After All These Years (2013 TV Movie) User Reviews

After All these Years...When Life Falls Apart ***

[edwagreen · 7/10 · 1 September 2013]

Wendie Malick's life turns upside down on the day of her 30th wedding anniversary party. Afterwards, her husband confesses that he wants a divorce to marry another woman. As the divorce becomes a bitter one, Malick's husband turns up dead in the house with a knife in his back.

When everything obviously indicates that Wendie has done him in, the film is devoted to her proving her innocence.

The film is very fast paced. Delving into his life, she soon discovers that there are an array of other suspects. There was even another affair. Seems as though others would also benefit in doing her husband in.

There is even romance along the way with an old flame as she tries to evade the police.

The ending is a bit of surprise with the least likely of people discovered to be the killer.

Giving Wendie a job is good {spelling editor: faux roughly = fake}

[conleytgwinn · 7/10 · 21 April 2013]

Wendie Malick is excellent with tongue firmly in cheek throughout this faux mystery. I laughed aloud more than once (just ask my wife in the next room - she thought I had changed channels since I rarely laugh aloud at Hallmark movies.) The other characters adequately complement this mood. Cinematography is not my forte, and I did not notice any outrageous errors in the filming. Be sure, though, to begin with the expectation that had this aspired to mystery, it would have been a catastrophe; as a comedy, it works.

It is most certainly more comedic than mysterious, and I must assume that to be intentional. My charity is reinforced by some citations, including the final sequences where the lieutenant repeatedly shushes Malick ("be quiet!", to recite verbatim in his deeper male voice, her previous line of the script. Or when he is so effusive in praise of her skill in forcing the suspects to support the case she has made, even offering her a job as an investigator.

This is appropriate and commonplace for other amateur movie sleuths - for example, Murder, She Wrote - but that dialog seems to have disappeared in the two later broadcasts earlier today. Perhaps I should have held off a day or so for editing to be final. Some scenes were clearly deleted, others subjected to minor alterations vis-a-vis a line or two deleted, to be replaced by a line or two added from stock rescued from the cutting-room floor. The schedule may have been a little too tight for all the editing to be completed to everyone's satisfaction so that it is yet a work in progress. Hallmark does this quite often - I frequently see the same movie a day or two later with new scenes replacing some that I had thought were keys to the story. Glad I saw both versions so far of this one.

I will add only that when the culprit is eventually revealed, the mystery component is forced back to the surface with the choice of identity of that culprit. As in a true mystery, it has to be someone whom we have dismissed as utterly impossible - and it IS! I was actually surprised when my two best suspects were innocent of the murder; SHOCKED at the true perpetrator.

they get extra points for naming the characters after people in Billy Wilder films

[blanche-2 · 6/10 · 11 September 2018]

This is kind of cute, thanks to the performances of veteran stars Wendie Malick, Gregory Harrison, and Andrea Martin.

Malick plays Audrey, who, after a wonderful anniversary party, finds out her husband wants to leave her for another woman. They split up. One night she comes downstairs and finds her husband has not only entered the house, but he's dead with a knife in his stomach. Immediately a suspect and a long-time viewer of Forensic Files and Snapped, Audrey takes off, determined to find the murderer.

Many of the characters are named after characters in Billy Wilder films, such as Sunset Boulevard, Sabrina, Stalag 17, Kiss Me, Stupid, and The Apartment.

It's light, it's amusing, and Gregory Harrison looks great.

No likes

Really good mystery

[jewelch · 7/10 · 18 February 2021]

Cute, adorable story. Sad about the husband though. The actor who played him is one of my favorites. I really enjoyed Wendie Malick in this role. This is a really good mystery and I was guessing who murdered the husband even to the end. A movie full of Hallmark greats. This is a story of a woman who after 30 years together loses her husband to another woman. Just when she is facing the reality of divorce, she finds her husband on her kitchen floor with a knife to his chest. Naturally she is accused of murder. She goes on the lamb before his funeral to find out who killed him knowing all eyes are on her and the investigation will stop there. The true funny, zany adventure starts there. many twists and turns throughout. I take murder and death very serious. I know many people enjoy these stories though. Of course the victim was made out to be a very vile man. I do think this movie was well made though. Gregory Harrison is adorable here. Enjoy!! James Welch Henderson, Arkansas 2/18/2021

The acting of the suspects , ugh !

