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IMDbPro

Obsession coupable

Original title: Nightmare in Columbia County
  • TV Movie
  • 1991
  • Not Rated
  • 1h 40m
IMDb RATING
5.7/10
432
YOUR RATING
William Devane and Jeri Ryan in Obsession coupable (1991)
CrimeDramaThriller

The recounting of a terrible crime that wracked a family and galvanized police in South Carolina in the 1980's.The recounting of a terrible crime that wracked a family and galvanized police in South Carolina in the 1980's.The recounting of a terrible crime that wracked a family and galvanized police in South Carolina in the 1980's.

  • Director
    • Roger Young
  • Writer
    • John Bensink
  • Stars
    • William Devane
    • Jeri Ryan
    • Michele Abrams
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.7/10
    432
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Roger Young
    • Writer
      • John Bensink
    • Stars
      • William Devane
      • Jeri Ryan
      • Michele Abrams
    • 19User reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos

    Top cast36

    Edit
    William Devane
    William Devane
    • Sheriff Jim Metts
    Jeri Ryan
    Jeri Ryan
    • Dawn Elizabeth Smith
    • (as Jeri Lynn Ryan)
    Michele Abrams
    Michele Abrams
    • Shari Smith
    Nick Searcy
    Nick Searcy
    • Asst. Sheriff McCarty
    Linda Pierce
    • Hilda Smith
    J. Don Ferguson
    J. Don Ferguson
    • Bob Smith
    James Slade
    James Slade
    • Larry Gene Bell
    • (as Butch Slade)
    Joyce Leigh Bowden
    • Carol Metts
    • (as Joyce Bowden)
    Stephen Preusse
    • SLED Officer
    Joe Maggard
    • Scanlon
    Michael Flippo
    • Command Post Deputy
    Chuck Kinlaw
    • Principal
    Mark Jeffrey Miller
    Mark Jeffrey Miller
    • Man at Depot
    • (as Mark Miller)
    Alan Sader
    • Prosecutor
    Don Tilley
    • Man at Door
    John Bennes
    • Mr. Thornwell
    Stephen Ware
    Stephen Ware
    • Man at Pageant
    Rick Marshall
    • Man at Elevator
    • Director
      • Roger Young
    • Writer
      • John Bensink
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews19

    5.7432
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    Featured reviews

    Nancy-40

    Good

    This was a very good movie, sad, and mystery! this girl's sister is kidnapped and the kidnapper keeps calling her and becomes obsessed with her the police can't find him and he continues to taunt her over the phone, its a very good movie, you should watch it!
    MightyAphrodite

    memories :)...

    I saw this movie several times as a kid, and it came to my mind a few days ago. I came to web and found it :D... It's a great movie, really exciting and good. I truly recommend it.

    The actors do a great job and the directing is excellent. If this is based on a true story then it's really creepy....
    5blanche-2

    based on a true story

    Sadly, this TV movie is based on a true story. The problem with some of these dramas ripped from the headlines is that, after you've seen and heard the real family, there's simply no comparison.

    Thanks to some nice performances, however, this film does a pretty good job of telling the story of a beauty queen who disappears outside of her home and whose family is then tortured by the kidnapper even after the young woman's body is found.

    The actual shocking details are depicted in the movie - for instance, the poor mother having to keep the killer on the phone, on the day of her daughter's funeral, as the killer asks her if she wants to know how her daughter died. As the real-life mother said in the documentary done on Court TV, "Did I want to talk to him? No. But what choice did I have?" The young woman writes a letter to her family (also depicted in this movie). She states that she is ready to die and requests a closed casket. Though I can't imagine anything more unbearable, in real life, the parents say it has helped provide them with the closure they needed to go on for their lives.

    Though this film does a decent job, certainly, the focus is on the Jeri Ryan character, the victim's sister. After viewing the Court TV story, one walks away inspired by the courage of the entire family in the face of such torment, and is haunted by the photo of this beautiful, radiant young woman with her entire life ahead of her.

    In 2006, "What Not to Wear" did makeovers on three past beauty pageant contestants when they brought them back to re-enter the competition. One of the former contestants was a rather perky and annoying blond from the south. I later learned she is the sister on which the Jeri Ryan character is based; her sister was the one killed. I went from thinking this smiling and somewhat cloying older women was a pain to thinking she's one of the most remarkable women I've ever seen.
    Bryce-5

    This story is still well Known.

    I am from Lexington South Carolina where this story takes place. The movie is inaccurate by calling it Columbia County because it is not Columbia County it is Lexington County.. Columbia is just the largest city near by. This movie is a true story.. and its funny because it almost happened 20 years ago and it still is talked about and known today.. Kinda scary how things can be shaken up in a small town.
    6gavin6942

    Made-for-TV Silliness

    The recounting of a terrible crime that wracked a family and galvanized police in South Carolina in the 1980s. (Despite the name, there is no Columbia County in South Carolina.) This film has two things going for it. One, it roughly tells the story of killer Larry Gene Bell, so anyone interested in him ought to check this out. But more interestingly, it features Jeri Ryan before she got her big break on "Star Trek". So any fans of hers will want to see this (though it is not her finest moment).

    I was amused by how often they used the "call tracing" plot device. I do not know a lot about how real call tracing worked at the time,but I love that in movies it has to take a certain amount of time to get the exact location. Why it would take so long when the phone company should know where the call came from is beyond me.

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      Larry Gene Bell was executed in 1996. He was the last inmate to die in South Carolina's electric chair.
    • Connections
      Version of I, Witness: The Smith Sisters (2017)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 15, 1992 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Nightmare in Columbia County
    • Filming locations
      • Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
    • Production company
      • Landsburg Company
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 40m(100 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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