 3 December 2021]

This movie is so far the best to me !! It's very educative and informing to my fellow ladies out there.. Please Kindly note that abuse is not love .. To Lizzie she thought the dude was in love with her that's why he was treating in such way !!

Frankly speaking ,I were Kelli I wouldn't have bother myself that much of Lizzie cox she thinks highly of herself .. My favorite character was Kelli and I love the bond between her and her mom!!