''Daughters'', also known as ''Our Mother's Murder '' is a

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

made-for-TV 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 ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by Bill L. Norton, and stars

Holly Marie Combs Holly Marie Combs Ryan (born December 3, 1973) is an American actress and producer. She is known for her roles as Kimberly Brock in the CBS series '' Picket Fences'' (1992–1996), Piper Halliwell in The WB series ''Charmed'' (1998–2006) and ...

and

Sarah Chalke Sarah Louise Christine Chalke (; born August 27, 1976) is a Canadian actress and model. She is known for portraying Elliot Reid on the NBC/ ABC comedy series '' Scrubs'', the second Becky Conner on the ABC sitcom ''Roseanne'', Stella Zinman on ...

who play Alex and Annie, the two eldest daughters of the main character Anne. A possible movie adaptation of the true crime story was in talks since 1994, though Alex and Annie Morrell agreed only years later. Whereas they had no involvement in the production, and thought the film was overly dramatic, they supported the message and hoped that ''Daughters'' could help any victims of domestic violence.

Plot

In Spring 1989, sisters Alex and Anne Morrell finish prep school, and return home to start college. Their mother, publishing heiress

Anne Scripps Anne Scripps (November 18, 1946 – January 6, 1994) was an American heiress to the E. W. Scripps Company and the great-great granddaughter of James E. Scripps, founder of ''The Detroit News''. In 1993, she was bludgeoned by her estranged seco ...

, welcomes them in her New York mansion. Anne has recently divorced her husband Tony, and is still struggling with the divorce. Nonetheless, she is happy with her new boyfriend, much younger Scott Douglas, a volatile-tempered young man whom she marries only months after their first meeting. From the start, Alex is uncertain if she should trust Scott, having heard stories about a possible violent past. When Anne announces that she will be having a baby, Scott is distrustful to notice how Alex reacts with doubt about the news. To get rid of her, he claims that he has found marijuana in Alex's bedroom. Alex denies the accusation, but Anne defends her boyfriend, who forces Alex to leave the house. Shortly after Anne and Scott's baby, Tori's, birth in June 1990, Scott gets violent and beats up Anne for inviting Tony's family for the baby's coming out party. Alex and Annie encourage their mom to leave Scott, but Anne forgives him after a couple of months. By June 1991, she and Scott are a happy couple again. On Alex's 21st birthday, Scott lashes out at Anne again when he finds her smoking in the same room as Tori, and then throws a guest, Stacey, off the stairs. Enraged, Alex dares Scott to hit her, and the police interrupts their fight, only to have Scott lie about the situation. A similar occurrence takes place at a formal ball, where Scott pushes around Anne in front of her friends. As they leave, the fight continues in the car, and Scott eventually throws her out while speeding. Three months later, Alex's charges against Scott have been dropped, though Anne has filed for divorce and attained a restraining order. The three women move on with their lives, until one night Annie is hit by her date, Mark, while Alex meets a new romantic interest, Jimmy Romeo, though a relationship is postponed due to her focus on her mother. Another setback occurs when Anne is informed that she will have to share custody of Tori. Deciding a reconciliation would be for the better, Anne meets with Scott and believes that he has changed his life for the better. It turns out, soon, however, that Scott is still as violent as he used to be and threatens to make Tori disappear if she does not stop continuing legal proceedings. The police arrive at the mansion sometime later, though Anne is too scared to file charges. The following day, upon finding out that Scott is stealing her money and planning on running away with Tori, Anne asks for another restraining order. Alex and Annie move in with her again to protect their mother from Scott, and until Alex leaves for the holidays, they are happy again. One day, Tony calls the mansion, and Scott answers. Believing that Anne will get back with Tony, he announces that the threats are over, and that something has to be done. As soon as Annie leaves, Scott gets drunk and grabs a hammer, killing Anne while she is asleep. Afterwards, he jumps to his death off the Tappan Zee Bridge, over the Hudson River in New York, though his body is found over three months later. The girls are left behind in grief over their mother. Fifteen months later, Alex prepares to marry Jimmy, and in the aftertitles, it is revealed that she gave birth to a baby daughter.

Cast

as Alex Morrell *

Roxanne Hart Roxanne Hart (born July 27, 1952) is an American actress, best known for her roles as Brenda Wyatt in the 1986 film ''Highlander'', and as Nurse Camille Shutt on the CBS medical drama series ''Chicago Hope'' (1994–1998). Hart has also received ...

as Anne Scripps *

as Annie Morrell * James Wilder as Scott Douglas *

Jonathan Scarfe Jonathan Scarfe (born December 16, 1975) is a Canadian film and television actor. Early life He was born in Toronto, Ontario, to actors Alan Scarfe and Sara Botsford. He dropped out of high school at age 15, and at the age of 16 he spent a yea ...

as Jimmy Romeo * Michael Buie as Andy Phillips * Edgar Davis Jr. as Mark * Stephen Fanning as Dave *

Myriam Sirois Myriam Sirois (born February 2, 1975) is a Canadian actress, mainly known for being the voice of Akane Tendo in the English version of ''Ranma ½''. She also portrayed Sarah Cantrell in the ''Babylon 5 ''Babylon 5'' is an American space ...

as Stacey * Jim Thorburn as Princeton One * Rick Ravanello as Officer Calder *

Alf Humphreys Alfred E. Humphreys (August 9, 1953 – January 31, 2018) was a Canadian actor. Early life Humphreys was born in Haileybury, Ontario, Canada. He was the son of Leslie and Gabrielle Humphreys. Career Humphreys was a dramatic actor who first acte ...

as Officer Derrick * Ryan Michael as Tony Morrell * Nalia Rukavina as Tory Douglas * Bob Osborne as Roger Preston * Colleen Winton as Suzanne Preston * Peter Yunker as Tom * Jane MacDougall as Barbara * Andrew Johnston as Lawyer * Marcus Hondro as Larry the Locksmith (as Markus Hondro) * Anna Hagan as Judge Karmin * Lesley Ewen as Linda Keesler * John Dadey as Officer Garrison * Rob Morton as Officer Tim * Tracey Lively as Waitress * Crystal Verge as Sylvia *

Peter Bryant Peter Bryant (27 October 1923 – 19 May 2006) was an English television producer, script editor and former actor. He acted in ''The Grove Family'' as a regular cast member and later became the producer of '' Doctor Who'' from 1967 to 196 ...

as Booking Officer

External links

* * https://web.archive.org/web/20100124123459/http://newsofhot.com/anne-scripps-douglas/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Daughters (1997 Tv Film) 1997 films 1997 television films 1997 thriller films English-language thriller films American thriller television films American drama television films Films about domestic violence Drama films based on actual events Films set in 1989 Films set in 1990 Films set in 1991 Lifetime (TV network) films Films directed by Bill L. Norton 1990s English-language films 1990s American films