Sins of the Mother

Few stories are worth adapting to the screen. Elizabeth Montgomery gives a mind-bending brilliant performance as Ruth Coe, the beloved and twisted mother, of serial rapist Kevin Coe. It's not enough that her own son has been found, arrested, convicted, and imprisoned as the South Hill Rapist in Spokane, Washington. The South Hill Rapist struck usually in the mornings during his mornings when he jogged. He also struck about forty known victims and there were probably more than fifty knowing some who didn't report the crimes to the authorities. All the while, Mommy Dearest Ruth Coe refuses to believe any evidence and defends her son to the hilt. Elizabeth Montgomery's performance is chilling as is Dale Midkiff who plays her son. Now the real Kevin Coe might be released unless the state of Washington can place him on a island where he can be imprisoned for life as a dangerous sex offender. Even to this day, Spokane has not recovered from the years of terror as the South Hill Rapist struck and attacked his female victims.

This movie was based on an actual case, and it appears to relate the components of the real-life story rather well, though most of the acting is rudimentary and the characters are portrayed as one-dimensional; portraying them this way was either (a) due to limitations in writing, or (b) necessary so that the plot could progress without any holes.

In any case, Elizabeth Montgomery completely steals the show and compels the viewer to keep watching. Her performance in this movie is reason enough to watch it, and is testimony to her profound and multi-dimensional abilities as an actor. Elizabeth Montgomery is one of a very small subset of actors that can make virtually any role "go" (a/k/a believable, compelling, thought-provoking).

A man dominated by his overbearing mother becomes a serial rapist. Based on a true story this explores the relationship between the rapist and his mother.

Despite the unpleasant story line this manages to hold your attention throughout. The crimes themselves are committed off screen. Although the script is possibly a bit too straightforward the cast do a fine job. Elizabeth Montgomery is superb as the spiteful mother and Dale Midkiff is good as her son. Good support is given by Heather Fairfield as Midkiff's unsuspecting girlfriend.

Although it's predictable it's still interesting to see Midkiff's life unravel as his crimes start to catch up with him.

As far a true life made for TV movies go this is pretty good and is worth watching.

Honestly some of the worst acting I've seen in a movie. Not sure which performance was worse, Elizabeth Montgomery or Dale Midkiff's! They were both terrible!

As for the story it was slow, boring and it just didn't seem to know what it was trying to achive.

Whoever cast the film should never work in the film industry ever again.

Midkiff's protagonist was completely unbelievable and he never felt like the crazed rapist he was meant to be portraying. He just seemed arrogant and never felt dangerous at all.

There were many plot holes including his girlfriend who you see once for like 30 seconds.

One positive was the make up artist done an ok job with some of the injuries.

I think it was a very obvious plot since the very beginning, in spite of the apparent good relation that the guy keeps with his mother to the outside world while is very notorious how possessive the woman is towards the son and how he feels about her doing that.

Plus alternatively some cases of rape to a lot of women, making at least to me, the immediate connection of who was behind it, because we didn't get to know more people that you could believe were other possible "suspects"...yes i know is not an episode of Murder she wrote but a real life story film showing us simultaneously what was going on since the beginning, what to me means a big: BOOOORIIIIIIIIIING moment...so if you just want to be right about it, you just need to stay until the whole thing ends.

So you can watch it if you really don't have anything better to do or because you were put into quarantine and there is nothing else showing on TV, otherwise don't...unless you like this type of film.