Dancing Trees

Josephina Rooney (Amanda Tapping) struggles to care for her autistic daughter Martha (Katie Boland). Josephina owns a book store and works with cousin Nicole Davis (Brooke Burns). She stops to help a stranded motorist when she's shot dead by a petty criminal. Detective Velez (Nicholas Lea) investigates but is unable to communicate with the only witness, Martha.

I am uncertain with the portrayal of Martha. There are moments when she is more capable than she is supposed to be. I can't really dissect the issue. Mostly, the movie needs to get moving when the shooting starts up again. The plot can't stop after that. It needs to drive to the conclusion. It makes less sense for him to take captive. It becomes unrealistic and messy. The guy could be chaotic but he can't be random. The last act has issues.

I feel that the other reviewers might be reluctant to say anything really bad about the movie because the girl is autistic. While I certainly appreciate such kindness, especially in today's rather hostile environment, we must not forget that these user reviews are not for the actors/film makers (who, in all likelihood, never even look at our reviews), but for the benefit of our fellow-viewers who, after a long day or week of hard work, are just looking for something good to watch and in effect rely on our reviews to help them choose such a good movie. So, for the sake of such readers, I am going to be quite straightforward and honest: this is a REALLY bad movie, folks. To begin, I have heard (and even read some) about several types of autism and I feel quite certain that the particular kind depicted in this movie is a great product of the film-makers' *imagination*! But it's not just that depiction, the very description of the movie (no doubt proferred by the film-makers themselves) is grossly misleading. Specifically, no, my friends, Martha does NOT "use her unique abilites to catch the killer." Indeed, she is shown to have such unbelievable abilities, with the said.mathematical ability (the description calls her a "mathematical genius") being only one of them, but she doesn't really use any such ability. She merely remembers a couple of numbers. And again, no, SHE does NOT use even that little knowledge "to catch the killer"! Rather, it's just *Nicole* who tries to make sense out of Martha's, in effect, rambling speech and scribbles, to try to catch that killer. But then, that's not all either. In fact, the whole plot is quite ridiculous, no matter how you look at it! But I don't want to say much because giving any details might count as spoilers. Suffice it to say, this movie is *not* worth a buck and/or any amount of your precious time.

I gave this movie a 6 because of Katie Boland. I've seen her in a few other movies and she has always been impressive. Brook Burns is beautiful and if she ever forgets she's a model, she'll be good. I didn't read her bio but she had to have been a model because she smiles all the time. In serious parts, sad parts, there is always that smile for the camera. It totally detracts from whatever emotion she is supposed to be displaying. She needs to forget the camera is there and be serious, dramatic, scared, whatever. One thing I've always admired about Meryl Streep is she can be beautiful, or she can totally get into her character and become--well, never ugly, Merle can never make herself ugly!--but a lot less attractive--watch her in Ironweed sometime and you'll see what I mean. Sorry to hold Ms. Burns up to such a high standard, but if you're going to take on a career--aim for the top!

This dramatic thriller saves principally for her protagonists actresses and the topic of the autism. The strong world of the young autistic one that is a witness of the murder of his mother. Movie resembles "Mercury Rising" in feminine version. The only one failure that I find him is the end, when all the problem finished.

An interesting TV film but that limps when the end comes. I have not liked the way of being unrolled by this so rapid end and miser. I think that they could have saved an interesting but not very original work. Especially for the quantity of similarities that has with the led one for Bruce Willis "Mercury Rising" with a Miko Hughes playing the role of an autistic child prosecuted by the villains and that needs protection. Into this case we change Bruce Willis into an irresponsible youngster and to Miko Hughes into an autistic teenager...