Killer Single Dad (TV Movie 2018) Poster

(2018 TV Movie)

User Reviews

Review this title
13 Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by Rating:
5/10
Above Average Made-For-TV Melodrama...
vnssyndrome8918 November 2023
Killer Single Dad (TV Movie 2018) 5 out of 10 stars Time to Read: 1:50min

BASIC PLOT: After the tragic loss of his wife and two children, David Miller (Cameron Jebo) is moving heaven and earth, to have a family again. He may have lost his family, but he did donate sperm while he was in college, and that means there are lots of children out there, just waiting for their daddy to take them home. David has a plan, and step one is to create an alternate identity, Garrett Penderson. His next step is to find a nanny, who won't ask too many questions. He locates an older woman, Olivia (Jane Carr), who has some immigration problems. She seems like the perfect fit, but her inquisitive nature may be a problem for David down the line. He's located three of his "children", and has already succeeded in retrieving the first two. His next target is Connor, the unborn baby of Jennifer (Kaitlyn Black) and Matt Monroe (Robert Parks-Valletta). They are having martial problems, and the wedge between them is an open door for David. He's able to insinuate himself into their lives, and is now just biding his time, waiting for Connor to be born. Will Matt be able to convince Jennifer "Garrett" has ulterior motives, in time to save their son?

WHAT WORKS: *THE USE OF VISUAL METAPHORS TO ILLUSTRATE GARRETT'S PSYCHOSIS His children appear and disappear, the yard is full of flowers, then dead, etc.

*UNFORTUNATELY MATT'S BAD BEHAVIOR IS BELIEVABLE In today's world, where lots of "men" are just a bunch of spoiled children in disguise, Matt's bad behavior is a real scenario. When he meets Garrett for the first time, his inclination is not to thank him for saving the life of his wife, and unborn child. Instead, he reels at Garrett about being questioned by the police. The world revolves around him, not his family, and this unfortunate behavior, is a problem many women have to deal with.

*THE BABIES ARE AGE APPROPRIATE So often in TV and movies, you have what are supposed to be newborns, and they are really six months old. Not here! All the babies are age appropriate, and it adds to the believability.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: *GARRETT SAYS "I'M WIDOWED" The correct grammar would be to say, "I'm a widower."

*BADLY SHOT There are lots of awkward shots, oddly chosen angles, weird lighting choices, and NONE of them are flattering to the actors. It's unfortunate, because this is an above average melodrama, well written by Ken Sanders and Daniel West. It deserved better. The cinematographer nm0786002Joseph M. Setele, and the director, Robert Malenfant, need to go back to school.

*THE LIGHTING IS OFF IN SEVERAL SCENES I see this problem a lot in made-for-tv movies. I don't know if it's a cost issue, or what, but in nighttime scenes, the lighting is w-a-a-a-y off, and looks like it's shot on someone's phone. Maybe they couldn't afford more lighting.

*THE FINAL BABY IS SOMEONE OF COLOR The newborn they used for Jennifer and Matt's baby, is someone of color. They are both white.

TO RECOMMEND, OR NOT TO RECOMMEND, THAT IS THE QUESTION: *I would recommend this movie to fans of made-for-tv movies, fans of melodramas, and those who like stories about crazy neighbors and baby stealers. It's not for those who like deep, intricate plots, and elaborate character development. If you're looking for either, look elsewhere.

CLOSING NOTES: *This is a made-for-tv movie, please keep that in mind before you watch\rate it. TV movies have a much lower budget, and so your expectations should be adjusted.

*I have no connection to the film, or production in ANY way. This review was NOT written in full, or in part, by a bot. I am just an honest viewer, who wishes for more straight forward reviews (less trolls and fanboys), and better entertainment. Hope I helped you out.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Pathetic to say the least!
haroot_azarian24 April 2021
Ladies and gentlemen let me introduce you to the world's dumbest pregnant woman! She whines that her husband was not there the night she fell ill!!!! Uhmmmm excuse me but wasn't it you who kicked him out in the first place? And if I'd been Matt, I would have dumped her straight away for what she put him through for just one lousy kiss, while Ms. Fugly flirted and cozied with Garret! Duhhhh? Oh and her dad is pretty dumb too himself. But we can pwrhaps blame it on mild dementia! The plot is pathetically far-fetched! Seriously are the positive review contributors in fact kids in elementary school? One wonders!
6 out of 9 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
3/10
So absurd
cheevers-6381211 August 2018
How did his wife die a year ago but he has two kids... one a only a few months old!! And the other child less than a year. Come on. Too bad because it could have been an ok movie.
10 out of 21 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
2/10
nUrealistic
royalpurplegoddess11 January 2021
I liked the movie . the main female actress was annoying . I hate each and every time she cries. Another movie she starred in she was the baby thief. She is not very attractive and needs to find work behind the camera
6 out of 12 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
2/10
Don't recommend
sagetwo8 October 2020
The movie, 'Killer Single Dad' does not include any intense and worth watching killing scenes. It is basically like watching an episode of a melodrama of sorts. It did have some potential, but overall fail in delivery. The "villian" should have been smart enough not to leave evidence lying around. The "victim", or pregnant female, the nanny and the other characters are beyond gullible.
2 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
Should have been called "Off the Rails Single Dad"
mja5820 June 2021
This was a very unusual LMN entry - a guy collecting babies / toddlers that he sired through his contribution to a sperm bank!! Crazy as it is, it held my interest to the conclusion - the final 10 minutes or so is particularly poignant.

