Review of The Abduction of Kari Swenson

Unless you are familiar with the kidnapping event the movie is based on, there are some surprises that you will not see coming. Two mountain men, a father and son, played by M. Emmet Walsh and Michael Bowen, kidnap Olympic athlete Kari Swenson, Tracy Pollan, "because they need a woman" in their Montana mountain lair. They are relentlessly pursued by a Sheriff, Joe Don Baker. The very uneven editing causes the film to constantly be cutting back and forth between the manhunt and Kari Swenson's personal demons from her ordeal. For a TV movie, this is way above average, and special mention must be made of the excellent "Philip Glass like" soundtrack. Rather than going for sensationalism, the film concentrates on character development, and it far exceeded my expectations. - MERK