There’s still enough of the scandal inherent to the story to keep the film from squandering its Lifetime potential. But in the hands of director Gabriel Range (Death Of A President) and the film’s team of writers (basing their work on When Gods Become Men by true-crime writer Stephen Singular), it becomes more of a character study, ambling along without any true momentum to the story.
The movie is hamstrung in part by its focus on Jeffs, while detouring to delve into the fear and pain of the young girls forced to submit to his demands.