Wonderful character development!

Simply Perfect

Excellent but underrated film

best movie i've ever seen.

Oh, I did want to like this movie. It didn't matter that it's derivative of "Sleeping with the Enemy," right down to the abandoned abuser finding proof of his "dead" wife's deception that she conveniently--no, foolishly--left behind. (Honestly, if you're going to fake your own death, wouldn't it occur to you to hide all paperwork pertaining to the faking of your own death?) Most people who watch this film are probably drawn by its similarities to SWtE (with the added bonus of a child!)The wife's leaving of damning evidence was only the first of her foolish mistakes, though (if you don't count marrying the crazy man in the first place. Let's assume that some men are good at hiding their abusive tendencies). Her biggest goof is that, after faking her death, she goes into a business (realty) which she advertises by plastering pictures of her face all over advertisements and billboards? I don't appreciate movies with stupid heroines, which made it hard for me to truly like this one. Yes, she's the underdog. And she's played as being smart and tough. But some of her decisions discredited her. It was also hard to believe that her husband would be so obsessed with her after ten years. That was my other problem with this film. The husband character is so very evil, to the point where he's not only coming after his wife; he's coming after her friends as well! It almost feels like a twisted wish-fulfillment for women who mistake obsession for love--she's so great that he'll Never Get Over Her, and in the meantime, she'll have found another Wonderful Guy.I give this 5 points because I liked some of the actors, and the story certainly isn't slow. But unless you throw your suspension of disbelief out the window, you may wish this film had remained hidden away.

Typical Lifetime Network nonsense about the victimized woman with terribly poor taste who hopes that running away will solve her problems only to learn the hard way when she gets tracked down. In this shameless outing, we have Vaugier faking her and her daughter's death in an attempt to escape her physically abusive husband. Blah, blah, blah; same old routine: she gets a new life, her daughter grows up not remembering anything, she meets a nice guy (Flanery), the fairy tale ending is just a grasp away, and then all of a sudden the bad guy from the past (Sergei) shows up. This cookie-cutter garbage could be somewhat bearable if it didn't consist of melodrama triggered by acts that would otherwise be considered downright moronic if only the protagonists weren't so unlucky. Nice climax—apparently, any dimwit can be inspired by watching NORTH BY NORTHWEST in film class.*½ (out of four)

For dramatic visual purposes, abused wife Emmanuelle Vaugier (as Stephanie) takes her seven-year-old daughter and heads for the Canadian border in a small boat during the pouring rain while firefighter husband Ivan Sergei (as Andrew Bennett) is out buying some flowers. Probably, he wants to kiss and make-up after viciously throwing Ms. Vaugier around the house. Ten years later, Vaugier is a successful realtor in Palm Springs, CA. She stole another woman's identity and started over (as Alexandra Cole) by faking her death and cashing in on a $250,000 insurance policy. Vaugier is dating handsome art museum assistant director Sean Patrick Flanery (as Brett Collins) while making sure pretty teenage Allie Gonino (as Rachel) isn't out too late with boyfriends...After finding his wife's box hidden in the attic while exterminating raccoons, Mr. Sergei finds evidence suggesting she and step-daughter are alive. Then, we're off to the races. "Hidden Away" is hard to take. For example, they ran into problems with the age of "Sage" if she were a teenager played by an actress past her teens. We're told she "blocked" unpleasantness, but it doesn't ring true. The best course would have been to make her younger, since her parents are a stretch at being ten years older. Sergei almost steals the show by offering a more believable performance than usual for the genre. Thomas Calabro and Elisabeth Rohm lend good support. Director Peter Sullivan does well in buildings, stretching players and shots along spacious horizontals, with depth.***** Hidden Away (7/27/13) Peter Sullivan ~ Emmanuelle Vaugier, Ivan Sergei, Sean Patrick Flanery, Allie Gonino

This was one of the best Lifetime thrillers I've ever seen! While it starts out like one of those familiar SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY-type stories where a woman flees an abusive ex-husband, this story doesn't stop moving for the full two hour running time.Emmanuelle Vaugier plays Stephanie, a young mother who fakes her own death (and her daughter's) in order to escape her abusive husband Andrew (Ivan Sergei). Many years later, Andrew stumbles upon incriminating evidence and realizes that his late wife, and most importantly, his beloved step daughter (Allie Gonino), is still alive. So he does what any kind, loving husband would do... he murders the detective (Thomas Calabro) he hired to track them down and then goes to Palm Springs to finish the job himself. What follows is a fast-paced cat and mouse game as Andrew, like a spider, weaves a web around his prey and slowly draws them in. In the process, he seduces her best friend (Elisabeth Rohm) and threatens to destroy her new relationship with a handsome museum director (Sean Patrick Flanery). It all culminates in an exciting chase and fight aboard the Palm Springs tramway with a big action sequence I've never seen in a movie like this before. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.Ivan Sergei is great as the twisted villain and really steals the show. I loved how he wasn't just a one-note baddie like the evil husbands in both SLEEPING THE ENEMY and ENOUGH. In fact, he almost makes you feel bad for him. But he really brings the crazy in a surprisingly subtle and nuanced performance. Emmanuelle plays to her strengths from shows like CSI NY and HUMAN TARGET as she basically becomes an action hero in the film's finale, and Sean Patrick Flanery plays the male eye candy but it was fun to see Young Indiana Jones and the Boondock Saint go against type... basically playing the damsel in distress.From its opening chase in the middle of a raging storm to a finale literally dangling hundreds of feet above Palm Springs... HIDDEN AWAY was an exciting thriller you can't miss.