In the Best of Families: Marriage, Pride & Madness

Pay no attention to the other post saying this movie sucks, because it doesn't. This movie is based on a true story, that I as well as everyone that live around this area either grew up hearing about or lived through. Sometimes true stories may not present the rosiest of pictures, and this movie most certainly is far from rosy. Most of the movie is true, and follows along with the book written by a local author named Jerry Bledsoe, however somethings have been changed and made more Hollywood. If you are looking for a love story like Gone with the Wind, you're looking in the wrong place. If you are looking for a historical movie about a real life serial killer from Reidsville North Carolina, then this is the movie for you.

This movie was amazing! I was a little girl when all of this happened and to know that this happened in my own hometown. After I saw this movie, I went and researched everything to know about it. Then, I watched the movie again. These characters were true to their characters. It was amazing. Eveybody I talked to about this (who was involved) & who saw the movie, said this movie was wonderful! I thought it was wonderful, too. And it was eerie that this happened in my home town and that I actually know where the Newsom house is!! I really thought this movie was wonderful!

Sadly the critic above knows nothing of the history of the movie. The movie is based on the TRUE crime book Bitter Blood and is extremely accurate. Maybe he found it disappointing or unrealistic but sadly the story is true and well documented. I enjoyed the movie since I grew up during the time of the murders in Winston-Salem. I wish could find this movie on DVD.

The basic story line is about Susie Newsome, niece of Susie Sharpe who was the first female supreme court justice in North Carolina. She marries young Tom Lynch after meeting him at Wake Forest University. There bitter breakup leaves Susie in anger and hurt. She takes revenge out on him in a truly horrific story.

I wasn't originally going to comment on this movie, but, after reading some of the other reviews, I felt like I needed to add to this.

Although most reviews of this film have been somewhat positive,there are a few of the reviews which have noted how unbelievable this story is and how this movie is not worth the time. I disagree.

Some people may not realize that this is based on true events that happened in the mid 1980s in North Carolina. As a local high school student when this all came to the forefront, and also having been lucky enough to be able to read Jerry Bledsoe's original articles when they were published in the Greensboro "News and Record" (the local paper where he was writing at the time), I can honestly say that most local folks were both amazed and disturbed by the whole situation and the senselessness of it all.

If you are interested in this movie and would like to learn more about the Klenner, Sharp, Newsom, and Lynch families, I suggest that you read "Bitter Blood" (by Jerry Bledsoe) -- the book on which this mini-series was based. The movie was good, but never have I found a crime novel that was as intriguing as this. A long read, but worth the time.

I really thought this was a great movie. It was sad but hey, Wakeup!!! This really happens in life. I wished it came on more on lifetime. I haven't seen this movie in a long time and never caught all of it. I hope it comes back on sometime soon so i can watch the whole thing. I love the lifetime channel. This movie just goes to show lifetime has never let me down. I cried at the end, though. It was so sad to see how the kids ended up. I think this is a great movie to watch on a rainy Saturday afternoon. It is one to curl up on the sofa and get into. I wished it came on a DVD/VHS so that i could see it, the whole movie. Jayne Brook, from Chicago Hope, does a terrific job playing the new relationship in Tom's life. The only part i didn't like was the part Harry Hamlin played. He has done so much better than playing a guy who is a liar and one that would marry his cousin. However, i still would watch this movie again.