Lifetime
Lifetime delves into the past for another ‘Ripped from the Headlines’ story of an abusive family that led to a tragic event and unfounded accusations that tore the family apart. Of course, this being a dramatization it may not all be completely factual — we have some questions — but the important points of the story are here.
Monster in the Family: The Stacey Kananen Story opens with a scene of a house on fire, two young girls trapped inside. While trying to get attention at the bedroom window, they can see their mother being held back in a car by their father. In the nick of time, their older brother breaks the window from outside and saves his sisters, but this was just one example of the trauma Stacey Kananen and her siblings suffered. Twenty years later, Stacey still suffers from nightmares about her father, who disappeared fifteen years earlier without a trace, tortured by the thought that he could return at any minute and make good on his threats to kill her, her sister and any children they may have (sister Cheryl has three kids but Stacey has none due to, we find out later, the damage done to her reproductive organs by her father’s sexual abuse). Out of the blue one day, their brother Rickie shows up on Stacey’s doorstep, allegedly in town on business, looking for a place to stay. Stacey welcomes him into her home, because she wouldn’t be alive if he hadn’t saved her on more than one occasion. Rickie later admits that his significant other has left him, so he is trying to rebuild his life. While helping Stacey and their nephew Christopher do some gardening and landscaping, Rickie proposes starting a landscaping business to Stacey. It doesn’t take much convincing and the two are quickly signing papers to get things started, with $400 of seed money in the bank courtesy of Rickie.
Their lives take a turn when mom Marilyn goes missing without a trace, her car gone but her house left in a state of disarray. The police, led by Detective Hoskins, don’t seem to think there is anything concerning about the disappearance, but after time passes and Marilyn has not returned, it becomes urgent for the family to try and take care of her financial affairs. Stacey has no luck as she is not listed on any accounts, including the bank account, so she decides to pose as Marilyn just to get the money freed up to pay the bills. Time continues to pass, and while Stacey still holds out hope her mother will return — though fearing the worst since she disappeared on the exact anniversary of her father’s disappearance, suggesting he may have come back and taken her — she and Rickie inexplicably begin to sell off her mother’s belongings at a yard sale. Rickie had previously discovered their mother had been cashing her husband’s Social Security checks but didn’t want the police to know about that type of fraud which would get Marilyn into deeper trouble if and when she returned. But the yard sale raises all kinds of suspicions with the detective, who alerts Cheryl, and Cheryl then calls Stacey and basically outright accuses her of killing their mother. Stacey continues to assert her innocence, and is certain it was their father whom she believes has been terrorizing her at her house, making his presence known from outside just long enough for Stacey to see his shadowy figure, her nightmares becoming more and more realistic to the point she asks Cheryl if she can crash on her couch while her partner Susan is out of town. Cheryl makes excuses to not let Stacey stay with them, and it isn’t long before Christopher tells the police that he believes Rickie and Stacey killed their mother.
At Marilyn’s house, Stacey notices a piece of carpet overing a panel on the floor of the garage, Rickie snaps and tells her to leave it alone, but he knows the heat is on and the police are not far from discovering the truth — he killed Marilyn and buried her in Stacey’s garden. He also killed their father and buried him under the garage floor, which meant Stacey had been living in constant fear for more than a decade for nothing. But now she has another problem because Rickie assures her that if he’s going down, he’s taking her with him. After being questioned by the police, Stacey denies knowing anything about her mother’s murder, but Rickie tells a different story — it was all Stacey’s idea, and she even helped him kill their father. When Stacey asks Rickie if their mom knew about their father, Rickie points out that he was buried under her garage so she obviously did, especially if she was collecting and cashing his checks. Rickie convinces Stacey that they will both go to prison, possibly sentenced to death, so they should just both kill themselves now. They drive to his (or his mother’s) garage and Rickie affixes a tube to the tailpipe of Stacey’s new truck — he claimed to have won the lottery and gave her the money for a down payment — and into the window, handing her some Nyquil to help her go to sleep to make the asphyxiation easier while he took a handful of pills. He also instructed her to write a confession that they were both guilty, but Susan had nothing to do with the murder, and while she was starting to fade, she saw that Rickie had not taken the pills. He walked out and went upstairs to the house to let her die, but somehow the police arrived and saved her in the nick of time. Unfortunately the suicide attempt and the note only make Stacey seem more guilty, but Rickie is ultimately convicted of the murders of his parents. He still, however, maintains Stacey was involved and takes a plea deal in exchange for a lighter sentence. This results in Stacey’s arrest — although she surrenders to the other detective with Det. Hoskins — and is held in the county jail. During a court appearance, Stacey has obviously been assaulted while in custody by prisoners who don’t take kindly to matricide, and the judge grants her release on $100,000 bond … but the prosecuting attorney announces they will be bringing new charges based on evidence provided by Rickie. Stacey faces her day in court, and it’s clear the prosecution has no real evidence. Stacey’s attorney notes that the signature on the paperwork for the landscaping business looked similar to hers but there was one thing of note that didn’t match any other signature of hers — it did not include her middle initial, which is how she always signed her name. The defense attorney made a compelling case for Stacey, having her testify to the years of abuse, and not even Rickie’s lawyer could craft a scenario the jury believed. Stacey’s attorney also pointed out that in the years since the initial arrests and trials, Rick’s story had changed several times while Stacey’s was consistent. The attorney’s real nail in the coffin of the case was getting Detective Hoskins to admit on the stand that he just basically took Rick’s word for everything and never did any investigation into his claims against his sister. In less than four hours they had a decision — Stacey Kananen was found not guilty. Now free from the fear of her father’s return and the knowledge that her brother would remain in prison for decades, Stacey and Susan could finally get their lives back on track, with Stacey eventually becoming a victims’ advocate (or as she preferred to call them, ‘survivors’).
