"Just Ask My Children" is a perfect example at how made for television movies can still pull at the heartstrings and make you cry in buckets. And the fact that this is based on a true story makes it a bit harder to watch.
Brenda and Scott Kniffen (Virginia Madsen and Jeffrey Nordling) are the perfect family, with 2 sons who love them dearly. However, the family is soon torn apart by a lie that will send Brenda and Scott to prison, and the 12 years that it took for the truth to set them free.
Brenda and Scott help out some friends during a custody trial. Unfortunately the vindictive relative decides to get even by accusing them and the Kniffens of sexually abusing their children. The police, in "witch hunt" mode, coax the kids into giving false testimony against their parents and the Kniffen's lives go into a spiral. Accused of molesting their children, a jury finds them guilty and sentences them to over 200 years in prison, the children taken away and put into a series of foster homes. With the help of a private detective, the truth finally comes to light, but the damage is done: The Kniffens had lost 12 years of their lives, and the boys are overwhelmed with the guilt of what had happened.
In today's society, in which it becomes more and more apparent that the judicial system is heavily flawed, this film is a prime example of how a single lie can destroy not just one person, but the whole family in the process (Scotty's parents died fighting for their son's freedom).
All of the performances are incredible and heartbreaking to watch, so have the tissue handy.
Brenda and Scott Kniffen (Virginia Madsen and Jeffrey Nordling) are the perfect family, with 2 sons who love them dearly. However, the family is soon torn apart by a lie that will send Brenda and Scott to prison, and the 12 years that it took for the truth to set them free.
Brenda and Scott help out some friends during a custody trial. Unfortunately the vindictive relative decides to get even by accusing them and the Kniffens of sexually abusing their children. The police, in "witch hunt" mode, coax the kids into giving false testimony against their parents and the Kniffen's lives go into a spiral. Accused of molesting their children, a jury finds them guilty and sentences them to over 200 years in prison, the children taken away and put into a series of foster homes. With the help of a private detective, the truth finally comes to light, but the damage is done: The Kniffens had lost 12 years of their lives, and the boys are overwhelmed with the guilt of what had happened.
In today's society, in which it becomes more and more apparent that the judicial system is heavily flawed, this film is a prime example of how a single lie can destroy not just one person, but the whole family in the process (Scotty's parents died fighting for their son's freedom).
All of the performances are incredible and heartbreaking to watch, so have the tissue handy.