Harcèlement

Up until a few months ago I had never seen I Can Make You Love Me or read the story about Laura Black and after watching the film I was left feeling sickened and horrified. This movie tells the story of how a man's four year obsession and stalking of a female employee ended in a tragic conclusion.

I had seen Richard Thomas in Death In Small Doses and he's a brilliant actor with great talent his portrayal of real life killer Richard Farley sent chills down my spine as he played a man with a sick obsession. Brooke Shields delivered an incredible performance as Laura as the film progressed it amazed me how she had the courage and bravery to escape the rampage alive and how she reacted when her boss told her about the real reason why Farley got fired .

At 23 years old Laura Black (Shields) is about to leave her parents home in Virginia after accepting a job at K.E.I. in Sillicon Valley California, on her first day she's introduced to long time employee Richard Farley (Thomas) whose immediately attracted to her beauty after lunch he invites her out she politely turns him down.Over the next few days he is shown waiting for her in her office with fresh baked bread to show how he feels and then watches outside her aerobics class as she removes her sweater to reveal her outfit.

What happens next is a four year nightmare for Laura as Farley continues to follow her repeatedly even going so far as to slash the tires on her car, trick other employees into giving him her address, enrolling in her exercise class,breaking into the office to get more info on her, breaking into the garage at her apartment building. The worst ones were taking pictures outside her home and writing to her parents about their relationship. There was a scene when she goes home to visit her family for Christmas and receives a gift entitled our summer vacation which causes her to break down crying.

What made the situation even more difficult was his threats to go after members of her family if she tried to leave or learn that she was meant for him.

She made many complaints to her boss about what she endured because of him only to be told that they didn't want to jeopardize his security clearance over her right to be safe.It made me feel angry the company should have done more to help keep her protected from harassment.

The final straw comes after she files a restraining order and it pushes him to the edge and the result is a shooting rampage which claims the lives of several employees and injured others including Laura.

After the film California became the first place to enact an anti stalking law and other cities have followed since. This film is an example of how horrifying obsession can be as well as stalking.

This movie was very creepy to me because this kind of thing happens every day.

What I can never understand, though, is why people don't notify law enforcement when things start to get out of hand (one has to be careful with employers, as they're quite often "good-old-boy networks" only concerned about protecting their own, as well as covering their own behinds). If I were the personnel director and I heard comments like he was making, I would have notified the police as soon as he left! However, this film was made in 1993, before workplace and school shootings became fairly commonplace.....

That withstanding, I've never been a victim of stalking, but you can bet that I would also never let things get as far as they tend to do with many people (maybe it's the way I was raised, or because I have a pretty good self-esteem, who knows).

Nevertheless, I find these types of films much more captivating and closer to home than the usual stuff out there.

It's too bad that there are such people in this world.......

This type of film could seem over-the-top, but thanks to a believable performance by Richard Thomas, and a surprisingly decent performance by Brooke Shields, the viewer is interested in the story, and not distracted by personalities.

You will see some interesting information regarding stalking, as well. For example, when Thomas speaks to Penny (human resources) who divulges Laura's personal information (including her birthday, residence and family information). This film was made in 1993, and I was surprised that the company was not held liable for Laura's problems with this man.

As this is based on a true story, we see Richard Thomas gradually unraveling as he stalks Laura (Shields), he seems initially harmless, then obsessed. The breaking point occurs when he is fired. He has, he says to his friends, nothing to lose, and starts asking if the office is protected with bullet-proof glass. His co-workers laugh, thinking this is a joke.

This is an interesting and true story, which is well-presented. 9/10

A factual account of a young man who has gone berserk after failing to garner the attentions of a female co-worker. Richard Thomas is as far off from his "John Boy" image as he get get. What a great performance. Brooke Shields is adequate as the stalked girl. The culmination of Thomas' rampage ends with his entering his former workplace armed to the teeth. Too bad it's not on video. If it ever is, catch it and have a "thrilling" time watching it.

this was not a bad movie at all and i have to say,having been a fan of Brooke shields for years i think this was her first outing at actually being able to show her acting strength.she has just gotten better and better but i was totally impressed with her performance.the movie itself can slow in parts a little bit the last half hour certainly makes up for it.i did not expect such an entertaining finale from a t.v movie.although Richard Thomas did a great job,this is Brooke's film as her screen time shows and she made the most of it.the only let down with the film are the co-stars .the look of them and their acting abilities are woeful and you wonder how they got their jobs-all except for Laura Blacks flatmate that is,who does a fair job.