Lifetime Review: 'Nobody Will Believe You'

Looking for a fresh start after a rough divorce, Melanie Baxter (Jenna Rosenow) and her teenage daughter Hannah (Emily Topper) have moved to a new town where Melanie works to open up a spa. But while she may be a talented artist and pianist, Hannah doesn't have the easiest time fitting in at her new school. At least she has piano practice and the support of guidance counselor Garrett Williams (John William Wright) to help her deal with the ostracization and bullying.

But just as things are beginning to look up for the new girl, Hannah's problems escalate beyond petty high school cliques. Hannah begins to fear a stalker is following her. Her phone gets hacked and private photos of her are leaked to the whole school, further humiliating Hannah and alienating her from her classmates. Then a horrifying crime is committed and it's up to Melanie to uncover the truth behind everything before her daughter's life is destroyed forever.

Good on me for thinking to watch The Secrets She Keeps prior to the premiere of Nobody Will Believe You. Lots of comparisons can be drawn between these two Lifetime films. Both are directed by Damián Romay and have Samuel Hayes as a writer. Both are about a mother and daughter moving to a new town to start over (with the mother using the opportunity to start a business), only for the daughter to wind up in a dangerous situation. Both films even have a non-American-born actress playing the mother--New Zealander Zoe Cramond for The Secrets She Keeps and Australian Jenna Rosenow for Nobody Will Believe You. Hell, there's even a scene where a minor character can be heard watching The Secrets She Keeps! Mercifully, this film is nowhere near as insufferable as its predecessor. For the most part, Nobody Will Believe You is an engaging drama with a stellar lead actor.

That lead actor is Emily Topper, who gives a great performance as troubled teen Hannah Baxter. Sheltered and something of a wide-eyed idealist, Hannah makes for an easily sympathetic protagonist--a complete contrast to the bratty Amara Caldwell from The Secrets She Keeps. Topper is at her best during Hannah's emotional moments as her attempts to put herself out there at her new school get her harassed by her peers and slut-shamed by her crush. SPOILER ALERT Hannah's naivete extends to her brief romantic attraction to Garrett, making you feel for her as Hannah realizes she's been manipulated by a monster out to set her up for murder. With a more likable protagonist at the helm played by a better actor, Nobody Will Believe You does a much better job exploring the danger of predatory groomers than The Secrets She Keeps. Spoilers Over Overall, Topper excels in her first lead film role as a thoroughly likable character who you'll want to give a hug as her life begins to crumble around her.

(There's only one time when Hannah's actions don't make sense: her brushing off the encounter she has with her taser-wielding stalker in the school auditorium. I was expecting it to be revealed that something in her past was causing her to ignore it, like some trauma that made her believe she was imagining things. But no such reveal happens, leaving it as a dumbfounding case of inaction.)

Nobody Will Believe You gets off to a steady start before throwing Hannah into the deep end, allowing plenty of time to get invested in Hannah's ordeal. The story wisely doesn't try to make much of a mystery out of who's responsible for Hannah's torment. Even without all the spoiler-ridden promotional material, most viewers are sure to pinpoint the guilty party well before the characters do. SPOILER ALERT But even if you know he's guilty going in, it still makes for a tense watch as Garrett slowly breaks down and deceives Hannah for the purpose of framing her for his wife's murder. John William Wright brings an authentic performance as a man hiding his sinister nature behind a warm smile, a dorky demeanor, and a pair of old man glasses. Though when it comes to Garrett's villainous meltdown in the climax, Wright's acting and his character's excessively on-the-nose dialogue don't fare as well.

Grace Lawell (who plays Garrett's secret lover abuse victim Amber) is similarly subpar when Amber fakes making up with Hannah. Not that Lawell is done any favors with her first feature film role being as a character who's mostly just a generic catty mean girl. Two things in her favor: 1. she's not as bad as The Secrets She Keeps' Sage Kelley and Julia Reilly. 2. the surprise revelation about Amber is given some nice foreshadowing. She has moments of talking about her "secret boyfriend," and with the scene between her and her nasty stepfather, it's clear how Amber fell prey to Garrett. Too bad her character's status as another victim of Garrett's lechery falls into the background without further exploration. Spoilers Over

Back on the protagonist side of the cast, Jenna Rosenow does a fine job playing concerned mother Melanie Baxter. While she has her awkward moments, Rosenow is otherwise solid and shares some sweet chemistry with Topper as a mother struggling to reconnect with a withdrawn child. And whereas The Secrets She Keeps' Diane Caldwell was sorely lacking in backbone, Melanie proves her strength in the last act as she becomes determined to protect her daughter and bring the truth to light. Lowrey Brown also gives a good performance as stern piano teacher John Kurtz, with the mild camaraderie John forms with Hannah (culminating in a cute bonding moment where they both agree that they want to escape their troubles through the piano) hinting at the bigger role he ends up playing in the story.

Derrick Clowes' Tanner gets a similar bit of foreshadowing, with his text to Hannah telling her she's "not like most girls" being a well-placed clue that Tanner isn't the nice guy he pretends to be. Not that Hannah's so-called "true friend" Zoe is much better. There's nothing particularly wrong with Lauren Ledger's acting and Zoe has her supportive moments. But between how judgmental she gets about Hannah wanting to try out for cheerleading (under an "all cheerleaders are toxic braindead snobs" mindset) and the self-centered tantrum she has over Hannah not wanting to talk to her right after going through a traumatic event, Zoe doesn't come off as much better than Amber and her posse. SPOILER ALERT And yet, by the movie's epilogue, Zoe is back to being Hannah's best friend without a word being said about her earlier crappy behavior. The epilogue also shows that Melanie and John have apparently started dating in the time since Garrett's defeat. Given how the two had a total of one interaction before this, during which John briefly accused Hannah of being involved in Eleanor's murder and refused to help Melanie clear her name, this development between them makes zero sense. At least it ends with a cute enough callback to mac & cheese being Melanie and Hannah's comfort food. Spoilers Over

While The Secrets She Keeps was a long sour note, Nobody Will Believe You struck a lovely chord for me. The story has its faults and so do some of the characterizations. But in terms of writing, acting, and pacing, the movie definitely outperforms its predecessor. Emily Topper gives a sincere portrayal of a shy teenager dragged into a nightmarish situation, the cast surrounding her come close to reaching her level, and the story is compelling and well-paced enough to keep you interested in what happens to poor Hannah next. Given all the similarities between them, it only makes sense that my reviews for The Secrets She Keeps and Nobody Will Believe You should end with the same metaphor. Except this time, I'm saying that if Nobody Will Believe You were a Tinder profile, it would be the kind that you'd swipe right on.

Score: 7 out of 10 ruby birthstone necklaces.