Deceit (2004 TV Movie) User Reviews (6)

Too much going on and the parents were over the hill

[blanche-2 · 5/10 · 23 April 2010]

Lifetime movies have a few plots, all of which are recycled to make dozens of movies: the insane yet seductive babysitter, the "All Above Eve" scenario in the office, except the wannabe wields a knife; baby-stealing; psycho stalkers; wife killers; and the plot of "Deceit," a man lost at sea who may or may not be dead and the wife finds out things about him that she never knew.

In this story, a man (William Devane) is lost at sea, and the man's wife (Marlo Thomas) is haunted by a police detective that is suspicious about the circumstances. She also finds out about financial improprieties in her husband's business. The question is, what does she know and when did she know it? "Deceit" moves slowly, and the plot is convoluted enough that one soon loses interest. Marlo Thomas is a good actress who has made some very good TV movies; this isn't one of them. At 67, she's too old to be the mother of that little boy - in fact, it's not a stretch that she could be his great-grandmother. There was easily a thirty-year gap between Thomas and the woman playing her sister. There was one scene where Thomas was beautifully lit; if attention had been paid to the lighting throughout, she could have gotten away with it.

William Devane had too little to do.

Just not very good.

Miscasting

[evalent-1 · 4/10 · 5 March 2007]

It was not a good mystery. I thought it was way too simple to solve way before the movie was over. I'm also tired of movies where the police are painted in an unflattering light. The supporting cast did a good job. I do think, though, that the roles were very stereotypical. There wasn't anything fresh and new about this film. The worst problem was the serious miscasting of the lead role.

I totally agree with the earlier comment on Marlo Thomas not being a good choice for the role of a mother with a young child. She's still attractive, yes, but she does look much too old to be the mother of the little boy. She looks old enough to be the mother of the actress playing her sister. I could have enjoyed the film much more if that oddity hadn't kept bothering me.

The same applies for William Devane. Despite the fact that men can have children much, much later than women, I think they look silly.

Pretty bland

[caa821 · 6/10 · 7 April 2008]

A major proportion of "Lifetime" flicks fall into a small number of categories: the psychotic neighbor/babysitter/co-worker/etc., who insinuates herself/himself into a family in order to take-over or settle a grudge; the spouse with a hidden past or some dark secret emerging during the story; and the spouse who disappears mysteriously and/or suddenly.

This one gave the viewer a "twofer:" Bill Devane disappears from his family's life suddenly, and Marlo and the kids must contend both with this and secrets emerging simultaneously.

This story didn't have the realism many of this genre have, and realism is hardly a main staple in this genre to begin with. And this IN ADDITION TO the fact that (despite both looking pretty good), Bill Devane and Marlo Thomas were both pushing 67 at this film's release. The producers missed a bet in not making a product placement deal and showing bottles of Viagra and calcium supplements at their bedside or in the bathroom.

And for Pete's sake, the younger child, the son, in real life, could be their GREAT grandson.

As to story, there was nothing overly compelling, even had there been no distraction with regard to the age factor. The story line and performances weren't overwhelming or surprising in any aspect. The "twist" intended at the end wasn't a huge surprise, and it almost seemed that the cast had lost a lot of the minimal energy in their portrayals early. Many of these predictable TV movies present performances which are almost catatonic - this one was the extreme opposite.

Finally, I couldn't help being a bit distracted, wondering what-in-the-hell the circumstances were which led to this opus being made in New Zealand??!! There was nothing unique about the setting, simply portrayed as "Fairfield," a community on a body of water. You hardly have to travel to one of the farthest locales possible on the planet, to make a TV movie with appropriate setting available within an hour or less anywhere in the country.

Since Marlo Thomas is listed as a producer, I would guess she and Phil were looking forward to a visit down under, and combined with this endeavor.

She's so OLD!

[jerianne45 · 2/10 · 4 June 2013]

OMG I thought Marlo Thomas was playing the grandmother in the beginning-she's 66 or 67 years old and is supposed to be mother of this little boy? I don't think so-she must have funded or produced it and wanted a vacation! One of the more stupid Lifetime movies I've seen, but I am sick in bed and it was this or Wife Swap (-: Maybe I should have gone with Wife Swap...at least it would have been more believable! She does look great for her age, but really. This is one more easy to solve in first fifteen minutes-too much information that will make it easy to solve unless you are ten years old, like her son in the movie! Jeez, her sister is in her thirties!

Not the best movie I have seen!!!!!

[liza7212 · 27 March 2004]

Well, actually, I do love a murder mystery. But this one had too many red-herrings and well, nothing agains the lovely Marlo Thomas but I don't think she is able to believably play the mom of a young child. She is 66 years old and looks amazing for her age.

She has a great body and her face is fine. But because I know how old she is, well, it just wasn't believable to me.

But I did love the black top she wore that was off her shoulders. This lady can wear clothes, believe it.

The movie was okay, but just barely. William Devane is always a treat.

Just my opinion.

Call me Ishmale

[sol1218 · 6/10 · 16 February 2009]

**SPOILERS** We see what looks like a video taped recording of Ellen McCarthy's, Marlo Thomas, last will and testament where she, in a number of segments throughout the film, spills her guts out in regards to her late husband Grove McCarthy, William Devane.

Grove a pillar of strength and economic independence in the community has disappeared in his sail boat some two weeks ago and has been given up for dead by everyone but the towns top cop Det. Hal Kazin, Vondie Curtis-Hall. It's not that Det. Kazin doesn't believe that Grove is dead he feels that he was murdered, not lost at sea, by his wife Ellen.

As we soon see Ellen has trouble telling the truth which has to do with where she was at the time of her husbands disappearance. There's also the fact that Grove's financial institution, the fastest growing in the USA, has been misappropriating hundreds of millions of dollars from its many depositors in an elaborate Ponzi Scheme that Grove was suspected of engineering.

The plot starts to thicken when Grove's partner and best friend Ken Sprading, Andrew Robertt, starts to get cold feet and tries to have Ellen somehow do his dirty work for him in implicating her husband, who's body has yet to be found, in the Ponzi Scheme. It later turns out that Ken himself set Grove up and then took off with the cash leaving Grove to try to Ponzi his way out of the trap that Ken put him in. It's later when Grove's body, as well as sail boat, is recovered that it becomes evident that he didn't kill himself as at first believed but was murdered! The question now is who murdered Grove with the whole town of Fairfield as suspects!

***SPOILERS*** We finally get the lowdown, through Ellen's shocking video tape,to what were the circumstances that lead to Groves death and they aren't very pretty. It was a family affair in Grove getting himself smashed and losing control of his senses and libido. This had him hooked,in the neck, to death with a shocked Ellen being the one who ended cleaning up the mess. Despite being a real sicko and in your face alcoholic who even wanted to get his teenage step daughter Katie, Emily Barclay, smashed on champaign Grove was an innocent victim of a financial crime that he in fact had nothing at all to do with.

It was Groves weakness as a human being that was exploited by those who bankrupted his business that brought the very worst out of him. And in the end it was Grove who took the rap, posthumously, for those who used him in obtaining their ill gotten gains!