I unironically love this film.
The screenplay is very fast-paced, wasting no time introducing all the principal characters, or forcing the plot to advance, while Lawrence Shragge's (admittedly fun) score flips on a dime from light and dreamy to somber and dramatic. Shanrah Wakefield's writing is undeniably cheesy and obvious, as we should expect from a movie like this. Director Lisa France leans hard into that flavor, clearly imparting to her cast to play up every line and moment with exaggerated gusto and flair. Dialogue is altogether ham-fisted.
Kat (Allison Paige) is so dreadfully careless and free-wheeling in her ploy, it's a miracle of Lifetime's making that the rest of the characters could be so oblivious and unquestioning. This especially goes for the protagonist, Krista (Tammin Sursok), who readily accepts Kat as her new Best Friend. The only one to hold any suspicion whatsoever - well, we know what happens to such characters in these stories.
Compliments to Dandi Dewey for her work in wardrobe, and makeup artist Cortney Heiser. Fashion plays no small part in the plot here, and every dress, blazer, and ensemble is so smartly considered. The cast looks outstanding.
And about the cast: I'm quite sure they are all skilled actors. France's guidance points them all in a particular direction, and they abide by it. Anyone viewing this is quick to dismiss the "bad acting." But the (over)acting, the movie as a whole, is specifically, purposefully over the top. We laugh at these things in B-movie horror flicks; what's so different here?
I readily admit that the whole reason I stumbled onto this movie to begin with and watched it is because I highly enjoyed Allison Paige's performance in 'The Lizzie Bennet Diaries.' Her turn here as Kat is decidedly different from her role as Gigi Darcy - and I love every moment. She clearly revels in every farfetched, overwrought moment of a character so dark and devious, and it's a thrill to watch.
'My killer client' is precisely the sort of movie audiences expect from Lifetime, and it's wild fun from start to finish. I'm not sure who the intended audience for this is, but it's such a delightful watch that I'd have a hard time not recommending it to just about anyone.
There are only two catches:
The first catch is that the stereotype of the "crazy girlfriend" is really just horrible, and even in a consciously preposterous tale like this, it's a bit tiresome.
The second catch is that I don't think 'My killer client' is intended to be a comedy.
