Film Review: 'A Woman Deceived'

Elizabeth Goodhart (Ashley Scott) couldn't have asked for more from her life. A beautiful home, a doting and wealthy husband Bill (David DeLuise), and a precocious son Tyler (Luke Judy), the timing couldn't be better for her to surprise Bill with a trip to a horse ranch to pursue his long-held dream of being a cowboy. While there, however, tragedy befalls the couple when Bill falls victim to a fatal horse riding accident, devastating both Elizabeth and Tyler.

A year later, while on a business trip for the company she inherited from Bill's death, Elizabeth is surprised to run into Travis Brown (Jay Pickett), a ranch hand who expresses his condolences to Elizabeth about Bill's accident. Shortly afterwards, Elizabeth and Travis' chance encounter leads to a passionate relationship, with Travis making a strong impact not only on Elizabeth, but on Tyler as well. Soon after, Elizabeth and Travis marry and it appears the pain of Bill's death is making way to a new chance at happiness.

That is, until Detective Morrison (Brian Krause), the lead detective on Bill's case, arrives at Elizabeth's home and drops a shocking bombshell: The police not only believe Bill's death was not an accident, but have Travis pinned as their lead suspect. While Elizabeth is initially adamant against the possibility that Travis killed Bill, Morrison's news leaves Elizabeth wondering if she really knew her new husband as well as she thought...

When it comes to Lifetime films, it takes a certain alchemy to take the standard tropes associated with the genre and put them all together to make a compelling and entertaining movie. This principle is essential to make a movie like A Woman Deceived an enjoyable watch, as it follows the well-worn path of a woman marrying a man who turns out to be hiding dark secrets. Unfortunately, the plot never truly allows for A Woman Deceived to go beyond the standard beats until the final act, leaving much of the film painfully routine.

Much of the blame for this comes in the fact that the film spends too much time setting up its plot, with the truth about Travis only coming to light during the last half hour of the movie. Until then, the audience is left to watch Elizabeth and Travis' romance blossom which, while not a painful watch per se, can be boring to viewers since they already know where it's all headed to. The intense third act is worth the wait, but some viewers may find it a challenge to make it through the plodding second act.

The pacing of the second act proves to be its only major problem, as A Woman Deceived has a strong cast under its belt. Lifetime regular Ashley Scott is likable and sympathetic as Elizabeth Goodhart, while Jay Pickett is convincing as both a suave romantic and a vicious sociopath, with his performance during the climax showing him at his best. Scott and Pickett also share great chemistry together during the second act development of their relationship, making the otherwise extraneously long sequence somewhat tolerable. Luke Judy is also sympathetic as Tyler, selling Tyler's grief over the death of his father with painful vigor and sharing some nice chemistry with Scott, particularly during their more emotional scenes together. In his limited screen time, David DeLuise also makes an impact as the ill-fated Bill, exuding tons of charm that you might find yourself sad when the inevitable accident claims his life.

A Woman Deceived is a tricky movie to give recommendation to, as while the cast is strong and the final act is Lifetime-ian drama at its best, the overly routine plot and meandering middle might be too much for some viewers to stomach. For Lifetime fans, casual or otherwise, this could prove to be a good film to watch in your downtime; just be prepared for a fairly uneventful second act.

Score: 6 out of 10 spooked horses.