After I watched and reviewed Stolen From The Suburbs, it was time to continue to clean out my DVR by watching The Perfect Girlfriend.  The Perfect Girlfriend originally aired on the Lifetime movie network on September 27th.  During that night, I was busy packing for my vacation and getting ready for sister Melissa’s birthday.  And so, I set the DVR to record.

The Perfect Girlfriend is one of the many Canadian thrillers to eventually find a home on the Lifetime network.  Lifetime movies are always designed to exploit our shared fears and fantasies.  Stolen From The Suburbs, for instance, exploited the fear that moms have about not being able to protect their daughters.  Online Abduction exploited a feeling that every daughter has had, that feeling of frustration that comes when your mom refuses to listen to you even though you’re the only person who knows what she’s talking about.  And, of course, a countless number of Lifetime films have dealt with the fear that your boyfriend will suddenly turn out to be a complete psychopath.

The Perfect Girlfriend exploits the other great fear that we all have about boyfriends.  Secretly, we fear that, while our boyfriend might be a genuinely sweet and nice guy, he might also be a lot dumber than we realize.  We fear that, the minute he’s out of sight, he’ll end up getting targeted by the first woman who sees him.  And, because he’s not that smart, he will be easily seduced and we’ll end up having to break up with him.  (That, incidentally, is why most long distance relationships don’t work.  Guys aren’t smart enough to be trusted when we’re not around.)  And then his new girlfriend will turn out to be a totally controlling psycho bitch and really, we should be happy about that because he kind of broke our heart but we don’t want to see him get hurt because it’s really not his fault!  He’s just not that smart…

The Perfect Girlfriend is all about that fear.  Brandon (Jon Cor) gets a job in Portland and he leaves behind his devoted girlfriend, Jensyn (Ashley Leggat).  Brandon tells Jensyn that he loves her and he promises that he’ll be faithful but we know better!  As soon as he lands in Portland, his new boss, Simone (Adrienne Frantz), starts hitting on him.  When his hotel reservations are mysteriously canceled, Brandon takes Simone up on her offer to just stay at her place for a few weekends.

(And, at this point, we all shout, “Brandon, noooo!”  And then Jensyn says it’s okay and we all say, “Girl, I know you know better!”)

Brandon agrees to keep an eye on Simone’s dog but the dog doesn’t even seem to recognize her, almost as if Simone just picked the dog up from a shelter so she would have an excuse to keep Brandon at the house.  Simone does tell Brandon that she has a boyfriend but Brandon never meets him.  One night, Simone tells Brandon that she and her boyfriend broke up.  Shortly afterward, Brandon gets a text from Jensyn, breaking up with him.  Meanwhile, Jensyn gets a mysterious email from Brandon, also breaking up with her.

What could be happening…

Actually, you probably already guessed what’s happening. That’s right — Jensyn made the mistake of letting Brandon out of her sight and, as soon as that happened, Simone decided to pounce.  And Brandon’s too stupid to realize what’s happening.  So now, he’s living and sleeping with Simone while Jensyn struggles to get on with her life.

But, of course, Brandon still loves Jensyn.  And when he starts to make an effort to get back in touch with her, Simone has a breakdown…

Anyway, The Perfect Girlfriend is pretty predictable but it’s kind of fun in a silly Lifetime sort of way.  Nothing that happens will surprise you but if you love Lifetime movies (like I do), The Perfect Girlfriend is an enjoyable enough addition to the “My Boyfriend Is An Idiot” genre.  If nothing else, it’s a film that will remind you why it’s important to never let your man out of your sight.