Perfect Sisters
| Perfect Sisters | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Stanley M. Brooks |
| Produced by |
Juliette Hagopian Damian Ganczewski |
| Screenplay by |
Fab Filippo Adam Till |
| Based on |
The Class Project: How to Kill a Mother by Bob Mitchell |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Carmen Rizzo |
| Cinematography | Stéphanie Weber Biron |
| Edited by | Robin Katz |
Production company |
Julijette |
| Distributed by | Gravitas Ventures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 98 minutes[2] |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Perfect Sisters is a 2014 Canadian crime drama film directed by Stanley M. Brooks. It stars Abigail Breslin and Georgie Henley. The film was released on April 11, 2014, and was based on the novel The Class Project: How to Kill a Mother, which itself was based on the real-life murder of Linda Andersen.
Plot
On January 18, 2003, police, alerted by a frantic 911 call from a distraught pair of teenage girls, arrived at the girls' Toronto area town house to find their mother dead. It appeared the 44-year-old alcoholic, having slipped into a booze-and-pill stupor, drowned in her own bathwater. The death was ruled accidental by the authorities. In the months that followed, however, police were alerted to rumors and reports that the teenagers had been gossiping to friends about the accident. Police began piecing together rumors that suggested the teens might have had a hand in their mother's death. In fact, rather than an accident, the story that emerged portrayed the two teens as cold-blooded, premeditated killers.
Cast
- Abigail Breslin as Sandra Andersen
- Rachael Henley as Young Sandra Andersen
- Georgie Henley as Elizabeth "Beth" Andersen
- Laura Henley as Young Elizabeth Andersen
- Mira Sorvino as Linda Andersen
- James Russo as Steve Bowman
- Rusty Schwimmer as Aunt Martha
- Zoë Belkin as Ashley
- Jeffrey Ballard as Justin Ross
- Stephan James as Donny
- Zak Santiago as Detective Santiago Gates
- Spencer Breslin as Cousin Derek
- Gabe Steidl as Bobby Andersen
Controversy
The film was scrutinized by the Toronto community for portraying the teenage murderers through a far too sympathetic lens.[3][4] Author and journalist Bob Mitchel states "I don't think the movie dealt with how cold-blooded and calculating they were" in an interview about the theater adaptation of his book.[5]
Reception
The film received generally mixed reviews with a 27% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 44% rating on Metacritic based on 8 reviews. Dennis Harvey of Variety criticized the film for being "ineffectual and cartoonish" and compared it unfavorably to the similarly-themed 1994 film Heavenly Creatures.[6]
References
- ↑ Lauren Alvarez (February 11, 2014). "Abigail Breslin's 'Perfect Sisters' Gets Release Date". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
- ↑ "Perfect Sisters". Gravitas Ventures. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- ↑ Linda Barnard (March 11, 2014). "Perfect Sisters, based on notorious 'Bathtub Girls' case: watch the trailer". Toronto Star. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
- ↑ Natalie Paddon (April 8, 2014). "Chilling tale of the Perfect Sisters hits the big screen". Brant News. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
- ↑ Allison Jones (April 14, 2014). "Perfect Sisters based on true Canadian story". The Chronicle Herald. Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Canadian Press. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
- ↑ Dennis Harvey (April 11, 2014). "Film Review: 'Perfect Sisters'". Variety. Retrieved August 13, 2016.