Separate Lives 1995

Dr. Dr. Lauren Porter, Linda Hamilton / Lena, is a psychologist-in-training whose friend was killed a few years ago, and her story threads through the lives of two damaged people who become entangled in a dangerous mix of trust and danger. Ex-cop Tom Beckwith, Jim Belushi, who gave up the force after his wife died, enrolls in Lauren’s classes to pursue a path toward psychiatry. When Lauren asks him to follow her around with a camera and film her, Tom discovers something unsettling: a possible personality disorder shaping her actions and moods.

On his first attempt to tail her, Tom is beaten by a nightclub owner who turns out to be the boyfriend of Lena, the darker side of Lauren’s persona. The incident shocks Tom into quitting, but Lauren coaxes him back, saying they can help each other. As they grow closer, they share painful family truths: Tom is struggling to raise his tomboyish daughter Ronni Beckwith, Elisabeth Moss, largely on his own, while Lauren reveals she was the sole witness to the murders of her mother and stepfather. Her real father, Robert Porter, has since moved on and become a happy husband and father again, a fact that deepens the web of secrets surrounding her.

Tom’s attempts to reconnect with his old colleagues to probe the murders are met with roadblocks, yet he learns more about Lauren’s past when he discovers she has an ex-husband, Charles Duffy, Josh Taylor, with whom she still maintains contact. Before long, Charles himself is killed, adding another layer of mystery and danger to their investigation.

To bridge personal and forensic questions, Tom invites Lauren to a home dinner, where she helps Ronni understand that, despite the chaos in her mother’s life, Tom remains a devoted father who cares deeply about her well-being.

Believing the key to the mystery lies at Lauren’s childhood home, Tom drives them there and the truth about the killings comes into sharper focus: Robert Porter is the real culprit, and he manipulated his daughter by convincing her that she bore as much guilt as he did. A brutal confrontation erupts when Robert shoots at them, wounding Tom in the arm. Lauren pleads with her father to spare her daughter, but Robert refuses to let her go and hurls himself into a fatal stance. Tom, now acting with resolve, rises to disarm Robert and, in a final act of justice, throws him out the window to his death.

In the aftermath, Tom promises to stay connected with Lauren, who is committed to an asylum, while a charged, quiet moment marks the end of their day together: they share a kiss, sealing a complicated bond that lingers beyond the violence and the truth they have uncovered.