The Neighbor in the Window

I've seen a lot of Lifetime movies. They are hit and miss. "The Neighbor in the Window" is somewhere in the middle. It was an okay watch. It's just that there was nothing that special about it. The cast is fine. They all do a nice job. It's just that material isn't that hot. I don't want to bash this movie because I did kind of like it. It's that I wanted more than I got.

This isn't an overly familiar Lifetime wacko. A wacko neighbour who shares a backyard starts of friendly then imitating and buying the same things. Then she escalates to framing her etc. The things she does are a mixed bag of creepy but at least different things. Keeps you watching to see how things get resolved and for the wacko motivation. Worth a watch.

That was the brief description from experts at the end of the movie about the different kinds of stalkers and how they behave. That was somewhat interesting. Other than that, it was just another typical Lifetime movie with a typical (meaning, predictable) plot.

Oh, and just to nitpick another review here - "lady's" is possessive, not plural.

This LIFETIME suspense thriller was actually released this year and one of the newer ones with Jamie-Lynn Sigler. You might know her exceptionally well from from the holiday movie "The Christmas Note". In "The Neighbor in the Window," this is Lifetime's newest movie that is actually a real story made into a movie from the book "False Victim" by Kathie Truitt. The movie shows just how much HELL a person can go through when one neighbour invades your space, both figuratively and literally.

The film is about Karen (Sigler) when her and her family relocate to Washington because her husband has a new job and she falls in love with her new home, which is a beautiful house with large, impressive windows, but this new dream life quickly morphs into a nightmare when the looming presence of her neighbor, Lisa (Jenn Lyon), is all that cascades into those large panes of glass and the devil is scorned. Great movie also because it was based on a true story.

Karen (Jamie-Lynn Sigler) and her family relocate to Washington for her husband's new job and falls in love with her new house which has large, impressive windows. However, this new dream life quickly morphs into a nightmare when the looming presence of her neighbor, Lisa (Jenn Lyon), is all that cascades into those large panes of glass.

At first, Lisa seems like a promising friend. But soon, Karen begins catching her in bizarre lies and copycat behavior. Karen confides in Lisa that she lost a baby, so Lisa immediately makes up a story that she also lost a child - even buying an identical version of the necklace Karen wears to commemorate her lost child. Lisa lies about various health conditions, claiming she had lupus and cancer. She even copies Karen's car, her clothes and her desire to become a real estate agent.

Then, when Karen grows uncomfortable with Lisa's behavior, Lisa's tactics escalate. Lisa phones in false complaints that Karen is neglecting her son in an attempt to have him removed from her care. She even files for a restraining order against Karen that means Karen can't even hang out in her own backyard without violating it.

In the most dramatic move of all, she falsely accuses Karen of trying to mow her down with her car. This leads to a trial where Karen could have been convicted with attempted murder due to Lisa's lies and fabricated victimization. Instead, it results in her acquittal.

There's no murder for a change in this Lifetime thriller based on a real story. The subject around 'False victims' is interesting. I never heard of it so it prompted me to read about. Who says Lifetime thrillers isn't informative! It's quite watchable and intriguing, however the plot gets a bit thin towards the end and the court scene should have had more punch. The actress who plays the 'false victim' was very good and quite sinister.