Watching this, I learned that:

1. It does not pay to be a nosy nanny.

2. Children will stay where you put them and act like furniture if you want them to.

3. Giving birth is invigorating so only a few minutes after you do so, you can walk around and defend yourself.

Again, this was one weird but interesting movie that is worth a look.

7/10.
4 out of 5 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
8/10
Keeps you in suspense
phd_travel3 July 2018
For a Lifetime thriller this is quite good. A man goes around kidnaping babies to keep them but why? The psycho in question is appealing and his reason for being so psycho is pretty good. Kind of felt sympathetic for him. Won't reveal it but it has a reasonable LMN logic. There is a bit of dark comedy in tone.

Worth watching.
16 out of 21 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
8/10
Killer Movie
This movie had a lot of Lifetime tropes including; nanny cams, pregnant ladies, and hunky husbands.

Then you add some cool directing choices like adding a deranged version of "The Wheels on the Bus." after a disturbing kidnapping and murder. It is dark comedy at it's best.

Cameron Jebo was especially great. Pour it up!

🔪🔪🔪🔪 (4 Knives) 🍷🍷 (2 glasses of wine required.)
7 out of 8 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
8/10
Psycho sperm donor Warning: Spoilers
The plot for this one is certainly weird....a crazy guy who loses his wife and kids in a car accident remembers how he donated his goop to fertility clinics back in college and then hunts down the children he's fathered so he can take them home and have his family back again.

The actor who played the psycho was really good and creepy and I kinda felt sad for the him in the end because his mind seemed to snap after losing his wife and kids and the poor guy just wanted his family back.

His pregnant target was an idiot the first half of the movie, but pieces things together about halfway through and learns of his tragic and insidious plot.

There's an overly nosy nanny who I couldn't stand because she had no reason to rifle through the psycho's office so early in the film except because she was just a nosy beech so I was happy when psycho murdered her.

The climax at the end was well done with lots of suspense and definitely one of the better Lifetime flicks i've seen recently and worth a watch.

I liked that he didn't get away with his crimes like you see in some of these films, but I still felt bad for him when he met his demise and was reunited with his dead kids in heaven.
17 out of 24 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
8/10
The Delivery!
lavatch26 October 2019
Warning: Spoilers
The title character of "Killer Single Dad" is the psycho Garrett Penderson, who donated his sperm to a fertility clinic during his college days. Years later, after he allegedly lost his wife and babies in a car crash, Garrett has hacked into the fertility clinic's records to learn about the women who received the little swimmers from his sperm and successfully produced babies. He then proceeds to kidnap the infants that he believes belongs to him.

In this outlandish story, Garrett stealthfully snatches two kids, then plots to steal the baby currently being carried by Jennifer. Garrett smoothly dispatches Jenn's husband Matt, setting him up with a restraining order. He then volunteers to serve as Jenn's partner during Lamaze classes. His crowning achievement is to induce labor by feeding Jenn raspberry tea, then deliver the child himself!

Garrett has learned the art of midwifery from internet videos, and he comes well-equipped with forceps and other useful tools. The film includes the onscreen depiction of the delivery of little Connor by Garrett. Jenn then gets up from her birthing bed to save the day.

As if the action described above is not enough to round out a lurid ninety-minute Lifetime film, the scene-stealer in the film comes in the appearance of a wily nanny named Olivia. A con artist herself in fear of the immigration bureau, Olivia attempts to blackmail Garrett before meeting her demise. Their "little secret" will remain exactly that after Olivia is buried in the hills of San Diego.

The sardonic screenplay for "Killer Single Dad" includes such details as the name "Mr. Snuggles" for the toy of one of the babies kidnapped by Garrett. The film is well-paced and includes an excellent set of performances. But the British-speaking nanny is the most memorable and worthy of any of the pictures of the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock.
5 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
9/10
Quite good, really!
Chartreuse122 June 2020
We caught this on Father's Day and it really held our attention with a very good plot. Single dad acquires baby but how and why are not revealed right away which makes this Lifetime a little potboiler. Cameron Jebo is quite strong as the ulterior Dad with Kaitlyn Black as his next victim! Would watch this one again! Highly recommended,,,,,,,
4 out of 5 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
10/10
I unironically love this so much
oneonlywillow21 March 2021
It makes me so happy i plan to rewatch this in a few days it's so good omg i love it
4 out of 7 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
8/10
Nice to watch, however, nothing innovative...
RosanaBotafogo2 October 2022
Jennifer is pregnant and befriends a Good Samaritan who saved her life, but is unaware that he is the father of her unborn baby, and is "collecting" all the children he fathered as an anonymous sperm donor years earlier, in college, and will do anything to have his babies close, after losing his wife and two children...

Very adorable, super cliché, I've seen better ones on the subject of artificial insemination, recently an excellent one, with egg donor, but the theme in a suspenseful tone, although totally predictable, and without leaving a point of the curve, sound attractive, and me entertains... Nice to watch, however, nothing innovative...
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

See also

Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews


Recently Viewed