As the wrongly accused woman of the film's title, Ellen Plainview has to win the sympathy of viewers as she tries to prove her innocence when arrested for attempted murder. By the midpoint of the film, everyone seems to have turned against her.
To give a sense of the degree to which the deck is stacked against Ellen, her husband, her daughter, the police, her snarky defense attorney, her employer, and a high school student from her past all turn on Ellen after her arrest. Ellen is dumbfounded as she seeks for the inner reserves to defend herself. Her only faux pas was to take class in pole dancing in attempt to revive her husband's interest in her, an error in judgment exacerbated by her husband's infidelity.
The turning point in the film is when she meets the kind Ben Severin, who works in the public defender's office. Ben agrees to be her assistant as she represents herself at trial. One of the best scenes in the film is when Ben lands a counterpunch to the enormous belly of the lawyer, who has to be one of the worst defense attorneys every to appear in a television courtroom drama.
Ellen delivers a spirited summation to the jury in her defense. It is intriguing that the courtroom scene does not solve mystery. Rather, a lengthy denouement ties up the loose ends when Ellen once ferrets out the backstory of why the attack on a woman unknown to Ellen had occurred and why false testimony was given and evidence planted against her.
The resourcefulness of Ellen, including her courtroom heroics and sheer tenacity, define her character as one strong woman!
To give a sense of the degree to which the deck is stacked against Ellen, her husband, her daughter, the police, her snarky defense attorney, her employer, and a high school student from her past all turn on Ellen after her arrest. Ellen is dumbfounded as she seeks for the inner reserves to defend herself. Her only faux pas was to take class in pole dancing in attempt to revive her husband's interest in her, an error in judgment exacerbated by her husband's infidelity.
The turning point in the film is when she meets the kind Ben Severin, who works in the public defender's office. Ben agrees to be her assistant as she represents herself at trial. One of the best scenes in the film is when Ben lands a counterpunch to the enormous belly of the lawyer, who has to be one of the worst defense attorneys every to appear in a television courtroom drama.
Ellen delivers a spirited summation to the jury in her defense. It is intriguing that the courtroom scene does not solve mystery. Rather, a lengthy denouement ties up the loose ends when Ellen once ferrets out the backstory of why the attack on a woman unknown to Ellen had occurred and why false testimony was given and evidence planted against her.
The resourcefulness of Ellen, including her courtroom heroics and sheer tenacity, define her character as one strong woman!