Lifetime Review: 'The Black Widow Killer'

Apart from her divorce from her sheriff husband Steven (Ryan Robbins), deputy mayor Judy Dwyer (Erin Karpluk) is doing her best to keep herself together for her own sake and the sake of her daughter Abbey (Morgan Kohan). But her efforts are shattered when her best friend and the mother of Abbey's boyfriend Kendra Wilson (Alison Brooks) is murdered, leaving Judy devastated and Kendra's son Daniel (Bradley Hamilton) facing interrogation from Steven.

Wishing to protect Daniel and find her friend's killer, Judy begins working her own investigation of the murder. But as she digs deeper, Judy's small town is rocked by more violence as Judy begins to realize that a dark secret from years ago has reared its violent head--and someone is out to take revenge for a decades-old wrong.

In terms of being a murder mystery, The Black Widow Killer is unfortunately a film that becomes dead on arrival thanks to its promotional materials. In addition to an official poster and IMDB credits list that more or less spoil the identity of the killer, a pair of early synopses (one of which was grossly inaccurate as a plot summary) more overtly give away the hidden villain's identity. With The Black Widow Killer fashioning itself as a whodunit rather than a howcatchem, these errors eliminate any suspense that might have resulted from the mystery.

Though even if the mystery hadn't been spoiled thanks to some ill-advised marketing decisions, The Black Widow Killer hardly boasts the most compelling story line. From the opening scene that takes the audience back 25 years, most viewers (keen-eyed ones familiar with Lifetime and otherwise) will be quick to determine who is responsible for the murders, leaving the rest of the movie to be a sluggish watch as we see Judy Dwyer and company chase after the film's obvious red herring--whose actions become frustratingly stupid once all is revealed. This, in combination with many viewers having the big reveal spoiled for them ahead of time, makes for a mystery that will have you frustrated throughout rather than intrigued.

WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW

It's when the mystery comes to a close, however, that The Black Widow Killer goes from dull and predictable to annoying and frustrating. As we find out in the climax, Judy (along with Steven, Kendra, and Jason) were the teens behind the wheel when they struck a car, killing Kyle Hanson and severely injuring Shannon Collins. Judy, Steven, and Kendra agree to flee the scene of the accident and let Jason take the fall alone, with Shannon vowing revenge against them.

Despite Judy's claims of guilt and her reluctance to flee the scene as shown in flashbacks, you never get the sense that present day Judy really feels that bad about what she did, with some bits of dialogue even indicating she doesn't even think she did anything wrong that night. What's worse, the botched mystery gives you a lot of time to stew about Judy's cold demeanor regarding her actions, making her and, by extension, her murdered colleagues void of sympathy. Steven, in particular, gets hit the worst out of the bunch. After seeing him violently threaten Jason into covering up their involvement in the accident, the film's attempts at making him sympathetic in regards to the murder investigation and his divorce from Judy fall flat and his unlikably brusque attitude towards her and their daughter becomes even more unlikable.

Spoilers Over

The way the film renders much of its main cast unlikable is a shame, particularly for main star Erin Karpluk, who proved in My Father, My Kidnapper that she has excellent acting talent; all of which is sadly wasted on the flat and unlikable Judy Dwyer, who in addition to her faults detailed in the Spoiler section, has the nasty habit of throwing her position as deputy mayor around in order to get people to do what she wants. Ryan Robbins is similarly stranded as Steven Dwyer, in a (thankfully) rare instance when the reviled "Useless Cop" trope becomes a central character.

Among the few non-mangled characters are Abbey Dwyer and Daniel Wilson, played with authentic emotion by Morgan Kohan and Bradley Hamilton. WARNING: Spoilers Karen Cliche also proves to be a gem once "Alice Evans" makes her villainous reveal in the climax, essentially becoming an audience surrogate for viewers left frustrated by Judy's "It was an accident!" and "I did nothing to you!" pleas. It's enough to leave you rooting for Shannon to have her revenge, and leave you furious when she winds up dead at the hands of a woman whose callous refusal to accept responsibility for what she'd done is seemingly touted as justified. Spoilers Over

So all in all, The Black Widow Killer proves to be a mystery thriller that falls apart, even before the opening credits are done rolling. Along with the poor marketing choices having the potential to spoil the already hackneyed mystery before it begins, you have a batch of unsympathetic main characters to add to the frustration that comes with watching The Black Widow Killer. With some retooling, this film could've made for a nice "Root for the Killer" movie, with Abbey and Daniel serving as the likable protagonists rather than the unpleasant adults surrounding them. But as is, The Black Widow Killer is a film that succumbs to its own venom.

Score: 3 out of 10 decorative threat letters.