Kidnapped: The Hannah Anderson Story (2015 TV Movie) User Reviews

Should have been told in a chronological way

[phd_travel · 6/10 · 1 May 2019]

I understand they showed the rescue and aftermath before the kidnaping to show people not to judge victims by their reactions. But this non linear format made it less dramatic and lessened the impact of the story. Still the story is worth watching. The actress acts a bit stone faced at first but that's the way teens act so it's realistic.

Worth a watch

Good movie

[jhawley-25021 · 6/10 · 9 January 2020]

Loved Me: But wanna know more about Song heard at end

Decent movie but....

[toralyoshida · 6/10 · 19 August 2021]

Can someone please explain to me why the fade to black 8 seconds pauses??!! So weird!!

Ill Structured Abduction Story

[wes-connors · 2/10 · 24 May 2015]

Mature-looking young teenager Jessica Amlee (as Hannah Anderson) is out on an Idaho camping trip with her significantly older "uncle" Scott Patterson (as James "Jim" DiMaggio). We know something is wrong because Ms. Amlee is skittish and Mr. Patterson seems to be interested in his niece as a sexual companion. Looking very creepy, he waves a gun around. As if that wasn't enough, they are surrounded by the FBI. After some shooting, Amlee is rescued and reunited with kind, soft-spoken father Brian McNamara (as Brett Anderson). We learn Amlee was abducted by Patterson. He also beat and burned to death her mother and brother. Amlee and her dad return to their Lakeside, California home. But things do not go well, there...

Reporters swarm around Amlee and question her level of participation in her abduction. They suggest the "Lakeside Lolita" was a willing partner for Patterson and may have even participated in the murder of her mother and brother. To set the record straight, Amlee considers going on "The Today Show" to tell her story. Some fear this will only fan the tabloid flames, but Amlee is determined to tell her story...

This "Lifetime" TV movie claims to have been, "based on a true story." This review is not meant to judge the young woman characterized...

As a story, "Kidnapped" is not very intriguing. We know "media" stupidly follow these stories for their entertainment value, but they take the "side" of the abducted young woman; witness the lurid-tingled reporting of Natalee Holloway's disappearance by Greta Van Susteren and Nancy Grace. Here, we are led to believe "media" see Amlee as guilty of participation, but we are not shown why. The TV flashback "point of view" story goes into scenes without Amlee or her father. There is no suspense in scenes when Amlee tries to escape or kill her abductor, since know the ending at the beginning; consequently, director Peter Sullivan's best scenes fail. This shifts interest to the psychological, but the characters are simply not at all interesting.

** Kidnapped: The Hannah Anderson Story (2015-05-23) Peter Sullivan ~ Jessica Amlee, Scott Patterson, Brian McNamara, Jay Pickett

All in all the story has its own power.

[verisww · 5/10 · 31 July 2021]

You had the right elements for great story telling. The real story is better than the fiction so why did the movie not work as well as it could?

First the acting of the main character by actress Jessica Amlee just didn't seem quite believable. All the other actors did fine especially Brian McNamara playing the father. He was believable. Jim Patterson, the creepy villanous uncle, did a fine job but was challenged when acting up against the poor acting of Jessica Amlee.

Second, the scenes of key parts of the story were poorly done. Some scenes were too short and others too long in the story telling. That part I believe is caused by poor editing. It seemed choppy. There is a way to go back and forth in time sequences that makes sense and this movie didn't make the cut.

All in all the story has its own power and it is too bad there isn't a better production made with the actual input of the real character, the real person this happened to, Hannah Anderson herself. Maybe a docudrama would be best.

Loved the music

[lucbrike · 7/10 · 28 August 2019]

Loved the music at the end of the movie. Can't find it anywhere to buy :(

A Harrowing Tale Thoughtfully Told

[lavatch · 8/10 · 30 September 2019]

Based on a true story, this film tells the tragic saga of sixteen-year-old Hannah Anderson, who was kidnapped by the closest friend of her father after he had murdered in cold blood her mother and brother.

The name of the abductor was Jim DiMaggio, who seemed on the surface like an uncle to young Hannah and Ethan Anderson. Hannah's father, Brett Anderson, was separated from his wife Christina and was working in Tennessee, far away from his family members, who resided in Lakeside, California, which is northeast of San Diego.

"Uncle Jim" always seemed to be looking out for the kids, but he had deeper, darker secrets. His father had once tried to abduct a sixteen-year-old girl, then later committed suicide. It appears as though "Uncle Jim" was not only following in his father's footsteps, but was consciously seeking to imitate the deranged father.

