Un étrange enlèvement

I stumbled onto this movie accidentally in a motel while searching for something else. Because some things were familiar, I might have seen it years ago but forgot (though I obviously didn't review it here). On the other hand, some of it wasn't familiar at all.

I don't want to criticize the performances of the actors playing Elizabeth's parents. Their depiction of what the parents were going through could have been accurate. But something just seemed off about the father.

What stood out the most for me is the way the family celebrated holidays. They no longer seemed to be grieving, but remembered the happy times and hoped for Elizabeth to return. Surely their faith played a role, and these were wonderful scenes.

I found it curious the police sketch artist was not called in sooner. But Detective Mitt Romney (seriously, if someone wants to just cast this actor in the role based on appearance, he's perfect) didn't seem all that interested in trying to solve the case. The cops tried too hard, according to this movie, to blame the parents or a man who seemed innocent. Weren't the poor parents going through enough? Tom Everett as the kidnapper was a very convincing wacko. As much as the Smarts showed what faith in God should be, Emmanuel showed what it shouldn't. And Emmanuel's female companion just stood there and took the abuse from him. Elizabeth was too scared of what might happen to her family, but she did try to get away.

I saw this on Lifetime, and while this is not a monumental achievement, that's where it belongs.

I was happy to see the tasteful way they told Elizabeth's story. The actors were all great(that guy they got to play John Walsh looked just like him!)and mostly, the facts were straight. I hope that this movie will enlighten people and that she will be able to get the help she needs to recover. We love you, Elizabeth!

I live in Utah, and was around for most of the events depicted in the film. I was even recruited for search parties. Having seen everything first hand and then seeing it on the small screen, I realized that this version took various liberties with the story, especially in terms of Elizabeth's reactions to her captors and her rescue (it was Elizabeth who asked a police officer, "You think I'm that Elizabeth Smart girl everyone's looking for, don't you?", not the other way around).

Was it a good movie? Perhaps. I think it did a good job at capturing some of the emotions of the family (it almost entirely skips any depiction of the emotions of the entire state, who were all united in their concern for Elizabeth). I think that the movie was terribly unfair to the local police (who were handling the case as they had to, even if it wasn't to the satisfaction of the Smart family), and that it skewed enough events so that I can't accept anything from the movie as fact. The movie also failed to address the traumas that Elizabeth must have suffered in captivity, but I agree with the producers that it would not have been right to do so.

It's an okay movie, just don't base your opinions or perceptions of Elizabeth Smart's abduction, captivity, and return on what you saw in this movie.

Having been raised by a mother that was exactly the same as Elizabeth Smart's kidnapper ... I can tell you that this movie gave me a new set of nightmares to deal with. Which speaks volumes in regards to the acting and directing. I would imagine that Elizabeth Smart's life must also be full of nightmares ... and this will continue throughout the remainder of her life.

As seems to be the norm in these abduction cases, the police continue to make life even worse for the victims of these crimes against families. In this case, even though the abduction is witnessed by Elizabeth's younger sister ... the police still go after the parents. On the other side of the coin, it often is a parent that is the guilty party ... Jon-Bonet Ramsey ... but, with a witness, in this case ... a lot of time was wasted on trying to pin the crime on the parents. The person they tried to finally pin it on looked nothing like the real monster, as said by the only witness. Unfortunately, the police pretty much ignored that witness.

Believe this ... there are plenty of people, out there, that are exactly like the abductor of Elizabeth Smart. BELIEVE IT!

This was one really good movie to put it simply. It is about the whole Elizabeth Smart story from when she was kidnapped to when she was rescued. The portrayal of the characters was really good. I liked how they showed Elizabeth with Brian David Mitchell and his wife Wanda with good detail yet still keeping it as a reasonable level. This was a really good movie and I am so glad I taped it. I have had people borrow it from me and I have received nothing but good thoughts about it. A really well made movie.