In Spokane, Stephanie Bennett and her young daughter Sage flee the clutches of the abusive Andrew Bennett. Ten years later, Stephanie is a successful realtor in Palm Springs with a new name, Alexandra Cole living with her teenage daughter Rachel. But when Andrew tracks down his wife and daughter, a melodramatic ordeal ensues that culminates in a confrontation in the Lost Salish Mine.

"Hidden Away" features one of our favorite actresses, Emmanuelle "Lifetime" Vaugier as Stephanie/Alexandra, a complex character, who is not entirely likeable. Stephanie committed fraud by collecting $250,000 in life insurance money after her death. In the film, it is never fully explained how she maneuvered the life insurance company to make the payout. There is also no indication she ever plans to return the money or attempt to make amends.

Another flaw in Stephanie's character is her reluctance to contact the police, once Andrew has discovered her in Palm Springs and is blackmailing her. By not contacting the authorities, Stephanie endangers the lives of her fiance Brett, a museum curator who is absolutely devoted to her. Even young Sage is at risk due to the hair-trigger temper of Andrew, who can be a sentimental sap one moment, then turn on a dime to become a monster.

Stephanie was blessed by having the realtor Lynn as a friend and colleague. As a realtor, Lynn gave Stephanie a job in her time of need, then mentored her as she learned the profession. Because of Stephanie's failure to alert the police, poor Lynn becomes collateral damage. Somehow, Lynn's death seems long forgotten by the characters in the film's denouement when Stephanie, Brett, and Sage are on a vacation debating whether they should go paragliding or snorkeling.

The film's climatic scene in the Lost Salish Mine and the mad scramble aboard the Palm Springs aerial tramway lapsed into the comedy as the bug-eyed Andrew is so out of control that even he is unclear whether he wants the $250,00 in cash or his pipedream of returning to a "normal" family life with him as the abuser.

Stephanie was proud of her ability to create "new beginnings" for her and her daughter. But, due to her own flawed character, the fresh start eventually became her nightmare.

Typical Lifetime Network nonsense about the victimized woman with terribly poor taste who hopes that running away will solve her problems only to learn the hard way when she gets tracked down. In this shameless outing, we have Vaugier faking her and her daughter's death in an attempt to escape her physically abusive husband. Blah, blah, blah; same old routine: she gets a new life, her daughter grows up not remembering anything, she meets a nice guy (Flanery),the fairy tale ending is just a grasp away, and then all of a sudden the bad guy from the past (Sergei) shows up. This cookie-cutter garbage could be somewhat bearable if it didn't consist of melodrama triggered by acts that would otherwise be considered downright moronic if only the protagonists weren't so unlucky. Nice climax—apparently, any dimwit can be inspired by watching NORTH BY NORTHWEST in film class.

*½ (out of four)

Oh, I did want to like this movie. It didn't matter that it's derivative of "Sleeping with the Enemy," right down to the abandoned abuser finding proof of his "dead" wife's deception that she conveniently--no, foolishly--left behind. (Honestly, if you're going to fake your own death, wouldn't it occur to you to hide all paperwork pertaining to the faking of your own death?) Most people who watch this film are probably drawn by its similarities to SWtE (with the added bonus of a child!)

The wife's leaving of damning evidence was only the first of her foolish mistakes, though (if you don't count marrying the crazy man in the first place. Let's assume that some men are good at hiding their abusive tendencies). Her biggest goof is that, after faking her death, she goes into a business (realty) which she advertises by plastering pictures of her face all over advertisements and billboards?

I don't appreciate movies with stupid heroines, which made it hard for me to truly like this one. Yes, she's the underdog. And she's played as being smart and tough. But some of her decisions discredited her. It was also hard to believe that her husband would be so obsessed with her after ten years. That was my other problem with this film. The husband character is so very evil, to the point where he's not only coming after his wife; he's coming after her friends as well! It almost feels like a twisted wish-fulfillment for women who mistake obsession for love--she's so great that he'll Never Get Over Her, and in the meantime, she'll have found another Wonderful Guy.

I give this 5 points because I liked some of the actors, and the story certainly isn't slow. But unless you throw your suspension of disbelief out the window, you may wish this film had remained hidden away.