Hotchka

EXCERPT: Boy, this movie was _a lot_, from the insane time jumps to Marcus getting tasered into a coma to crazy plans that no one ever really thought through. Screenwriter Rachel Morton has turned out some really good thrillers, like _To Catch a Cheater_ and _Who Took My Family?_, but this screenplay feels more like it was written by AI prompts rather than by a person who sat down and worked out the plot. Right off the bat, it's pretty lazy to have a family, with a new baby, carelessly leave their doors unlocked so anyone can sneak in. Also, we as the viewers know that whoever Black Hoodie is, it certainly is not Marcus, who is all of five foot six, while the kidnapper is _much_ taller (and we see just enough of his profile in silhouette to know who it is -- pay attention to the nose). The whole story is filled with contrived plot devices, the most unbelievable of which is that Carly doesn't know she's nine months pregnant, but how could she with that completely flat belly? After she collapses on the lawn and then has a baby in her arms at the hospital, you might think for a moment that you've had a stroke and completely missed the entirety of the movie. We often have to suspend disbelief with these Lifetime thrillers, but this one takes the cake. And Pastor David's plan makes absolutely no sense. _Why_ invite Don, Suzanne and Carly to the house if you're trying to sneak a baby out? If they'd just stayed home that night, they would have _never known_ that Luna was being taken to another family. But, no, force them to hang out with your basket case wife. Nothing suspicious about that, right?!?! At some point during the movie, if you're brave enough to watch it, you're going to be wondering if you took crazy pills because there can't be anyone who saw this after it was completed and thought it made sense. Perhaps that's why it didn't make its debut in 2025 (apparently is was produced between _Who Took My Family?_ and _To Catch a Cheater_). Was it always a mess and they tried to fix it with re-edits that only made it more of a mess? Director Damián Romay has a pretty decent track record with his thrillers, but somehow this one just went completely pear-shaped. And neither title makes sense, because even with the new title no one ever suspects that the baby looks like Brayton. I'd think Brayton and Marcus were brothers before I thought he was the father of Luna. I don't know if words can adequately describe _My Granddaughter Has Your Son's Face_ to anyone who hasn't seen it because no one who hasn't seen it would ever believe that this is a real movie. This is a movie better suited for ribbing on _Mystery Science Theatre 3000_, or best seen with a group of friends and a few bottles of wine. It's hard to say if you'll be laughing uncontrollably or just have your jaw on the floor at the sheer nuttiness of the story. Some good performances go a long way to helping the movie not be a total disaster, but it's walking a very fine line. Full review on HOTCHKA