kapelusznik18 ***SPOILERS***Were shown here how the unregulated use of metabolic steroids can turn into spousal as well as, in the case of Patty Yuklich played by Hoilary Swank,child abuse. It's the man of the house decorated undercover policeman Dennis Yaklich,Brad Johnson, a body building freak who went hog wild into pumping himself up on steroids that eventually lead to his demise. His wife Donna, Jaclyn Smith, after taking all she could take from him hired these two mentally challenged, instead of processional Mafia hit-men, neighbors to do her husband in and ended up getting a 20 to 40 years sentence for her effort.Dennis who at first was a perfect gentleman towards Donna later turned into a Frankenstein monster when the steroids, that he took by the handful, took control of his brain. It's also hinted that his first wife who died from an overreaction to her medication was herself murdered by him who, with the help of the local police department, had it covered up. As for Donna here biggest mistake was in hiring these two goof-balls the Greenwell brothers Eddie & Cjharlie,Ramsey Midwood & Jason Kristofer, to do her husband Dennis in. And do it on the cheap, for beer and hamburger money, that made it, Dennis death, a case of premeditated murder not a crime of passion thus having the book thrown at her by the judge.***SPOILERS**** Whatever feeling you have for Donna you have to remember the story or movie is told from her point of view not her husband who's not around to tell it. The guy was an exercise freak but his mind being warped due to the use of steroids and being abusive to Donna and his step daughter Patty is to be taken with a grain of salt. Still Donna going so far as to hire someone to do the guy in instead of just leaving him makes his case, in being innocent, not hers, in being abused by him, that much more believable. That with the fact that Donna's lawyer John Giduck was suspected of having an affair with Donna while at the same time he was defending her for her husband's murder!

wes-connors At a picnic, exceptionally beautiful Tiffani Amber Thiessen (as Jennifer "Jen" Moore) meets exceptionally handsome Eric Close (as Chris Gallagher). He wants to go out with Ms. Thiessen, but she's not dating. Encouraged by fatherly friend Gerald McRaney (as Dave Morgan), Thiessen changes her mind quickly. Their first sexual encounter doesn't work out very well. Thiessen lets Mr. Close know she was raped two years ago. Close seems very understanding. He proposes and she accepts. They are an exceptionally beautiful and handsome couple. But, if you didn't catch the foreshadowing, there is trouble a-brewing...The community is shocked by a "Peeping Tom" and Close becomes a prime suspect. Thiessen defends her husband. Things get more serious when a serial rapist starts sneaking around. Thiessen begins to wonder if Close might be "The Stranger Beside Me". This is supposed to be based on a true story. It doesn't impress as very realistic, but writer Bruce Miller and director Sandor Stern were probably not focused on realism. This TV movie is more about chests than rape, and the co-stars certainly have nice ones. Since he's a guy, the camera are more generous in showing Close's chest. Thiessen is way too pretty for her part.***** The Stranger Beside Me (9/17/95) Sandor Stern ~ Tiffani Thiessen, Eric Close, Gerald McRaney, Steven Eckholdt

kurt-324 The movie is good and I think Tiffany Amber is very beautiful. I liked the movie. Can anyone tell me how I can get hold of the songs from this movie? Even the soundtrack will do. If that's not possible, can I at least get the names of the songs with their respective singers? I tried to look up amazon.com but its not there. I tried CD baby, not there either. I browsed through Google to get some details but there weren't any. I would appreciate it if someone could give me the answer to my question. I know that the songs belong to Country Music and is sung by a country artist. I just need the title names along with the singer. I would recommend this movie or rather the songs to any country loving person.

Verbal-17 When I saw the preview for this movie, I figured to myself, "here's another dumb TV movie that's written with the thought and complexity of a soap opera," but when I saw it I was surprised. Tiffany-Amber Thiessen stars (and proves that she can indeed act if given the chance) as a woman who falls in love with and marries a man (Now and Again's Eric Close) but begins to lose trust in him when a series of rapes begin to take place in her community. At first, she is blinded by his assurances that he is innocent and her love for him, but as time passes she continues to be suspicious of him.While this sounds like the set-up for another boring melodramatic TV-movie, it is really much better than that, because the characters are well-acted by Thiessen and Close, and the movie's script allows them to be much more complicated and intelligent than you'd expect; these aren't just caricatures or cardboard characters that exist only to move the plot along but real, three-dimensional people, and we find ourselves really caring about them. And the movie is smart enough that it is able to provide an exciting, involving climax to the story without resorting to dumb action scenes, mindless cliches or cheap melodrama. Instead we share in the main character's inner conflicts and fears, and are given a realistic portrayal of how she might be able to resolve them and do the right thing.If you get a chance to give this one a look, please do so. It's production values are not exactly top-notch (it is a TV movie, after all), but if you can look past that, there is an excellent story to enjoy.