Lifetime
Lifetime’s latest Sunday night thriller is purportedly based on a true story, although it is not included in the network’s ‘Ripped from the Headlines’ series of films. How much of this story is true and how much is fiction is up to the viewer to decide, however you can probably trace the story back to 2009 when a male suitor on the dating series Megan Wants a Millionaire was sought for the murder of his wife, causing the network to suspend broadcast of the series (and to shelve another competition series of which he was part of the cast). The facts of that story are similar to what is depicted in the movie, but with the bachelor the star instead of a contestant.
Match, Meet, Murder focuses on Ruby (Stephanie Sy), a lingerie fashion designer about to launch her new line while avoiding the pitfalls of dating or love after her previous relationship took a turn for the worst due to her ex-boyfriend Luke’s (Erik Athavale) increasing paranoia (he’s an investigative reporter and has rubbed some people the wrong way, putting himself in danger). But Ruby’s BFF and photographer Ella (Amanda Austin) thinks it’s time she get back into the dating pool and signs her up on an exclusive dating app for the rich and famous, two things Ruby are not … yet. Ruby immediately gets a match with a man named Dylan (Jacob Blair) and the two arrange a date that goes better than expected. Dylan brings Ruby back to his mansion (her car had broken down before the date even started, so he was her ride) and they spend the night together, something out of character for Ruby, and they two plan to see each other again. Before the date, Ruby’s assistant Coco (Dutchess Cayetano) reveals to Ruby that Dylan had been the star of a reality series titled ‘Marry My Millionaire’, hosted by a well-known matchmaker in Chicago, and Dylan had proposed at the end of his episode … but his wife to be disappeared before the wedding. Ella suggests Ruby not get herself ties to one man after one date and sets her up on another, but it’s a disaster … and Dylan is not too pleased that Ruby has already gone on a date with someone else.
Ruby’s life gets more complicated when a strange man shows up at her house looking for Luke, and when she discovers a strange older woman at what she believes to be Dylan’s home. The woman, Helen (Yvonne Veraus), drops some truth on Ruby about Dylan — if that’s even his real name — and she realizes her life is in real danger after one suspicious murder and an odd encounter with Jules, the matchmaker. Will Ruby survive to see her fashion dreams come true?
You can see some parallels to the real life story in Match, Meet, Murder with the main difference being the swap of Dylan as the bachelor instead of one of the men seeking love. The question is how did he even get on the show? Did the matchmaker, Jules, not vet him properly? Should be pretty easy to determine this man has no references unless he’s assumed someone else’s identity, which is never made clear. The only real information the story gives about him being a con man comes from Ruby’s interaction with Helen, and even she doesn’t know much about the man who was basically her gigolo, happy for the attention he gave the older woman. The story does include some convenient plot twists, such as Luke’s stalker, that helps cover up Dylan’s crimes (although — spoiler alert — after Luke is killed, the police question Ruby and Dylan and seem suspicious of Dylan’s answers but never follow through). Despite some gaps in logic, the writers and director do manage to amp up the tension, and the climactic encounter between Ruby and Dylan has some truly gasp-worthy moments, so points for that.
Stephanie Sy is excellent as Ruby. She is clearly invested in her career and really wants to put her focus on that, but she also makes us believe that Ruby naturally falls for Dylan’s charms. The writers also never make her do ridiculous things (well, except for not locking the front door of her house) just to put the character in more danger, and Sy just makes Ruby totally authentic, a character the audience wants to be invested in so that we root for her to triumph over Dylan. Jacob Blair also does a really good job as Dylan, never giving off any obvious red flag that can often crop up in these TV movies like a neon sign saying ‘I’m a killer’ over someone’s head. And even when he does get a little suss, like his reaction to Ruby’s other date or wanting to confront Luke about the people coming to Ruby’s house, he never goes completely over-the-top so we can chalk that up to Blair’s acting skills and a good director who prefers subtlety over obviousness. Erik Athavale does a good job as Luke, making him just jittery enough but with good reason, although completely unaware that Dylan poses more of a threat than anyone else following him around. Amanda Austin and Dutchess Cayetano are fine as Ella and Coco, occasionally playing their characters a little more broadly than necessary, but not enough to be glaring stand-outs. The only questionable performance comes from Lisa Marie DiGiacinto as matchmaker Jules, who plays the character in such a way that we never know if she is or isn’t working with Dylan.
All in all, Match, Meet, Murder is a serviceable thriller with some authenticity, a cast that manages to not overact, solid direction, and a tight script that manages a few good shock moments. Not one of Lifetime’s more compelling thrillers, but certainly not the worst, decent enough for a watch if you’ve got nothing else to do.
Match, Meet, Murder has a run time of 1 hour 27 minutes, and is rated TV-14.
I loved it. It was thrilling and had me on the edge of my seat.