[Dave-Buffalo · 6/10 · 14 October 2018]

I thought Audrey (Wendie Malick from my hometown of Buffalo) was great, but I thought the acting of her female suspects was terrible!

I read a lot of reviews and I'm never as critical of acting as most. I see acting complaints in a lot of films where I'm not that picky, just enjoy the story , and find myself saying "wow what are you talking about ??"

But I found the poor acting / over-acting to be a distraction in AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. So I noticed. Enough to write this review.

I love a good murder mystery, and this story did keep my attention, and I didn't guess the suspect. I am a huge COLUMBO fan and I enjoyed her subtle reference to Columbo with one "Oh just one more thing" comment. And I also couldn't help notice that Wendie Malick looks great for her age and has a smokin' hot body that I would rate a 10 , even though I only rated the movie a 6.

DIY Crime Solving

[atlasmb · 6/10 · 22 December 2020]

As a fan of Wendie Malick, I was definitely interesting in watching this Hallmark film. She plays a woman (Audrey Brandon) whose estranged husband is found murdered in her house. When she becomes the prime suspect, she decides to go on the lam and solve the crime herself. As a fan of television crime shows, she figures it shouldn't be very difficult.

Malick does a good job and the tone of this film is kept light. She provides some voiceovers, presenting the action from her point of view.

The rest of the cast is adept at mystery with a light touch. My favorite is Ona Grauer, who plays the part of Christine Boll, a woman with ambiguous intentions.

Hallmark mystery

[SnoopyStyle · 4/10 · 6 January 2020]

On their 30th wedding anniversary, Michael Brandon surprises his wife Audrey Brandon (Wendie Malick) by announcing that he's leaving her for his associate Christine Boll. Months later, they are finalizing their divorce when Audrey stumbles upon his husband in the kitchen stabbed to death. She becomes the main suspect as Michael had moved out months earlier. She has solve the case herself.

Wendie Malick is a joy. She tries her best. This murder mystery tries to be comedic. It falls flat and deflates the tension. It's all meaningless as Audrey chases down one character after another. Non of them stand out. It's hard to follow her investigation with people who don't matter and a story without flow. Quite frankly, she needs a investigative buddy and she needs to be smarter. It's a series of information dumps. Hallmark needs to do better.

Wonderful is all I can say

[sideshowsuzy-866-82424 · 10/10 · 1 May 2015]

I thought oh here we go another weepy. I couldn't be more pleasantly surprised. It is hilarious and has a great plot. I did figure it out but not until near the end. It was complex enough to keep you interested, and they didn't treat us as stupid, it wasn't made easy for the audience which is really refreshing. You had to listen to get the twists and turns and Wendie Malick could not have been cast more perfectly. I loved her in Frasier and she looks younger now! I think this is worth a watch whether it's on UK Channel 5 or Hallmark or if you hire it. It's a cracking film and a pleasurable way to spend an evening or afternoon. Keep up the great work in producing the best TV movies ever Scott Smith you are the king.

Fun and Romantic whodunnit.

[cgvsluis · 5/10 · 2 September 2021]

On the night of their 30th wedding anniversary, Audrey's husband confesses to being in love with another woman and wanting a divorce. The couple separate over the summer and he ends up dead back in their house where Aubrey finds him and is then accused of being his murderer.

Before they can lock her up for murder she decides to find out who really did it in this comedy murder mystery. Audrey Brandon has two really great friends who know she's innocent and pop in and out of this farce. There is an older detective on the case who has a comical but antagonistic way of conversing with Aubrey.

This was a whodunnit solved by a highly motivated amateur sleuth. She looks into the last few years of her husband's life where she encounters characters like his former partner the reclusive and Paranoid Artie...and discovers that there was another mistress!

"My life had been turned in to a combination of every bad TV movie ever made." The narration was great and gave it an old fashioned gritty film noir feel.

The lawyer, Joey Lilac, and his dog...the not so tiny, Tiny were great. But the star of the show was Wendie Malik. It is wonderful to see fun roles like this were older women get to be the stars. She was beautiful, funny and she knocked it out of the park. I also enjoyed seeing Gregory Harrison in more of a romantic role.

"You not killing Michael might be the best thing that's ever happened to me." -Larrabee.

"Innocent? Like Lizzy Borden? I'm a podiatrist and you are turning me in to an accessory!"...funny!

This was fun and funny, not the usual Hallmark fare. I highly recommend you watch it.

