Liar, Liar (1993 film)

Liar, Liar
Genre	Drama
Written by	Nancy Isaak
Directed by	Jorge Montesi
Starring	Vanessa King; Art Hindle
Theme music composer	Fred Mollin
Country of origin	Canada
Original language	English
Production
Producer	Phil Savath
Cinematography	Thomas Burstyn
Editor	Allan Lee
Running time	90 min
Release
Original network	CBC Television (Canada); CBS (United States)
Original release	January 1993 (Canada); June 22, 1993 (United States)

Liar, Liar is a 1993 Canadian drama television film starring Vanessa King as a girl who accuses her father (Art Hindle) of molestation, only to have no one in her family believe her. The film originally aired in January 1993 on CBC Television in Canada.

It aired under the title Liar, Liar: Between Father and Daughter on CBS on June 22, 1993 in the United States. It was also released under the title Daddy's Little Secret in the United Kingdom.

Plot

11-year-old Kelly Farrow (Vanessa King) is a girl with a history of telling tall tales and bullying her younger siblings. One night, she locks her younger brother Patrick (Joel Palmer) in the bathroom, which he fears greatly, and is punished by her father Gil (Art Hindle), who "spanks" her. Afterwards, Kelly vows that he will never hurt her again. At school the next day, she hears a classmate tell a story about a relative who accused her father of molestation and had him sent to jail; this gives her an idea. Kelly tells her teacher Mrs. Hildebrant (Wendy Van Riesen) that her father has been sexually abusing her. Kelly speaks with the authorities, and they arrange to have her father arrested.

The accusation and subsequent trial creates distance between Kelly and her family; mother Mary (Rosemary Dunsmore) and sisters Jean "Nini" (Ashleigh Aston Moore) and Christina "Chrissy" (Janne Mortil) doubt Kelly, given her history of lying and bullying. The only family member who believes her is Patrick. Gil's attorney Helen Browne (Susan Hogan) picks her case apart in court by confirming that Kelly is technically still a virgin (as her hymen has not been broken), and by casting doubt on the medical evidence of abuse. People come to believe that Kelly is lying because her father is known to be strict in his punishments, including prosecutor Susan Miori (Kate Nelligan), and she struggles to get people to believe her.

When older sister Chrissy tries to talk Kelly into dropping the case, Kelly confronts her with her knowledge of a secret that Chrissy herself has completely repressed her memories of: throughout her childhood and adolescence, Gil abused her, and switched his incestuous attentions to Kelly after Chrissy left home. As they are talking, Patrick becomes hysterically frightened after being left alone in the bathroom with Chrissy's husband Keith (Roman Podhora). Shell-shocked, Chrissy realizes that not only was Kelly telling the truth, but that Patrick has also suffered at the hands of their father, which is where his fear of being locked in the bathroom stems from.

After confronting her father, Chrissy defends her sister by telling the court of her own abuse, which parallels Kelly's account. The next day, Gil is convicted and sentenced to prison for 10 months and probation for 2 years. The judge apologizes to Kelly, stating that age is not a factor in determining honesty. He goes on to state that he wants a full investigation into Chrissy's allegations, and into Gil's relations with Nini and Patrick. While Mary and Nini are shocked and devastated at the situation, Kelly walks out with Chrissy and Patrick, relieved that she was finally believed.

Cast

Art Hindle as Gil Farrow
Vanessa King as Kelly Farrow
Janne Mortil as Christina "Chrissy" Farrow-Berezuk
Rosemary Dunsmore as Mary Farrow
Ashleigh Aston Moore as Jean "Nini" Farrow
Joel Palmer as Patrick Farrow
Kate Nelligan as Susan Miori
Roman Podhora as Keith Berezuk
Michelle St. John as Janice
Wendy Van Reisen as Mrs. Hildebrandt
Kaj-Erik Eriksen as Jonah
Susan Hogan as Helen Browne

Award nominations

Year	Award	Result	Category	Recipient
1994	Gemini Award	Nominated	Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series	Nancy Isaak
			Best TV Movie	Phil Savath
			Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series	Vanessa King
			Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series	Art Hindle
			Best Original Music Score for a Program or Mini-Series	Fred Mollin
			Best Direction in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series	Jorge Montesi

External links

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