This film has two names, the one I viewed was "Going Underground" which is a better title for this type of film about a very happy looking married couple with two children. However, once the front door is shut the husband turns into another person and thinks he is in the boxing ring with his wife, who has no defense except to take all the right and left shots to the jaw. Joanna Kerns,(Maryann Walker-Tate) gave an outstanding performance through out the entire picture as the wife who struggles to keep her children and try to change the laws about abused women in the United States. Tim Matheson, (Daniel) gave a great supporting role as the most shameful husband/father you would ever want to know. This subject always needs to be told, because unfortunately women are still having to face this horrible brutality.
10 Reviews
Original title (Going Underground) was misleading, otherwise, typical Lifetime TV stuff
highwaytourist25 December 2007
This played on Lifetime Television under the title "Going Underground," which intrigued me. There are women who go underground, changing their identities and living anonymous lives to hide themselves and their children from abusive husbands. But this never lived up to it. The heroine didn't "go underground" until the last 15 minutes of the film, and it was shown in quick stills. What did they show, then? A completely ordinary and predictable drama with every Battered Woman chicle in the book. Talk about false advertising! I felt so cheated, I wanted to batter the people who made this, especially the one who chose the title. The story and its ending will surprise only those who have never watched Lifetime Television before.
Typical TV Movie
sinverguenza26 January 2002
Abusive, black-hearted husband is the bad guy, and the loving mother is wronged by the unfeeling court system. However, AMAZING performance by Justin Isfeld as Jason, the son. Truly a wonderful performance for a child actor so young.
The director probably had enough of it as well...
imdbcom-699693 May 2020
...so he walked away before the end and the movie doesn't really conclude properly after dragging more than an hour and a half with the same issue.
The pianist, unfortunately, stayed all along and felt he had to play through every sing scene for drama purpose.
Despite good acting all around, this movie is almost as painful to go through as the issue it is supposed to depict.
Great Story but...
yzkt9 February 2024
This could have been a great movie if I didn't have to mute it and turn the captions on because the piano was just way too much! More than half of the movie had the same piano tune in the background and it did not go with what was going on in the movie whatsoever. I started to wonder if the movie was glitched until I read another review that mentioned the same thing.
It definitely is a typical lifetime movie and hard to really connect with the characters since they really didn't go into detail with them much at all. The boy was wonderful and probably the one that was easiest to sympathize with.
It definitely is a typical lifetime movie and hard to really connect with the characters since they really didn't go into detail with them much at all. The boy was wonderful and probably the one that was easiest to sympathize with.
"Give Me Back My Children!!!"
lavatch20 December 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The most shocking part of "Going Underground" (a.k.a., "Shameful Secrets") was the ruling of a judge to disallow any mention of child and spousal abuse during a custody hearing. The film, which was made in 1993, unfolds the changing of the legal statute in 1990, thanks to the Congressional Morella resolution, named after Rep. Constance A. Morella, (R-Md.).
The film's narrative unfolds around one strong woman, Maryanne Walker-Tate, who suffered eleven years of physical abuse by her husband Daniel. After surviving a brutal attack that required hospitalization, Maryanne faced a hostile court in which the judge ruled in favor of the husband, who claimed that Maryanne had "abandoned" her children when she was hospitalized, then kicked out of the house by Daniel.
Some of the best scenes of the film occur in a shelter for battered women. It is there that Maryanne meets other abused women and begins to work closely with the sensitive Louise, the director of the center. Eventually, Maryanne goes "undercover" in defying the judge's order, moving to a new location with young Jason and Josie, and changing her name to Mrs. Sarah Williams.
The most moving moments of the film are when Maryanne comes out of hiding to testify before Rep. Morella's committee. When she told the Congressional panel, "Give me back my children," she received a standing ovation from the audience. The film was well-made with an excellent performance by the actress who created a credible transformation from a cowed victim to an individual empowered by agency to make a difference in changing the legal statutes.
The film's narrative unfolds around one strong woman, Maryanne Walker-Tate, who suffered eleven years of physical abuse by her husband Daniel. After surviving a brutal attack that required hospitalization, Maryanne faced a hostile court in which the judge ruled in favor of the husband, who claimed that Maryanne had "abandoned" her children when she was hospitalized, then kicked out of the house by Daniel.
Some of the best scenes of the film occur in a shelter for battered women. It is there that Maryanne meets other abused women and begins to work closely with the sensitive Louise, the director of the center. Eventually, Maryanne goes "undercover" in defying the judge's order, moving to a new location with young Jason and Josie, and changing her name to Mrs. Sarah Williams.
The most moving moments of the film are when Maryanne comes out of hiding to testify before Rep. Morella's committee. When she told the Congressional panel, "Give me back my children," she received a standing ovation from the audience. The film was well-made with an excellent performance by the actress who created a credible transformation from a cowed victim to an individual empowered by agency to make a difference in changing the legal statutes.
Joanna Kerns is a godsend
AdrienneGrayceMusic14 April 2022
Not sure why the hate. Yikes. Stumbled upon this on Tubi since they have the old classic lifetime movies. Lifetime movies in the 80s and 90s were the best ones, and this one was no exception. Exceptional acting from Joanna kerns and the child who played her son Jason. People can say that this is another "typical lifetime movie" but to me, thats ok. This story should be told over and over until people realize what women go through. Tim Matheson always plays the bad guy, being type-cast in almost everything, so he did well here. It was a great story of abuse running in families from generation to generation and the struggle women face trying to leave, since most people think its so easy. A lot of new laws have been enacted in the last couple decades but battered women and children were through the roof during the time of this movie. If you like typical lifetime movies, you'll like this one as well.
Effective battered wife story
phd_travel10 November 2019
Effective movie where a battered woman takes her kids and runs. Joanna Kerns is good. The abusive husband played by Tim Mathison is 100% bad repeatedly abusive and kicks her out and more. She moves
to a shelter and the judge gives custody to the bad dad. There seems to be little recourse for her. One problem with this movie is how can everything in the system go against her? At the crux of this movie is that the judge can't take account spousal abuse in custody hearings.
When her boy starts get abused she realises she needs to run with the kids.
Worth a watch but it's quite fraught with emotion.
When her boy starts get abused she realises she needs to run with the kids.
Worth a watch but it's quite fraught with emotion.
10 stars easy, for being a 90's TRUE story of such FACT! Tim Matheson was a jerk(character-wise) the Tall beautiful Joanna Kerns is AMAZING!
taylor851916 July 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Even at now senior age(69 or this year 70)she still look great, and I love her so very much, I smile each time i rewind on my DVR on the "REWIND" cable network, Growing Pains. I love her, and forever shall, wish her good happy days, nights, healthy and beauty inside out. Under-rated tv AND movie actress, she is so real. I just re-ordered on dvd "GOING UNDERGROUND." Such a great movie, still have zero clue why it is called to some "Shameful" or shameful secrets for." Either way, she was brilliant each per scene, realistic. Love her.!!!
Happy the ending was what i hoped it to be."10 stars! Adios.
Happy the ending was what i hoped it to be."10 stars! Adios.
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