Lifetime
Monster in the Family: The Stacey Kananen Story paints a vivid tale of abuse, without really showing it outside of the fire, allowing the words and performances of the actors to tell the audience all they need to know without graphic details. Even Stacey’s nightmares are intensely frightening but show nothing but the implied threat of her father’s return. What the story could have used was a little more information about Marilyn. She’s seen with her daughters and grandchildren in one scene, but she acts completely indifferent, especially when Rickie shows up and there is no explanation as to why she seems to be so cold to him (and we are only made to assume later that she did know he killed her husband, and she potentially had a hand in the murder). There is also the question of the yard sale. Did this actually occur in real life? There is no explanation given for why anyone who believes their loved one will return at some point would suddenly clear out their house and garage and start selling stuff. It was probably to help pay the bills, but it still seemed very strange unless Stacey knew her mother was dead. All that scene did was help Detective Hoskins establish reasonable doubt that Stacey’s proclamations of innocence were false, and it helped drive a wedge between she and her sister. There is also no information given at the end of the movie as to if the sisters reconciled, as the last thing we see of Cheryl is her approaching Stacey before the verdict and silently holding her hand, but then leaving the courtroom apparently in shock after the verdict without saying a word to Stacey. Did she still believe Stacey had a hand in their parents’ murders? All that is never explained. One major fact that is omitted is that after her brother’s trial, Stacey and Susan moved to a coastal resort town in New York state, which is where she was arrested. In the movie they remain in Florida. Rick’s 30-year sentence is set to be up in 2033. These issues aside, the teleplay by Jill E. Blotvogel is taut and compelling, allowing the viewer to feel Stacey’s growing frustrations as she is wrongly accused and has no way to defend herself against her brother’s claims. Director Jessica Harmon also does a nice job with guiding the cast through the story, often making the viewer question if the scenes of Richard Sr. returning are real until Stacey awakens (though this may happen one too many times). Overall, it’s a really solid, professional and classy production that holds your interest from beginning to end, anchored by a great cast.
Elisha Cuthbert is outstanding as Stacey. She gives the role a huge feeling of vulnerability, often with a sense of being rudderless in her life (it’s unclear in the movie if Stacey works, but in real life she did have a job at Walt Disney World), which her brother took complete advantage of, allowing him to easily manipulate her. We always believe in Stacey’s innocence through the wonderful performance of Cuthbert, and had this been a premium cable service or broadcast network movie, she would almost certainly be up for awards recognition. Brendan Taylor is also excellent as Rickie, giving a real sense of hopelessness when he first arrives, and then really connecting with the family and showing total concern about his mother when she disappears, never really letting on that he killed her until he lashes out at Stacey about the carpet in the garage. From that point, his demeanor changes and we know he did it, but he also manages to be that gentle soul with the police claiming his innocence while expertly framing his sister. Even after he confesses, he still manages to sway the police into believing Stacey was the brains of the operation. It’s quite a chilling performance.
James Pizzinato is saddled with that stereotypical Lifetime movie cop, the one who believes in guilty until proven innocent. He has to be a dick in every sense of the word and he does it well … but that wig did him no favors. In his few brief scenes as Richard Sr., Pete MacLeod is utterly terrifying. Luvia Petersen is excellent as Susan, the partner whose faith never wavers even though she could be implicated as well, and Lindsay Gibson is very entertaining as Stacey’s attorney, very to the point in court without being a ‘showman’, and also showing both compassion and concern for Stacey as they await the verdict, suggesting that she give Susan any of her personal effects before the verdict is read … just in case. The rest of the cast also does well in their smaller roles, although they may not be as fleshed out as the main roles, particularly Cheryl and Marilyn. Nonetheless, everyone does great work and their performances elevate the film, making what is a harrowing story well worth watching.
Monster in the Family: The Stacey Kananen Story has a run time of 1 hour 27 minutes, and is rated TV-14.
Monster In The Family: The Stacey Kananen Story | Official Trailer
Lifetime