A Viúva da Colina

This ended up being a better than average Lifetime movie. Totally captivating in a I'm hungover and can't get off the couch sort of way. Good cast and an intriguing story that I was never entirely sure how it was going to play out, including a surprising ending -which lets face it, doesn't usually happen with made for TV dramas.

The story starts out just before the trial and has been based on real events, following an ambitious young hospice nurse who is hired by a wealthy man to care for his wife during her final days.'Linda' "cares" a lot for 'Hank' as well (flirts) and soon after the death of his wife they marry, much to the suspicion of Hank's youngest daughter. Before long, Hank himself falls seriously ill and dies, leaving Linda one of the richest women in Virginia and arousing suspicions that she not only knocked off Hank, but his first wife as well.

This was heavy breathing melodrama. I really enjoyed James Brolin who was surprisingly sexy here with some very good love scenes (yeah I said it) but he also suffered from dumb man thinking with the wrong head (yeah I said that too). Natasha Henstridges is suitable sexy, wears nice underwear and wow, some of the stunts she pulls sleeping around with several men. Nice shock value there.

The daughter was excellent, although I'm not sure why they kept referring to her as "the alcoholic" she was sober for the entire movie. I guess to cast doubt to her credibility. Beautiful cinematography on the horse ranch and an interesting secondary cast, containing all the elements for great Lifetime television; sex, murder, family drama and mystery. 1/22/15

In Widow on the Hill, Natasha Henstridge plays a former nurse, Linda Dupree, who captures the affections of a recent widower (James Brolin as Hank Cavanaugh) and quickly becomes his new wife. Both parts are well acted, although often upstaged by Hank's grown daughter, Jenny (Jewel Staite). Jenny appears at first glance to be a troubled girl trying to overcome her mother's death while trying to stay sober. The audience quickly realizes that Jenny is much stronger and smarter than most of her family and friends give her credit for. Jewel Staite creates a 3-dimensional character out of what could have been a cardboard cliché. The story tends to fall flat at points, but overall this movie boasts a quality cast that make it worth seeing at least once.

I cannot give this horrendous movie any points. Even for an aging James Brolin. It's plain embarrassing to watch him making out with the blonde bimbo in this. Natasha Henstringe plays a selfish woman who is out to get all she can. The only weapon she can use is a low cut bra. She claims she's beautiful and men desire her. She's dreaming about that, for she certainly doesn't see her backside, which is as wide as her top. Never wear jeans, Natasha, they don't flatter you. Brolin acts like a stupid old man who can't keep his zipper shut. He has not aged very well over the years. His daughters, Jewel Staite and Melinda Deines do their best to put up with the gold digger wife of their father. Staite does a good job. Michelle Duquet as the mother does the best acting. She gives an honest performance and doesn't need a pair of breasts to guide her through the film. If you want to laugh watch Henstringe try acting.

Hank Cavanaugh (James Brolin) is a wealthy horse farm owner. His trophy wife Linda Dupree Cavanaugh (Natasha Henstridge) is accused of his murder by his daughter Jenny Cavanaugh (Jewel Staite). Linda has a sketchy past and started out as Jenny's dying mother's nurse.

This is a Lifetime movie. It follows Linda and is definitely painting her as the black widow. I don't know about the real story. The closing text leaves a lot undecided. This movie has definitely decided right from the beginning. Hank is too dumb to save himself at a certain point. I can maybe accept his point of view before then, but he's not being smart after that. This movie could work better if it is more of a mystery.

I started off being interested somewhat in the movie. It appeared it might be serious drama, dealing with death, grief, and healing, with some realistic human conflict thrown in. Alas, it didn't hold up.

I need a movie with somewhat consistent and believable characters. Too many characters in this movie were portrayed as extremely gullible and inconsistent. Look, I know this was not supposed to be Shakespeare, but come on, I need some quality in script and characterization.

The acting was alright, the writing not so much. At one point, James Brolin's character is berated for showing up at a picnic under-dressed. He states that ordering him around will not work. His new wife says that if he goes home and changes she will rip his clothes off later. That is a howler. This movie had a few unintentionally funny lines.

It was hard to care about Jame's Brolin's character. When he so readily gave his first wife's things to his new wife, even allowing his daughter to be snubbed, I lost most of my sympathy. Who really cares what happens to him. I must confess that I did not finish the movie. If it did a 180 in quality in the last 45 minutes, let me know. It was just unpleasant to watch and so predictable I felt there was no need to finish it.