Not what i was expecting

[bananabutcher · 9/10 · 9 August 2014]

i saw this as it was on an afternoon television schedule. i have just started watching afternoon television films and i can say most of them are OK but they may lack a strong storyline or recycle an overused plot. now, i wasn't excepting to enjoy this film as much as i did. it is better than most Hollywood films because it isn't over the top. it is kind of down to earth... i think 6.0 rating is too low it should be 7.0 at least. the movie has good energy, its one of those films which will make you have a good feeling while watching unlike most mysteries which are miserable. the ending is unpredictable to most, so i can say its worth watching till the end. acting is OK, mise en scene is great too. it is a movie to see if you are looking for entertainment.

After All These Years

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 14 July 2022]

This Hallmark comedy thriller pays tribute to Billy Wilder.

Audrey Brandon (Wendie Malick) is celebrating her 30th anniversary with her businessman husband Michael who later confesses to cheating on her.

He leaves her for a younger maneater Christine. A few months later Audrey finds her husband dead in her kitchen with a knife sticking out.

Audrey wonders what her husband is doing dead in the kitchen when he had left her. The police treat Audrey as the main suspect especially as her finger prints are on the knife as she tried to pull it out.

Audrey goes on the run as she tries to clear her name. She contacts her late husband friends and associates.

Audrey suspecst Christine who has a thing for rich older men. To Audrey's surprise she learns that her husband always cheated on her.

After All These Years is mildly diverting thanks to Wendie Malick's energy. She makes the movie much better than it should be.

It is a little daft and corny as Audrey goes through the suspects but it is a surprise that the cops did not catch her much earlier.

Refreshing! Not your typical young, good-looking main actors.

[aka-30266 · 9/10 · 6 February 2021]

What a refreshing departure for Hallmark! Kudos for casting an older woman as the main star of the movie. On top of that, the storyline is fun and engaging. Wendie Malick is good in all her movies. There are a lot of roles in the movie which makes it a bit confusing to follow but it's still enjoyable. Give it a try!

Remarkably good TV movie!

[morrisonhimself · 9/10 · 2 May 2021]

Excellent acting from generally not known or not well known performers would probably be enough to endorse this TV movie, but it is also surprisingly well written.

I say "surprisingly" because writing generally has deteriorated in what we generically call "Hollywood," but "After All These Years" is just one more example of quite high quality movie producing.

This was just -- 2 May 2021 -- presented on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, a channel to which I'm becoming increasingly addicted. I swore when I moved into my new apartment where there is a TV set and a cable connection I wouldn't waste my time watching.

Ha!

I have in fact spent far too much time in front of the tube, and one reason is such thoroughly enjoyable films as "After All These Years."

I'm sure it will pop up again and I strongly recommend you watch.

Fun quirky movie

[blahblahblah91 · 8/10 · 23 March 2022]

Wendie was fantastic. If it was any other actress I would have stopped watching. It is a mystery I suppose, but her narration and the music made it a fun watch.

What a nice surprise!

[mstiechick · 10/10 · 2 May 2021]

Wow. Relaxing after church to find this gem and what a nice surprise! The direction, writing, photography, acting and production was well done. But you don't notice it because you become involved in the storyline... a good woman who came from humble means, has honest friends (well, some) and was faithful to her husband finds herself in a situation where everyone blames her for the murder of an unfaithful husband. As someone who appreciates a mystery and smart comedy, I recommend this as a must watch! <3.

Captivating from first stance. Not just by Wendie's captivating voice

[dvsvns · 10/10 · 20 February 2021]

I don't even know what happened yet....I'm ten minutes into the movie and I love it!!!!! So full of drama, and comedic relief between. Brilliant casting! Brilliant direction! And beautiful acting! It's drama, meets best rom-com everything!

A quality Hallmark movie - lots of fun with one of my favorite actresses!

[MyMovieTVRomance · 8/10 · 26 January 2024]

This is a great, light comedy mystery. It's like a G-rated Double Jeopardy (1999)- a film which so happens to be the first of its sort I ever enjoyed. So I think of it often and this definitely reminded me of that.

