‘Safe Room’ Review (Lifetime)
Stars: Nicole Ari Parker, Drea de Matteo, Mackenzie Astin, Nik Sanchez, Monica Calhoun, Junie Hoang, Jalene Mack, Boris Kodjoe | Written by Nneka Gerstle | Directed by Boris Kodjoe
Boris Kodjoe star of shows such as The Undercovers, The Last Man on Earth and Hulu’s Station 19, steps behind the camera for Safe Room (aka Safe Space), a Lifetime original movie that tells the story of recently widowed Lila Jackson (Nicole Ari Parker) and her 14-year-old autistic son Ian (Nik Sanchez). Since the death of her husband, Lila is grateful for their kind neighbour Neil (Boris Kodjoe), who looks out for them. After Ian accidentally witnesses a break-in in the house across the street and records the horrific murder of the homeowner, Lila becomes embroiled in a deadly struggle to protect her son from intruders Dominic (Mackenzie Astin) and Rocco (Drea De Matteo), who will stop at nothing to retrieve the video evidence of the crime and silence them.
So we’ve got Rear Window meets Panic Room for the Lifetime crowd then…
OK, OK. So that might have come across as a little sarcastic but we’re way past the era of decent, thrilling TV movies – or so I thought. It seems director Boris Kodjoe’s time in front of the camera in a variety of productions has stood him in good stead as a director and he’s crafted a pretty decent thriller on what is surely a meagre budget.
The decision to spend time early on with the mother-son duo Lia and Ian, showing us their relationship post the loss of the man of the house and how both deal with the trauma really pays off. It sets up the rest of the film, we sympathise with Lila and Ian – even more so given how we’re shown how Ian is coping given that he’s on the spectrum and already struggles with day-to-day life. Kodjoe certainly knows how to get the best out of Parker, given that the two are not only married but have also starred together on TV previously. But it’s Nik Sanchez who really makes the impact here. His performance seems, and I say this as someone who only has a passing knowledge of autism et., spot on. It truly feels authentic.
There was also a nice touch that Lila explains to the home invaders that Ian’s autism doesn’t make him a threat when he clearly is. He might be startled at first but he really knows what he’s doing when it comes to defending his home and his mother, his experience with his father and his love of STEM actually standing him in good stead to take on the murderous duo. The fact that the house was a smart home also played well into this story, giving the audience and Lila and Ian, trapped in the titular safe room, a window on to what’s happening outside and a solution to deal with it too.
Of course this being a Lifetime movie, Safe Room‘s soundtrack was a little too over-egged, with the drama stretched to breaking point via the overly-loud, almost horror-movie like music that was used at every dramatic point possible, no matter how big or small. The points where the soundtrack WASN’T used were, for me, far more dramatic. The tension more palpable in the quiet than in the bombastic use of music.
Lifetime movies are often marked by their over-dramatic stylings and Safe Room is no different; some of the performances are over the top and, as previously mentioned, the music is a bit much. However behind all that is a decent TV movie rendition of Panic Room that marks Kodjoe as not only a good actor but also a good director. I’m looking forward to seeing what he does next.
