Is There a Killer in My Family? (2020 TV Movie) User Reviews

no stakes for too long

[SnoopyStyle · 4/10 · 3 October 2020]

In 1937, a woman screams in Crawford Island, New England. True-crime writer Carly Travers is vacationing with her husband Kevin at the Crawford manor and starts investigating the unsolved murder of Diana Crawford.

It's a Lifetime movie mystery. The lead actress is fine. Her husband is annoying. The mystery is fine but there are no stakes at the beginning. It starts too slowly and takes too long to put her in danger. Somebody should be threatening her as soon as possible. The biggest stake seems to be her marriage. There is an angered local woman but she's not enough. It does turn into Scooby Doo at around the halfway point. The last act starts with a revelation which would be better served as the starting point. She should be an heir coming to claim the ancestral home. That is always good for some kind of family dysfunction. The first half is too slow and it never recovers.

Stick with the Nancy Drew Mysteries

[Ed-Shullivan · 5/10 · 1 November 2020]

A mystery/thriller this was supposed to be. But instead, it was a big disappointment with a lousy ending. Mrs. Shullivan and I went into it knowing that this was a Lifetime made for TV presentation, and yet we left our guard down and decided to see how the movie's mystery progressed. I won't give away the ending but trust me, it's shallow and disappointing.

The film's dramatic music theme is constant, and yet there is no suspense what so ever. The acting was decent enough but the story line is shallow and worthy of a high school play.

I give it a 5 out of 10 IMDB rating.

predictable movie with not so good performances

[geoffox-766-418467 · 5/10 · 29 March 2020]

It was qute slow getting started and kind of long in the talking for a film. Leading lady, looking a lot like Fanny Brice, was sometimes interesting but not too convincing in being an author of mysteries. Her boy friend, Kevin, fared better and as typical LMN movies, fades into the background. This view found it hard for such a good looking guy would fall for this kind of girl.. But,that's movies for you. Sometimes it is hard to accept these plain janes telling these young hunks to get lost. Oh well, that's LMN.

Husband a wimp, wife was good

[Little_Tyke · 7/10 · 31 August 2022]

An above average TV movie for afternoon viewing. I had seen it before. I've probably seen most afternoon movies before. As long as sufficient time passes since the last viewing, I can watch it again. This movie took a while for me to remember it, but as soon as I saw the rather ugly house on the island I did remember. Then pretty much everything fell into place. This time it was more about how the characters interacted, since I kept remembering what was about to happen next, kinda. Still some misremembered surprises, though. The ending was a bit weird, however. Did I understand correctly that Kevin had had an affair with the girl who ran through the woods in a white robe? Kevin was such an irritating guy, the way he kept asking her how she felt over and over. And apologising. Was that his guilty conscience speaking? And at the very end, the captain's boat was putted up at the jetty while the captain loaded suitcases into the hold. Along comes Kevin, limping. Looking sorry for himself. But it wasn't clear whether they were both leaving, or only her, off on her new wish for a vacation, or indeed Kevin alone after his wife had dumped him for sleeping around? I hope it was the latter. Anyway, the movie was better that most, so I'll give it 7, not least because I thought the girl who played Carly was an attractive character.

A Story That Needs to Be Told!

[lavatch · 6/10 · 19 July 2023]

While the pacing of this film was glacially slow, there were some good character developments and beautiful photography of a coastal retreat.

Carly Travers is a popular writer of true crime. With her out-of-work actor husband Kevin, Carly is interested in researching the background on the patrician Crawford family to whom she is related. It is difficult to imagine two characters as different in temperament as Carly (ambitious, decent, honest) and Kevin (lackadaisical, insensitive, dishonest).

The screenplay moves the action into the past with the death of Lady Diana Crawford. This is a cold case that is still controversial among the small community of Pleasant Bay, and Carly is eager to learn about Diana's formidable husband, John Henry. A haunting portrait of Diana hangs in Crawford Manor, and it curiously bears a strong resemblance to Carly herself.

There was a good payoff to the film in the merging of the Crawford history and the drama faced by Carly with a crazed "fan." You'll have wade through most of the film to finally arrive at the big revelation and the message. A writer of true crime always runs the risk of damaging the lives of the survivors, as she writes about the violence inflicted on their loved ones.

For Carly as a writer, it was important to tell the truth, which is why she carefully researches her subjects. In the case of her first book, "Disappearance From Route 9," however, someone got their feeling hurt. Now, she comes to believe that the saga of Lady Diana is a story the must be told. Welcome to Crawford Island, Carly!

Good Old Fashioned Murder Mystery

[alohahealers · 8/10 · 18 February 2020]

Let's start by saying my review for this is based on a Lifetime movie scale. That being said, I think I would have enjoyed it regardless. In fact, it didn't seem like your typical Lifetime made for TV movie, more like something the younger me might read then older me rented from Blockbuster to watch on a rainy Saturday night. That's because it's not-thus the name change. (Is there a Killer in My Family vs more appropriately named Island of Shadows). This Canadian production uses its dreamy seaside landscape paired with aged rustic architecture, and thickets of tangled trees to its fullest potential. Something about it reminded me of my favorite Hitchcock film-Rebecca. Solid murder mystery. Nice twists. Not completely unpredictable but wrapped up nicely in suspense and intrigue. It held my attention and that's saying something. I think what worked for me is the strong female lead character and that it was well realized by Anna Hopkins. It's a definite standout from their regular line-up. I was left wanting more- in a good way.