The screenplay presented the story via flashbacks as Hannah is being interviewed on NBC television. The production values were excellent, especially the scenes in Idaho, where "Uncle Jim" takes Hannah. A group of passersby riding on horses spot "Uncle Jim" and Hanna, and they recognize that she is the kidnapping victim reported in the news. The riders' alert to the authorities likely saved the life of Hannah Anderson. The actress was excellent in the film, but it was especially the performance of the actor playing the father that registered most profoundly the emotional anguish of this shocking ordeal.

One of the themes of the film was the bullying that occurred on social media that questioned the integrity of Hannah's version of the story. The insensitivity and shocking allegations that she was a "Lakeside Lolita" led Hannah to go on national television to tell her story.

Still, the abuse continued with callous comments posted on the internet by users hiding behind pseudonyms. It was therefore ironic that, after this film was released, the real Hannah Anderson posted a complaint on Instagram that she never was consulted about the film and that even the film's preview included a false representation of the events. To be thorough and accurate, the film's producers should have consulted with Hannah. Still, the film portrayed her character with great dignity and compassion.

Intense thriller!

[samanthagarrison721 · 9/10 · 25 May 2015]

KIDNAPPED: THE HANNAH ANDERSON STORY is a gripping, well made thriller about the rescue of the San Diego teenager that captivated Southern California a couple of years back.

The film actually begins with Hannah's rescue and then dives into the sad and tragic way that her behavior following the ordeal was misinterpreted by a skeptical press. As Hannah herself says in the film, "If I smile it means I don't miss them, if I don't smile then I'm a bitch." We see how a girl in emotional distress is treated like a tabloid sensation and her attempts to move on are hampered by endless harassment.

Finally, the stress sends Hannah on a quest to clear her name, which she does on the Today Show. I remember watching this interview when it first aired and a lot of it seems to be presented identically as Hannah finally gets a chance to tell her side of the story. What then unfolds is not the murderous schemes of the so-called Lakeside Lolita, but the tragic story of the victimization of a teen-aged girl at the hands of so-called family friend Jim DiMaggio. We see his creepy crush on her (explained in Hannah's own words, taken from actual interviews and chat room sessions) and how that leads to the murder of her mother and brother.

The final third of the film is the chase and rescue as the FBI closes in on DiMaggio, who has taken Hannah to an Idaho forest with hopes of starting a new life.

Terrific performances by Scott Patterson (as DiMaggio) and Jessica Amlee (as Hannah) go a long way to bring an emotional core to what could have been a stock villain/victim dynamic. Brian McNamara does a great job as a dad dealing with both the end of his marriage and the death of his wife and son. There are a few solid thriller moments along the way (a sequence set in a Nevada truck stop is a stand out), but mostly this is the story about a girl trying to survive both the kidnapping and the turmoil that followed.

Much has been made of Anderson's negative reaction to the film, but it is difficult to imagine a more sympathetic portrayal. Aside from DiMaggio, it is the media and the outspoken critics of Anderson (including DiMaggio's sister) that are the villains of the piece.

It would have been nice to spend more time in the wilderness with DiMaggio and Anderson. These sequences are as frustratingly short on details in the film as they were in the initial media coverage... which doesn't help those who believe something more happened between the two. The film doesn't stray too far from Anderson's own accounts of the incidents, which feels like a missed opportunity to explore other dimensions of the case. It also holds back from some of the more brutal aspects of the case (all the murders take place off screen or out of focus). But then again... it is a Lifetime movie.

Still, a few flaws aside, this is a very good movie that will likely hold the viewers attention... and just disturbing enough to linger in the mind for a few days after.

****

[edwagreen · 10/10 · 27 June 2015]

This biography tells the true story of a man taking advantage of his best friend separating from his family, and when the former loses his job, he literally goes berserk and kills the friend's wife and young son and goes off with the daughter as his hostage. He thinks he can start life anew with the girl but his haunting past of his father's threats and subsequent suicide, leads police to realize that the guy is definitely suicide prone.

The film is also excellent because it tells of the media frenzy after the kidnapping is thwarted and the killer himself is killed.

The media will do anything to sustain a story, even going so far that something was going on between the two. This causes the young lady to tell what happened on television to put the vicious gossip to rest.

Fine acting by all concerned in this tragic tale.

Emotional story

[annatfultz · 8/10 · 8 August 2018]

Very well put together by a great team of cast producers and directors