Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsABFFPride MonthOutfest OutfrontsSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Mother Knows Best

  • TV Movie
  • 1997
  • TV-PG
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
6.4/10
656
YOUR RATING
Mother Knows Best (1997)
DramaThriller

A woman urges her daughter to get married. And when her daughter does, she doesn't think that she made a good choice. So she goes out and hires a killer to kill her son-in-law.A woman urges her daughter to get married. And when her daughter does, she doesn't think that she made a good choice. So she goes out and hires a killer to kill her son-in-law.A woman urges her daughter to get married. And when her daughter does, she doesn't think that she made a good choice. So she goes out and hires a killer to kill her son-in-law.

  • Director
    • Larry Shaw
  • Writers
    • Lisa Friedman Bloch
    • Kathy Kirtland Silverman
  • Stars
    • Joanna Kerns
    • Christine Elise
    • Grant Show
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    6.4/10
    656
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Larry Shaw
    • Writers
      • Lisa Friedman Bloch
      • Kathy Kirtland Silverman
    • Stars
      • Joanna Kerns
      • Christine Elise
      • Grant Show
    • 21User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos9

    Joanna Kerns and Grant Show in Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Joanna Kerns in Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Grant Show and Christine Elise in Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Joanna Kerns and David Spielberg in Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Joanna Kerns in Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Joanna Kerns in Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Joanna Kerns, Grant Show, and Christine Elise in Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Grant Show and Christine Elise in Mother Knows Best (1997)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Joanna Kerns
    Joanna Kerns
    • Celeste Cooper
    Christine Elise
    Christine Elise
    • Laurel Cooper Rogers
    Grant Show
    Grant Show
    • Ted Rogers
    Jessica Walter
    Jessica Walter
    • Joan
    Sherman Augustus
    Sherman Augustus
    • Dale Cutler
    David Spielberg
    David Spielberg
    • George Cooper
    Kristen Dalton
    Kristen Dalton
    • Lynn
    Jeanette O'Connor
    Jeanette O'Connor
    • Harriet Rogers
    Michael Covert
    • Burt Willis
    Eric Robertson
    • Michael
    Annabelle Weenick
    Annabelle Weenick
    • Aide
    Giselle Fernandez
    Giselle Fernandez
    • Newscaster
    Jeff Olson
    • Minister
    Alan Gregory
    • IRS Supervisor
    Douglas Caputo
    • Frank
    Joey Miyashima
    Joey Miyashima
    • Bill Yamazaki
    Nancy Peterson
    Nancy Peterson
    • Nurse
    • (as Nancy Riddle)
    Michael Flynn
    Michael Flynn
    • Investigator
    • Director
      • Larry Shaw
    • Writers
      • Lisa Friedman Bloch
      • Kathy Kirtland Silverman
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    No One Would Tell
    6.6
    No One Would Tell
    The Stranger Beside Me
    6.0
    The Stranger Beside Me
    Cries Unheard: The Donna Yaklich Story
    6.1
    Cries Unheard: The Donna Yaklich Story
    The Killing Secret
    6.1
    The Killing Secret
    If Someone Had Known
    6.1
    If Someone Had Known
    A Killer Among Friends
    6.6
    A Killer Among Friends
    Death of A Cheerleader
    6.0
    Death of A Cheerleader
    Unwed Father
    6.3
    Unwed Father
    A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story
    7.1
    A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story
    Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick, the Last Chapter
    6.8
    Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick, the Last Chapter
    She Fought Alone
    6.4
    She Fought Alone
    Mom at Sixteen
    6.6
    Mom at Sixteen

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Joanna Kerns is actually 12 years older than Christine Elise, who plays her daughter. Both were born on February 12; Kerns in 1953 and Elise in 1965.
    • Quotes

      [last lines]

      Celeste Cooper: [with the reporters] Laurel?

      [Laurel glares at her]

      Celeste Cooper: It's not too late to tell them, sweetheart. Tell them, Laurel. Tell them I did it all for you.

      Laurel Cooper Rogers: [bows her head down in anger] Goodbye, Mother.

      Celeste Cooper: [leaves with the reporters] That's OK, she's just confused. When this is over, she'll know that I was right, and everything will be back to normal. Everything will be normal again.

    User reviews21

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    7/10
    A cut above the usual Lifetime fare, but what is that really saying?
    This is a surprisingly okay film that I caught on Lifetime - okay and Lifetime with regard to movies is usually a contradiction in terms, but not this time. Well-cast and directed with a light touch by Larry Shaw, as well as a halfway decent script, "Mother Knows Best" is both entertaining and absorbing.

    Based on a true story, the beautiful and talented Joanna Kerns plays Celeste Cooper, a socialite who doesn't like her daughter's husband. He's an auto mechanic instead of a doctor. So she hires someone to kill him. "I want him shot in the head," she instructs the hit-man.

    Kerns really elevates this film with her glamor and no-nonsense line deliveries. She approaches the hit as if she's arranging for a catering job. Christine Elise is her daughter and Grant Show her husband, and both are appealing. David Spielberg is Celeste's henpecked husband. Watching his daughter from afar on her wedding day, he cries and says to Celeste, "She reminds me of you the day we were married." "Shut up, George," his wife says.

    Good.
    helpful•6
    0
    • blanche-2
    • May 13, 2009

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ2

    • If this is a true story, what is the story it is based upon? When and where did it happen? Is she out of jail?
    • True Story

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 13, 1997 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Falso asesinato
    • Filming locations
      • Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
    • Production companies
      • Von Zerneck-Sertner Films
      • Hallmark Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 36 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Mother Knows Best (1997)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Mother Knows Best (1997) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.