''The Tie That Binds'' is a 1995 thriller film directed by screenwriter

Wesley Strick Wesley Strick (born February 11, 1954) is an American screenwriter who has written such films as ''Arachnophobia'', ''Batman Returns'' and Martin Scorsese's remake of '' Cape Fear''. Since 2015, Strick has worked as a writer/executive producer o ...

and starring

Daryl Hannah Daryl Christine Hannah (born December 3, 1960) is an American actress and environmental activist. She made her screen debut in Brian De Palma's supernatural horror film '' The Fury'' (1978). She has starred in various movies across the years, i ...

Keith Carradine Keith Ian Carradine ( ; born August 8, 1949) is an American actor who has had success on stage, film, and television. He is known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's film ''Nashville'', Wild Bill Hickok in the HBO series '' Deadwood ...

Vincent Spano Vincent M. Spano Jr. (born October 18, 1962) is an American film, stage and television actor; he is also a film director and producer. Early life Spano was born in Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with King ...

Moira Kelly Moira Kelly (born on March 6, 1968 in Queens, New York) is an American actress. She is known for portraying Kate Moseley in the 1992 film ''The Cutting Edge'' as well as single mother Karen Roe on the teen drama '' One Tree Hill''. She is also k ...

and Julia Devin. Strick's directing debut, the film follows the struggles of a couple who have just adopted a 6-year-old girl, only to discover that her biological parents, a murderous couple, are trying to reclaim her. Released in the United States on September 8, 1995, ''The Tie That Binds'' grossed over $5 million at the domestic box office. At the 17th annual Young Artist Awards in 1996, Julia Devin was nominated for Best Young Supporting Actress - Feature Film, but lost out to Kristy Young, who was in the movie ''

Gordy ''Gordy'' is a 1994 American family comedy-drama film directed by Mark Lewis, about a livestock piglet named Gordy who searches for his missing family (who are taken away to a slaughterhouse in Omaha, Nebraska). He experiences the lives of others ...

''.

Plot

In California, John Netherwood (

) and his wife Leann Netherwood (

) are fugitives who are wanted for murder. They have a 6-year-old daughter named Janie (Julia Devin). John and Leann are robbing a house when the elderly residents of the house show up. After killing the two residents, John and Leann go outside, where there are cops waiting. John and Leann escape after John gets shot by Officer David Carrey (

Ned Vaughn Ned Vaughn (born November 20, 1964) is an American film and television actor who served as vice president of the Screen Actors Guild prior to becoming the founding executive vice president of SAG-AFTRA. He resigned that position on 21 August 201 ...

). Janie is found in the car that John and Leann left behind, and Janie is placed up for adoption. Helped by adoption agency case worker Maggie Hass (

Jenny Gago Jenny Gago (born September 11, 1953) is a Peruvian-American actress best known as Maria in ''Knots Landing'' (1984-1986), Maria in ''My Family'' (1995), Anaya in '' The Agency'' (2002-2003), and Det. Ochoa in '' Southland'' (2011). Life Gago ...

), Los Angeles architect Russell Clifton (

) and his photographer wife Dana (

) adopt Janie, welcoming a traumatized Janie into their home. Though intelligent and charming, Janie's behavior is very disturbing: She hides in closets, cuts herself, steals food, and draws monstrous pictures of the "Tooth Fairy," of whom she's terrified. Russell and Dana believe that with love, Janie will be alright. The Netherwoods begin planning to reclaim Janie. Leann picks up Officer Carrey, and John tortures the name of the adoption agency out of Carrey before John slits Carrey's throat, killing Carrey. The Netherwoods then force Maggie to tell them who adopted Janie, then they kill Maggie. At the same time, Russell and Dana have found out who Janie's biological parents are. Leann tries to kidnap Janie from school, forcing the Cliftons to go into hiding with Janie. The Netherwoods track down the Cliftons' friends, Lisa Marie Chandler (

Cynda Williams Cindy Ann "Cynda" Williams (born May 17, 1966) is an American actress. Early life and education Williams was born Cindy Ann Williams in Chicago, Illinois to Charles, a police officer and Beverly, a medical lab technician. She was raised in th ...

) and her husband Gil Chandler (

Bruce A. Young Bruce Arnold Young (born April 22, 1956) is an American television, film, and stage actor, television writer and screenwriter. Career Young is best known for his role as Captain Simon Banks in the UPN science fiction police drama '' The Sentin ...

), and Leann threatens to hurt the Chandlers' newborn baby, forcing Lisa Marie to tell Leann where the Cliftons are hiding—a half-built house that Russell designed for himself, Dana, and Janie. The Netherwoods head to the half-built house and take Janie and the Cliftons hostage. John sets the house on fire. Russell and John struggle with each other, then John starts running through the burning house looking for Janie, who has now run off into the nearby woods. Along the way, John runs into Leann in the blinding smoke. Leann has found Dana and Janie, and has had a change of heart. Because of that, John kills Leann by snapping her neck. Dana runs into the woods to find Janie, and John is following Dana. John is the first to find Janie, and Janie pulls out a knife, stabs John in the stomach, and then says "I learned that from you, daddy." Dana finds Janie just as an enraged John, realizing that Janie will never love him, attempts to kill them both, until Russell shows up, carrying a log the size of a baseball bat, and knocks John to the ground. As a weakened John attempts to get back up, Russell uses the log to smash his head, killing John. Janie finally feels comfortable about being with the Cliftons and accepts them as her family.

Cast

as Leann Netherwood *

as John Netherwood *

as Russell Clifton *

as Dana Clifton * Julia Devin as Janie *

as Gil Chandler *

as Lisa Marie Chandler * Ray Reinhardt as Sam Bennett *

Barbara Tarbuck Barbara Tarbuck (January 15, 1942 – December 26, 2016) was an American film, television, and stage actress from Detroit, Michigan, best known for her recurring role as Lady Jane Jacks on ''General Hospital''. Biography Tarbuck was born in De ...

as Jean Bennett *

Carmen Argenziano Carmen Antimo Argenziano (October 27, 1943February 10, 2019) was an American actor who appeared in over 73 movies and around 100 television movies or episodes. He was best known for playing Jacob Carter on ''Stargate SG-1''. He had recurring role ...

as Phil Hawkes *

as Maggie Hass *

as Officer David Carrey * George Marshall Ruge as Detective Frank Mercer

Reception

''The Tie That Binds'' was heavily panned by critics—particularly

Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fi ...

, who called it "...sleazy, insultingly derivative, and full of dangling plot issues." The film holds a rating of 8% on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

based on reviews from 12 critics.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tie That Binds 1995 films 1995 thriller films American thriller films Films about adoption Films scored by Graeme Revell Films set in California Hollywood Pictures films Interscope Communications films PolyGram Filmed Entertainment films 1995 directorial debut films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films