The Girl Who Escaped: The Kara Robinson Story

... and this film is not going to be part of it. On Ginny and Georgia, Douglas manages to make her character stand out by underplaying, and by relying on her natural charisma. On that show, of course, she is aided by A-list writers, cast members, directors. This movie, on its best day, dressed in its best Sunday suit, is a B-movie, with shortcuts taken everywhere. Many obvious opportunities for deep emotional beats are missed, simply because the actors and the script are not up to snuff. The PR package makes a huge fuss about Kara's courage, which, in real life, was staggering. None of that comes through here. Emotions are like a roller coaster. To create the "up," you must first create the "down." By deliberately minimizing the horror of the captivity, writer Haley Harris denied viewers access to the downs. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))

Of course this LifeTime film ignored some of the more brutal aspects of Kara Robinson's kidnapping and her eventual escape at the hands of her kidnapper Richard Evonitz. Both lead actors Katie Douglas who played Kara Robinson and little known (but busy) character actor. Kristian Bruun who played the real life kidnapper Richard Evonitz excelled in their respective roles.

After Richard is successful in containing the frightened Kara in his apartment he begins to ask her a series of personal questions that any parent of a teenage child would be disgusted with having to listen to, let alone realize what was about to happen to Kara repeatedly over the next 18 hours at the hands of her kidnapper Richard Evonitz.

Escape was on Kara's mind from the get go, and if the viewer realizes that this was an actual kidnapping and sexual assault the viewer need only try and put themselves in Kara's position and ask yourself the following: "Would I have the same determination and focus as Kara did to survive and escape?"

I rate this true crime story a decent 7 out of 10 IMDb rating.

An excellent movie to watch and follow what's been happening. Very simple and easy to watch. No twists or adding fictions or making a long series out of it or no dilutions or no camera shaking. Just pure and simply made to show what happened, facts !

Amazing acting by Katie Douglas. Great expressions at the right times and beautifully played. Can't believe she is 24 in real life but acted as a 15 year old girl in this movie. She is easily believable as 15 here. Would love to watch more of her work in future.

Don't know why other reviewers are so critical and analyzing technically, and lower ratings. This is just a movie based on true story, and I believe the film makers done well in both parts, abduction and aftermath. You guys easily rate garbage movies so high like the new Black Panther, yet rate low on good movies like this one.

15-year-old Kara Robinson (Katie Douglas) gets taken from her friend's front lawn by gun-wielding creepy Richard Evonitz (Kristian Bruun) in broad daylight. He forces her into a plastic container. Her mother Debra Robinson (Cara Buono) struggles to get the police to take her seriously.

The first half is mostly Kara with her creepy captor. She has the mantra of survival which seems to be the theme of the movie. The second half could have been an intense manhunt for the creep, but the movie is more interested in Kara. I can appreciate that in a Lifetime true crime story. As for Katie Douglas, the twentysomething does look like a small teenager when compared to Kristian Bruun. That helps sell the realism.

This film is based on the true story of Kara Robinson, so if you aren't aware of her story then I recommend watching this. Kara is kidnapped from her friend's front yard at 15 years old. She fights to survive, but will she make it? It's an inspiring story that gives you hope and makes you feel a sense of strength and accomplishment from such a young girl.

The only reason I rated it on the lower end of the scale is due to the fact that it's a Lifetime movie, so it's not high quality drama, cinematography, or story telling. Nor is the acting up to par. But with saying that, there were two parts that made me cry thinking about everything this sweet girl (and the people around her) went through, so even thought it's a Lifetime movie, it obviously does a good job at getting Kara's story out.