I have been anxiously awaiting the release of Evan Rachel Wood's made for TV movie Down Will Come Baby since I had first seen the preview for it. Evan Rachel Wood who to me has always been one of my favorite actresses, never really got noticed or credit before this year's independent movie "Thirteen". Well this is technically Wood's first made-for-TV film so she has reeled in a new audience for her films. So, on Friday night, I was really really bored and I loved Evan after seeing her in Thirteen, so then I figured what the hell, I'm bored and there's nothing on so I'll watch it.
Down Will Come Baby is about a young girl Robin Garr(Evan Rachel Wood), who goes to summer camp for the summer. There she be-friends an overweight girl named Amelia (Katie Booze-Mooney). When Amelia dies in the pond on the last day of camp Robin feels it's her fault and immediately falls into a state of depression. When the school year begins, Robin gets help from a classmate to help her return to her normal self. Her mother is in Denver hopefully permanently and her dad is in Pheonix staying with Robin. Robin's dad meets the "perfect" nanny for Robin, Dorothy. Dorothy and Robin eventually become friends and Robin learns Dorothy is a controlling freak when it came to perfection and neatness. Dorothy ain't who she says she is and has a mental illness.
Another terrific performance by Evan Rachel Wood is the main reason to see the film. Evan Rachel Wood again proves to be one of my all time favorite actresses. Her acting is flawless; she delivers yet again another terrific character. What I like about Wood is that she always plays a different weird character in every film she is in and to top it off every character she portrays is likable. So bravo Ms. Wood on another great performance for your resume. I also really liked Diana Scarwid who nailed the southern stalker, mental illness role. She was very creepy and his character was very believable. You don't want to mess with Ms. McIntyre believe me. Tom Amandes does another good job and can add this good film to his resume along with his great performance in The Long Kiss Goodnight. The cast of this film was right on target.
Down Will Come Baby was based on a Gloria Murphy book entitled what the movie's title is. The movie was drafted into a screenplay by writer/director Gregory Goodell who wrote many great films including Face of Evil, Terror in the Family and Perfect People. I don't read many books so I don't really know if the book is like the movie. I know that the movie did have great dialog and a good story. The script wasn't on the completely original side, which I don't know if that is because he stayed loyal to the book but the script was very well done. It was a very well written piece in my opinion.
Gregory Goodell who again wrote many screenplays but has only directed five films in which only one of them I have seen. Gregory Goodell did a good job on the film, there are some really great locations in which this film was shot. The cabin in the woods was very creepy and I liked that the main character lived in this small town. There were also some pretty cool camera angles in the film along with some really suspenseful scenes. I have no problem what so ever with Gregory Goodell's work on the film, he wrote and directed a good thriller.
In conclusion, I liked the film but not as much as I wanted to and the reason for that is because I watched the film and didn't find the film to be a laugh out loud comedy in like the rest of. My fellow moviegoers must have been watching a different movie because to me the film had a few chuckles here and there but the audience at times was in hysterics like we were watching Austin Powers or some other laugh out loud comedy. So because of this occurring, I had a hard time really trying to concentrate on the film while people were laughing like a bunch of buffoons behind me. I still really enjoyed the film nonetheless; it had great performances, a good story, and a pretty decent ending. I would recommend it to everyone who enjoys a good horror/thriller film and doesn't like stupid horror films like Freddy vs. Jason or stuff like that because this isn't for you. This is more along the lines of a movie like Identity although Identity is a bit better; Down Will Come Baby is still worth checking out. I think Wood's performance is worth the your time alone but you get her performance along with a good story and a decent ending with Down Will Come Baby. Down Will Come Baby was a beautiful yet underappreciated movie. If it weren't for HBO I probably would have never seen it.
Diana Scarwid is playing sick in the head, mentally ill, perfectionist not to mention her daughter who drowned was the girl she takes care of friend. Diana isn't the best actress, but she's very good.
Evan Rachel Wood is a little country girl who's mother's not around and divorced and her dad hardly takes care of her. She doesn't have many friends but is very smart and inquisitive. Evan Rachel Wood is incredibly adorable and well on her way to her excellent role in 'Thirteen.'
The movie is somewhat slow moving at the beginning but builds up to a great movie. Everything is believable. Diana Scarwid and Evan Rachel Wood make a great duo. This is definitely a film worth seeing. Don't be turned off just because you haven't heard of it. It's better than a lot of that trash that is highly advertised. 6/10
