''Liar, Liar'' is a 1993 Canadian drama

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

starring

Vanessa King Vanessa King (born September 19, 1980) is a Canadian actress from Coquitlam, British Columbia, known for her role as Anika in the television series '' Edgemont'', a role for which she was nominated in the category Best Performance in a Children's ...

as a girl who accuses her father (

Art Hindle Arthur Hindle is a Canadian actor and director. Early life and education Hindle was born in Halifax. For 12 years, he alternated living with his divorced parents in addition to living in foster homes. He grew up in Bowmanville, and later at T ...

) of molestation, only to have no one in her family believe her. The film originally aired on January 24, 1993 on

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

in Canada. It aired under the title ''Liar, Liar: Between Father and Daughter'' on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

on June 22, 1993 in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It was also released under the title ''Daddy's Little Secret'' in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Plot

11-year-old Kelly Farrow (

) 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 terrifies him greatly, and is punished by her father Gil (

), who supposedly "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 Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assau ...

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 Rosemary Dunsmore (born July 13, 1952) is a Canadian TV, film, and theatre actress, director, and educator. She was awarded a Dora Mavor Moore Award for her 1982 performance in ''Straight Ahead/Blind Dancers''. In 2009 she won the ACTRA Award f ...

) and sisters Jean "Nini" ( Ashleigh Aston Moore) and Christina "Chrissy" (

Janne Mortil Janne Mortil (born December 14, 1967) is a Vancouver-based Canadian-American actress probably best known for playing Madeleine Astor in ''Titanic (1996 miniseries), Titanic'' (1996) and Michelle Dupont in the television series ''Side Effects (TV ...

) 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 The hymen is a thin piece of mucosal tissue that surrounds or partially covers the external vaginal opening. It forms part of the vulva, or external genitalia, and is similar in structure to the vagina. In children, a common appearance of the h ...

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 Patricia Colleen Nelligan (born March 16, 1950), known professionally as Kate Nelligan, is a Canadian stage, film and television actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1991 film ''The Prince of Tide ...

), 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 Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

). 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

as Gil Farrow *

as Kelly Farrow *

as Christina "Chrissy" Farrow-Berezuk *

as Mary Farrow * Ashleigh Aston Moore as Jean "Nini" Farrow * Joel Palmer as Patrick Farrow *

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 * Selina Hanuse as Female student

Reception

''Liar, Liar'' is known both for its cast inclusion of Selina Hanuse (her only role other than as Hannah Kenidi on ''

North of 60 ''North of 60'' is a 1990s Canadian television drama depicting life in the sub-Arctic northern boreal forest (north of 60° north latitude, hence the title). It first aired on CBC Television in 1992 and was syndicated around the world. It is s ...

'' prior to her death in a car accident at the age of 17), and also for its numerous

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in the United States ...

nominations. ''

The Los Angeles Times ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' praised the film, with critic Ray Loynd noting that the film's candid flashbacks to traumatic childhood sexual abuse might be "unnerving", while also stating, "a Canadian production (which premiered in Canada on the CBC last January), the movie is perhaps the most candid and most suspenseful parent/child molestation story aired to date on U.S. television." Tony Scott of ''

Daily Variety ''Variety'' is an American media company owned by Penske Media Corporation. The company was founded by Sime Silverman in New York City in 1905 as a weekly newspaper reporting on theater and vaudeville. In 1933 it added ''Daily Variety'', based ...

'' was slightly more critical but still generally positive, stating, "if the outcome's not entirely satisfactory, the telefilm has much to say about truth and buried anger."

Award nominations

References

External links

* * * {{amg movie, 48402
Review by Ken Tucker
at EW.com 1993 television films 1993 drama films 1993 films CBC Television original films English-language Canadian films Films scored by Fred Mollin Films about child abuse Films shot in Vancouver Canadian drama television films Films directed by Jorge Montesi 1990s Canadian films