So, now that you have a feel for what the movie is like, I can get into my fangirl mode and just go on about how cute the star is! Wendie Malick- there's just something about her! I mean, I'm not head over heels, but I do adore her! I especially liked the scene in the movie where she was wearing that black wig. Because she reminded me of someone else I adore, someone who seems to be leading my life in a way, and that someone is Joan Jett. So, this is another film that I can add to my journal of films that remind me of Joanie. My Joanie! 😊

I was already thinking of Joan when I saw Wendie in that black wig, and she bore a striking resemblance to the way Joaniei looked back in 1991/1992, and the way Joanie looked in a black wig, in her 2000 episode of Walker, Texas Ranger. So, imagine what a pleasant surprise it was when moments later, Wendie's character goes on the run, and a message is put out for her arrest, describing her as a woman with not just black hair, but * jet* black hair! My own Joan Jett siren bells were going off strong by then! But it didn't take long for yet another Joan Jett sign to come through.

Moments after a message was put out for her arrest, describing her as the woman with the jet black hair, Wendie seeks help from her friend JJ- a nickname a lot of Joanie's friends call her. By this point, I told myself all that's left now, is for there to be a Joan in this movie! And I wasn't disappointed!

A couple of minutes after getting help from her friend JJ, Wendie's character finds out that her love interest from the past - played by actor Greg Harrison, who happens to share my last name -is married to a woman named Joan! Harrison, married to a woman named Joan strikes me as a very good omen for myself, if you know what I mean.

This movie also connects to another Joan Jett related movie, The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996), which featured a character named Gregory Larkin, who was originally supposed to be played by Harrison Ford. With Larkin being Joan's surname at birth, and Harrison being mine, naturally I made the connection. But with this movie, the connection got even deeper, with the casting of Gregory Harrison being married to a Joan, because Gregory is the character's name in that other movie, and Harrison was who he was originally meant to be played by. This film tied it all together even tighter, and reiterated the connection between Joan and me even more! To top it all off, before even realizing all of this, I just so happened to post about The Mirror Has Two Faces today on my Twitter / x! So, this realization is intense indeed!

Anyway, Wendie's character finds out that Harrison's character's wife, Joan, may have some information she needs to clear her name. By this point, I was convinced that whoever wrote this story and or made this movie had to have been a Joan Jett fan! And being the Joan Jett lover that I am, it makes me hold this film in even higher estimation.

I saw this movie years ago, back when it was new. Nothing really stood out to me then. But, after watching the movie Manna from Heaven (2002) some days ago, which is a movie about following signs from God, also featuring Malick in a very prominent role, I decided to go back and rewatch this, because my old crush on Malick was definitely being rekindled. And now I know why. It's because now was the time to revisit this old movie, because now I know Joan. I'm always getting signs about Joan!

Thank you God, for these signs, the synchronicities which are like Manna from heaven to Me, because I start to see the deeper meaning behind it all. How beautiful.

I do recommend this movie! Especially if you are a Wendie Malick fan, and if you're a Joan Jett fan too, then even better!

Loved this

[catrine-48845 · 10/10 · 19 February 2023]

I watched this Hallmark movie a couple times. I always likes Wendy Malick. This is a fun and entertaining mystery. She is charged with the murder of her Ex husband . Most of the movie she is on the run trying to solve his murder. I also liked Andrea Martin who played her good friend. Gregory Harrison also has a small part in this. It will keep you guessing the whole time. If you want to watch a light hearted movie I recommend this one. I wish there were more shows like this. Some of the newer actors on Hallmark are annoying and the stories are always the same. This would be a good Sunday afternoon movie.

Very captivating. Whodunnit.

[jaybug-49925 · 10/10 · 21 December 2023]

Very good acting and a very captivating storyline. The woman who was the main character was excellent. I appreciated. There were actually no foul language. I also appreciated. There was no sex. It's definitely PG-13 material because somebody dies and everybody's having affairs with everybody else the ending is very surprising. That's why it's a good who done it. Quite entertaining. You end up feeling suspicious of everyone. It has you on the edge of your seat all the time. It made me laugh. It was also pretty sad. The one old guy when he found out that his wife was having an affair Made me cry. He stood up for her until he couldn't any longer. I did cry at that part.

Okay then!!!

[tomeekahaywood · 15 April 2022]

HATED HER SO SOOOO MUCH IN DERANGED GRANNY!!! I GIVE 0 STARS FOR THAT!!! I USED TO CARE FOR HER IN JUST SHOOT ME! DONR KNOW WHAT HAPPENED HER CHARACTER...BUT I'M NOT VERY PLEASED!!!