Crossed Over (2002)

A writer (Diane Keaton) is unable to come to terms with the death of her son (Nick Roth) in a hit and run accident. Strangely enough, she forms an unlikely bond with a death row murderess (Jennifer Jason Leigh) who becomes a born again Christian but her attachment to the woman places a strain on her marriage. Based on a true story, Jennifer Jason Leigh portrays Karla Faye Tucker sentenced to death for a pick-axe murder and executed in Texas in 1998 despite pleas for clemency from such people as Pope John Paul II, Newt Gingrich and the victim's own brother. Unfortunately, the film isn't very well made and has all the earmarks of a Lifetime movie. Keaton's weepy histrionics become irritating after a while. But two things elevate it beyond the typical TV movie. One, the brutal murder flashbacks are quite disturbing, not unlike the murder flashbacks in IN COLD BLOOD. Two, Jennifer Jason Leigh's performance. I don't think she is capable of giving a false performance. Her low keyed and restrained work is pitch perfect and her final moments before she's executed are touching. Directed by Bobby Roth. With Maury Chaykin as Keaton's husband Patrick Galligan as the prison chaplain who became Tucker's husband shortly before her execution.