Dr. Candace Burke is a pediatrician planning to have a family. A high priority for her is to discover the identity of her birth parents now that her adoptive parents are deceased. After running a DNA test and enlisting a resourceful investigative reporter, Candace learns that she was sired by a local real estate tycoon named Tom Mason. But her attempt to connect with Mason leads her into a nightmare.

Early in his marriage to his domineering wife Jeanette, Tom had a dalliance with a real estate intern named Henrietta. At the prompting of Jeanette, the baby was snatched and put up for adoption. Apparently, Henrietta was murdered by Tom at the behest of Jeanette.

As "Adopted in Danger" (a.k.a., "Killing Your Daughter") unfolds, it becomes clear that Jeanette Mason is doing her best to imitate Lady Macbeth. Jeanette has a twisted notion of "protecting her family" when, in fact, the revelation of a child out of wedlock would likely have no adverse affect on the family business.

The film was overly unpleasant due to the murders of old Felix Rossman, Tom's business partner. Candace's bestie, Allie, is also murdered when she is mistaken for Candace in a Las Vegas hotel swimming pool. And the helpful reporter, Margot, has her brake line cut, resulting in her death. All three of these fatalities were the results of the deranged mind of Jeanette. For the screenwriters, was it really necessary to eliminate these three characters by violent means?

After creating a psychopathic villain in Jeanette, the filmmakers really outdid themselves in a wild denouement where it is revealed that Tom not did not murder Henrietta. Instead, he escorted her to the Canadian border, gave her a bundle of cash, then kept in close touch with her for thirty years! Now, after the arrest of Jeanette, Tom and Henrietta are "an item"!

In her initial DNA test, Candace learned that she is half-Irish and half-Dutch. After Tom serves his light, six-month prison sentence, there will certainly be many family discussions where Candace can ask both of her parents about her Irish-Dutch heritage!

I've somehow found myself watching a few Lifetime movies at this point, and still 'Adopted in danger' managed to surprise me. It's brashly direct and unsubtle to the point of being awkward at the most tense and suspenseful moments, and horrifically cheesy at the most sentimental moments.

I can't decide if this is great or terrible.

Hard cuts between scenes don't compare to the even more severe cutaways at points where a broadcast would go to commercial break. It was quite jarring to watch a couple scenes play out seemingly out order: two characters have a discussion about the coming weekend on the same day a third pursues an idea, but it's only after scenes depicting that weekend that the third supporting character places a call discussing her pursuit "today." This is followed in short order by a scene where deeply unconvincing editing shifts between concurrent goings-on at an office, or is used in the same scene in a way as to convey the passage of time - when it's only mere seconds that could have possibly passed in the narrative.

So glaring is Wendy Elford-Argent's editing that I can't imagine it wasn't a conscious decision. The same absolutely goes for the script: the dialogue is terribly ham-fisted, and only grows more so as the film progresses toward its conclusion. None of this is really unexpected, of course; such blatant pageantry is what Lifetime is known for. But the sheer degree to which all artfulness and nuance has been withheld from 'Adopted in danger' is kind of impressive.

I do genuinely like the wardrobe and costume design. I think the actors assembled here are just fine, performing well in the roles they're given. Admittedly I'm a bit biased, having previously enjoyed Allison Paige's performances elsewhere. It's hardly the cast's fault that the screenplay, direction, and editing is so desperately plain, so straightforward. They work with what they are given, questionable as it is, and do their best.

But we're not done yet, because there are a few other aspects of 'Adopted in danger' that stand out like 5-alarm fire during a blackout. First is the trailer. I don't know who cut it, or approved it for dissemination, but I question their work in film and TV. Even in an industry where trailers are infamous for showing too much, this one conveys almost the entirety of the plot, from start to finish, leaving out only a few garnishing details. It's so bizarrely revealing that I wondered if it was even worth watching the full movie.

And then there's the early discussion of "family history" web sites, the basis for the plot. Protagonist Candace (Paige) is able to have a law enforcement contact dredge up records based on her DNA results, and her friend Allie gives a passing line about how law enforcement has access to the database of all DNA submissions. This is an accurate reflection of the very real and dangerous privacy concerns that abound with all such companies, affecting not just those who submit samples, but anyone they are related to. While this is only the bare bones underpinnings of the film's narrative, it's flummoxing how this alarming reality is passed over so casually.

Less dire, yet even more gross, is the final scene, the denouement. It's bad enough that we are informed of the lack of consequences imposed upon an antagonistic figure in the story, and worse still that they are seemingly absorbed (in absentia) into the wholesome family gathering that concludes the picture. But the occasion for this scene is the ultimate grotesque aberration, a foul and dubiously regressive staple of modern culture, as the characters are gathered for an expecting couple's "gender reveal" party. Ew.

When all is said and done, despite the most obvious faults and the transparently unsophisticated nature of the production, I do enjoy this. It's a wild ride, not because of the unremarkable twists and turns in the narrative, but merely because of the mind-numbing simple-mindedness of the feature. It's going to have very limited actual appeal for general audiences, and only viewers open to the "let's go for it!" directness of B-movies are like to find it at all palatable. 'Adopted in danger' is a rough experience, but entertaining enough for those willing to engage with it honestly.

The storyline seems a little far fetched, but DNA matching is an actual event and incidents as described in the movie DO HAPPEN (but not the violence and melodrama.

Nice to see.....

1. Jason Brooks of Baywatch, etc. As a father to adult children, and still looking pretty good.

2. Tyler Johnson taking on the atypical role of husband to the heroine.

3. A fairly satisfying ending, although rather unexpected.

There was more violence than I am comfortable with, but the movie is worth a look.

7/10.