Abandoned - Amore e inganno

Brittany Murphy had that something special. A certain look, an allure, a presence. As the French say, a certain something I don't know what. You see it in this movie. It's a drama/mystery/suspense flick that for some reason went direct to video.

Brittany drops off her boyfriend (Dean Cain) at the hospital for routine, out patient surgery. Except when she goes to pick him up, no one seems to know anything about him. He's not in the computer, his doctor is on vacation, and no one recognizes his nurse's name. Brittany gives a very good performance as the increasingly worried girl friend, seemingly losing the only man she has really connected with in a long time, or ever. Someone who has been there for her, and now, despite her best efforts, she can't be there for him. Peter Bogdanovich is also good as the creepy psychiatrist who suspects Brittany is suffering from a mental break down, a suspicion fueled by her current high dose anti-depressant meds and an unlikely story reeking of paranoia.

Supporting cast include Mimi Rogers as the clueless hospital administrator, Jay Pickett as the police detective with his own issues who is still good enough to follow the clues to the end, and Scott Anthony Leet as the intimidating security guard. Each give a competent performance that is credible.

The suspense is "edge of your seat" quality, and you can not be sure of the ending until it happens. Some (including me) might think it fairly obvious based on the plot clues, but that part is only the beginning of the twists.

As Brittany's final performance, this one is good enough to make you want to watch again sometime. Ultimately, it makes you wish she had longer to show us what she had.

Brittany Murphy existed in this. Her performance was great and the film isn't a bad film although it has been done too many times to stand out from the crowd. Its very cliché and been done so many times. From the off the film has you gripped and carries you along with enough intrigue to keep you watching. But what is distracting is the state of Brittany Murphy's health. Yes we all know this is her last film but you really need to watch this movie to know why. She is underweight, pale, sunken eyes and really bad lank hair. Why she wasn't in hospital instead of making this movie i will never know. Such a shame as she was really great in spite of her health problems in this film. Some things simply cannot be hidden by make up. RIP Brittany x

This was Brittany Murphy's last film, she's quite elegant and captivating on the screen (I enjoyed her voice work on King of the Hill as well). It's a very weak movie overall; aside from Murphy and Pickett, the actors were deers in the headlight. I feel that if they incorporated the best friend character more (whether that friend was part of the conspiracy or if she worked to help get Mary out of the hospital) it would have helped keep things exciting.

There's honestly no reason the character should be placed on a 72 hour psychiatric hold, no hospital staff member established that she is a danger to herself or others. Being on anti-depressant medication seems insufficient to place someone on a psych hold.

RIP Brittany Murphy and Jay Pickett.

They should have burned the work print out of respect for B.M! This "movie" gets my pick for worst movie I have seen in 2010. I'm sorry, I really liked Brittany and hate to see this as the last thing she put out before her tragic death. The acting, the writing, the story, the lighting, the continuity...everything is just pathetic. Its completely low budget, or at least the quality of the work is. Save yourself the 2 hours, you'd be better off watching grass grow.

*I only write reviews for really amazing movies or REALLY horrible movies. This is my first review in years, if that helps you judge how awful this was.

I have never written a review on IMDb even though I view this site daily and have for 5 or 6 years. I'm not a movie snob; I'm like most people: I want to be entertained or made to think because of what I am viewing.

This movie could have been quite good. It isn't. Brittany M. was fine, but no one else was. The minor roles were cast with unknowns. Their acting was as poor as you'll find in a studio produced motion picture. This must have been done on a "shoe string" as everything about it appears cheaply done. You'll notice that the guns sound like cap guns.

Beyond its predictability, I think what bothered me most was the amateurish acting of everyone except Murphy and the Lieutenant; even Cain was poor. Was it poor direction and a bad script that created this serious flaw? I don't know. I do know that it sticks out like a sore thumb.