The Lifetime Network in America is known for making movies which always feature a woman in some kind of peril. By the end, she bests her kidnapper/torturer/would-be-murderer, usually leaving a trail of blood behind her.
Secret Obsession is Netflix's latest foray into the world of trashy movies, and it hits all the right notes for that genre with an added big-budget sheen.
Brenda Song (The Suite Life of Zack and Cody) plays Jennifer. She starts the movie running from someone dastardly only to get hit by a car, resulting in amnesia and a husband (Mike Vogel from Bates Motel) she doesn't recognise.
Unfortunately, if you watched the trailer, you already know Vogel's Russell isn't the real Russell. This foreknowledge has the effect of deflating the sense of peril Jennifer faces.
But even without the spoiler-laden trailer, Russell is pure creepy. He wears a tie and shirt to dinner in his own home. Obviously, something is wrong with that man.
A surprising bright spot is Detective Page, played by the honey-voiced Dennis Haysbert (24) who by sheer willpower alone brings normality to this over-the-top stalker-thriller.
Whether or not you want to watch it, however, might depend on your taste for trash. Because Secret Obsession is definitely trashy.
The movie glosses over pernickety logistical details like time, phone battery life, and hospital procedure, hoping you'll ignore all that – which is hard to do in a world where we're hyper-aware of how bad our smartphone batteries are.
But despite this, the movie gives you the right emotional rewards for sticking with it as you follow Detective Page uncovering the truth.
There's also an uncanny catharsis in watching these kinds of movies.
How many of us have had nightmares where we're in danger and our car won't start? Or been on a first date where the vibe just isn't quite right? Or walked home in the dark, gripping a set of keys just in case?
This movie, and the many like it, allow viewers to live out those dark nightmares without ever being in peril.
They also give you tips of what to do if you ever find yourself without your memory in a beautiful house in the remote woods with a stalker claiming to be your husband...
If you want a superb, serious amnesia-stalker-thriller, check out Nicole Kidman's Before I Go To Sleep.
But if you want a trashy, popcorn-guzzling, big-budget Lifetime-style movie, Secret Obsession is for you.
Secret Obsession is now playing on Netflix.
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