Finding Sarah
Sarah (Ele Keats) has always had a bit of a tense relationship with her father, John Porter (Richard Crenna - In the Name of Love: A Texas Tragedy), a much loved member of the local community who is always willing to help someone in need, such as a family who show up at his inn after they are left homeless by a fire. But when Sarah goes missing, caught up in a car jacking, John and his wife. Natalie (Patty Duke - To Face Her Past). are faced with a police force not doing their job properly due to Sarah having had a history of trouble and going missing. It leas to John and Natalie taking matters in to their own hands to try and find their daughter before it is too late.
The box cover says that "Race Against Time: The Search for Sarah" is part of the true story collection but to be honest this ends up a pretty generic made for TV movie about parents refusing to let the system fail them in the search for their missing daughter and taking matters in to their own hands. As such we get some usual elements from the police not doing anything due to by their reckoning Sarah is not missing to the family putting missing posters up and Sarah's mum have a sixth sense that there is something wrong. Maybe for those who know the true story will find this more gripping and sense the race against time that the title suggests but for a casual fan of made for TV movies the actual storyline is pretty standard.
But a big part of the movie revolves around John Porter as not only is he a man with health issues but he is a man who doesn't have the closest relationship with any of his daughters despite being one of the most popular citizens in the town. It gives the movie some drama and also some conflict with one of Sarah's sisters angry about how everyone has to drop everything even though they don't know for sure Sarah is missing. And truth be told it is the performances of Richard Crenna and Patty Duke that lift the movie as they deliver their character's emotions.
What this all boils down to is that "Race Against Time: The Search for Sarah" is that mix of a familiar drama based ona true story which is lifted by the main performances.
