SPOILERS AHEAD: This movie is a mess.
Andrea, a mentally-ill woman (Ellen Barber) teams with Jude, a mentally-ill carnival worker (Richard Lynch) to kidnap her young daughter, who now lives with Miles and Sheri Bennett (Edward Bell and Sharon Farrell).
Andrea actually gets her hands on the daughter Janie (Danielle Brisebois) in the girl’s bedroom, but after a brief struggle with Sheri, leaves the home with one of Janie’s dolls.
The trauma of the attempted kidnapping triggers a series of bizarre “premonitions” — Miles’ colleague Dr. Jeena Kingsly (Chitra Neogy), a para-psychologist, suggests he take them seriously, although they really do seem like the psychotic hallucinations of someone on the edge of a breakdown.
Jude, who seems to have zero investment in acquiring Janie, freaks out when she rejoins him with the just the doll. And he kills her, dumping her body in a nearby pond. Sheri’s premonitions continue, however, and during a car crash that knocks her out, Janie leaves the car to go to…the carnival where she is kidnapped by Jude and held in his trailer.
Will Jude ransom her? Unclear, he just hangs out with her in the trailer, attempting to entertain her. The police discover Andrea’s dead body and her sheet music, and Dr. Kingsly has Sheri perform Andrea’s songs on a piano, downtown at night, for some reason not fully explained. Jude decides to escape with Janie but is stopped along with everyone else at a police roadblock…set up for the Sheri’s impromptu concert.
The police and Miles discover Jude’s trailer and scuffle with him while looking for Janie. Meanwhile, the spirit of Andrea seems to have taken over Sheri who is playing her music with a grand flourish, not even looking at the sheet music anymore. The music summons Janie out of the trailer and the young girl makes her way towards her mother, before collapsing in front of a small crowd that has gathered to observe this odd music spectacle. Sheri rushes to her and cradles her lovingly. Roll credits.
What happens to Jude? I guess he gets beaten up and arrested. How does Janie get past three men in a tiny trailer to make her way towards her mother? Not explained. You didn’t need to beat me over my gorgeous head with exposition, but this movie felt like it was missing about five minutes of plot.
