Last night, I turned over to the Lifetime Movie Network and I watched Dressed to Kill!

Why Was I Watching It?

Because it was on Lifetime!  It’s been a while since I’ve really gotten a chance to enjoy a good Lifetime film.  I was planning on getting back into my Lifetime viewing habit last year but 2024 had other plans.  This year, though, I hope to once again get to enjoy my weekly Lifetime fix.

What Was It About?

When Vanessa (Suzanne R. Neff) dies after someone steals her asthma inhaler, she leaves her clothing company not her spoiler daughter Blair (Annie Sullivan) but instead to her loyal and kind-hearted assistant, Amy (Brianna Cohen).  Amy tries to figure out who killed Vanessa.  Was it Blair?  Was it disgruntled seamstress Wanda (Monanik Dugar)?  Or was it Amy’s own boyfriend, Kevin (Moe Sehgal)?

What Worked

First, and most importantly, this film fully embraced the melodrama.  When it comes to Lifetime films, the promise of melodrama is essential and the best films are the ones that shamelessly embrace it.  Director Lindsay Hartley kept the action moving and didn’t waste too much time trying to convince the viewer that they were watching a realistic portrait of life in the fashion industry.

This film actually did keep me guessing as far as who the murderer was.  It’s obvious that the filmmakers understood who most veteran Lifetime viewers would automatically suspect and, wisely, they played around with those expectations.

Monanik Dugar’s performance was Wanda was wonderfully unhinged.  I also liked Annie Sullivan’s performance as the hilariously entitled Blair.  As played by Sullivan, Blair was the influencer from Hell.

What Did Not Work

I probably would have taken the fashion aspect of the movie more seriously if the clothes hadn’t been so …. uhm, well …. ugly.  Of course, it’s all in the eye of the bolder but let’s just say that I would not have worn any of the outfits.

This movie did feature a fashion show but it looked so low-rent that, again, it left me wondering whether it would be better to just let the company go out of business.

“Oh my God!  Just like me!” Moments

I have asthma so, as soon as I saw Vanessa grabbing her inhaler, I knew how she was going to die.  That made me go “Agck!” because, seriously, asthma attacks are always scary.

When I was 18, I had a friend who got a job at a clothing company in Dallas.  At first, I thought that was really exciting but then I visited her at work and discovered that it was a place that designed polyester cabana wear for senior citizens.  Admittedly, that doesn’t have much to do with this movie but I still found myself thinking about it as I watched Dressed To Kill.  At least the company in Dressed to Kill could afford to put on a fashion show.  This place where my friend worked wasn’t even willing to do that,

(For the record, my friend only worked there for two weeks before walking off the job.  Some of that was my fault because I had lunch with her on her final day and, as her lunch hour came to a close, I said, “What if you just didn’t go back?”  Having never had a job before, I was shocked to discover that people still get a final paycheck even if they just leave for lunch and then never come back.  Hmmm, I thought, maybe I’ll get a job someday….)

Lessons Learned

Be careful with those scissors!