What a ghastly film. We'll leave aside the necessity for all the female characters to have long, twirly hair, black eyeliner, size 0 clothing and plumped lips and move swiftly to my main criticism.
A young, WASP attorney kills a child, paralyses the father, sends the grieving mother into madness and nearly kills his own unborn child, when he crashes headlong into oncoming traffic whilst 'talking on his phone'. This is deemed to be a complete accident; indeed, the culprit states to the grief stricken mother, that 'the police told me it wasn't my fault'.
Throughout the entire film we are asked to empathise with this callous criminal and his (admittedly blameless) wife as the mother seeks to replace her dead daughter by stealing the offspring of the murdering driver. Her madness is evident and, as it progresses, she causes the death of a colleague who has identified her problems and is about to tell the authorities.
Whilst I don't condone this further tragedy, I take issue with the filmmakers, who seem to have reset their moral compass through 180 degrees as they lionise the selfish, unfeeling, perpetrator of an awful, life changing event and demonise the true victims.
By the end of the film one family has a disabled father, confined permanently to a wheelchair and a mother in prison - or an asylum - for many years (or possibly on death row), having lost their only child.
The other family (who have reunited after having separated following the father's infidelity), are happily living in their palatial home, complete with swimming pool and enjoying profitable employment as a prosecuting attorney and a court artist while their blonde, blue eyed daughter lives on.
I know with whom I identify as victims in this scenario.
A young, WASP attorney kills a child, paralyses the father, sends the grieving mother into madness and nearly kills his own unborn child, when he crashes headlong into oncoming traffic whilst 'talking on his phone'. This is deemed to be a complete accident; indeed, the culprit states to the grief stricken mother, that 'the police told me it wasn't my fault'.
Throughout the entire film we are asked to empathise with this callous criminal and his (admittedly blameless) wife as the mother seeks to replace her dead daughter by stealing the offspring of the murdering driver. Her madness is evident and, as it progresses, she causes the death of a colleague who has identified her problems and is about to tell the authorities.
Whilst I don't condone this further tragedy, I take issue with the filmmakers, who seem to have reset their moral compass through 180 degrees as they lionise the selfish, unfeeling, perpetrator of an awful, life changing event and demonise the true victims.
By the end of the film one family has a disabled father, confined permanently to a wheelchair and a mother in prison - or an asylum - for many years (or possibly on death row), having lost their only child.
The other family (who have reunited after having separated following the father's infidelity), are happily living in their palatial home, complete with swimming pool and enjoying profitable employment as a prosecuting attorney and a court artist while their blonde, blue eyed daughter lives on.
I know with whom I identify as victims in this scenario.
