EVERYTHING SHE EVER WANTED

EVERYTHING SHE EVER WANTED (2009 Lifetime telefilm/4 hour, 2 part mini-series). Director: Peter Svatek.

Based on a true-crime book by Ann Rule, this is the sordid and pathetic story of Pat Allanson (Gina Gershon), who always wanted to live a genteel life on an estate modeled after Gone With the Wind's Tara. To that end she becomes a mistress of manipulation, and tries to poison as many people as Lucretia Borgia, including her own sister! Naturally the main characters are made far more glamorous, attractive, and dynamic than they were in real life. While no one could argue that Gershon is a great actress, she's more than acceptable as the sociopathic Pat. Gershon is backed up by a large, talented cast including Victor Garber as her father-in-law and Martin Donovan as a crippled patient who falls in love with her. "Pretty-boy" Ryan McPartlin as Tom Allanson gives a credible performance but he certainly looks and sounds nothing like the double-chinned "good ol' boy" he's portraying. Whatever its flaws, Everything She Ever Wanted is completely absorbing, fascinating, chilling, suspenseful, and ultimately disgusting.

Verdict: Solid true crime thriller illustrating the "banality of evil." All it needed was a stronger central performance. ***.