Kidnap 2017

The film commences with a heartwarming montage of Karla Dyson (Halle Berry) capturing cherished moments on video with her infant son Frankie (Sage Correa), as the years unfold and Frankie grows older, with Karla basking in every precious second spent with him. In the present, Karla, a single mother, juggles her responsibilities as a waitress at a diner to support herself and Frankie, dealing with a litany of frustrating customers, including a family whose whiny offspring demands hash browns, and a couple where the girlfriend is curt and impatient with Karla. Her boss reassures her that he has summoned another waitress to alleviate the staffing shortage, allowing Karla to take Frankie out for a special day together.

As they spend quality time at the park, Karla and Frankie engage in an exhilarating game of “Marco Polo” while Frankie frolics on the playground equipment. Later, as they settle down to enjoy a show, Karla receives a phone call from her lawyer, revealing that her estranged husband is seeking full custody of their son. When Karla attempts to contest this, her call gets disconnected, and she returns to find Frankie missing from his bench perch. Panicked, she frantically queries other parents if they have seen him before embarking on a desperate search, shouting “Marco” repeatedly into the void.

Karla’s anxiety reaches a fever pitch when she spots a woman (Chris McGinn) snatching a screaming Frankie and pulling him into a green Ford Mustang. Without hesitation, Karla leaps into action, clinging to the side of the moving vehicle until she tumbles off, her phone slipping from her bag in the process.

Undeterred, Karla commandeers her minivan and sets off in hot pursuit, as the kidnappers navigate the parkway, causing a series of minor accidents. As Karla realizes she’s lost her phone, she attempts to alert other drivers to the unfolding drama, but the woman drops a tool box onto the road to shake Karla off their tail. When Karla closes in on the Mustang once more, the kidnappers roll down the window, with Margo (the female abductor) brandishing Frankie at knifepoint, forcing Karla to take an evasive route. As she continues to track them, Karla listens to Frankie’s recording toy and overhears Margo cooing sweet nothings into her son’s ear, convincing him that his mom was searching for him.

As Karla’s desperation reaches a boiling point, she resorts to erratic driving to grab the attention of a passing police officer on his motorcycle. The officer, undeterred by her reckless behavior, pulls up beside her and orders her to pull over. But before he can intervene, the kidnappers strike, pinning him between their vehicles and sending him careening off into a nearby ditch.

The kidnappers bring Karla to a screeching halt on the outskirts of a lush green field, where one of them, Terrence Vicky (Lew Temple), steps out wielding a knife. Karla deftly reverses her vehicle, backing away from the menacing figure until he’s left panting in his tracks. As he recovers, she offers to buy back her son’s freedom for a hefty sum, but vows to stop at nothing to reclaim Frankie as long as he remains in their clutches. Terrence, unfazed by Karla’s threats, reunites with his cohorts, and Margo, the other kidnapper, emerges from the shadows, calmly demanding $10,000 in exchange for Frankie’s safe return.

Karla reluctantly agrees to let Margo ride shotgun in her minivan, but as they journey through a dark and foreboding tunnel, the tables are turned. Margo launches a vicious attack, leaving Karla to fight back with every ounce of strength she possesses. After dispatching her would-be captor, Karla cleverly uses Margo’s discarded jacket to create the illusion that she’s still in the van, fooling Terrence into believing his henchwoman is still by his side.

As they navigate the winding roads, Terrence becomes increasingly wary, eventually discovering Margo’s absence and threatening to dump Frankie out of their moving vehicle. Karla is forced to slow her pursuit, but not before she spots a family fishing innocently alongside the road. She urges them to call the authorities about the suspicious green Ford Mustang, which leads her on a wild goose chase through the area.

Karla’s search ultimately culminates in a high-speed chase down a busy highway, where Terrence’s reckless driving causes a multi-car pileup that brings traffic to a grinding halt. Karla seizes the opportunity to cut through the chaos and makes a beeline for Terrence’s vehicle, only to find that her quarry has vanished into thin air, leaving behind a trail of breadcrumbs leading to a nearby police station.

Undeterred by the authorities’ initial reluctance to take her concerns seriously, Karla takes matters into her own hands, scouring the precinct’s missing persons files and uncovering a disturbing array of cases involving children who have been gone for years. Fearing that Frankie will suffer a similar fate, she resolves to continue her search, driven by an unyielding determination to reclaim her son.

As Karla watches a black Volvo speed away from a parking lot, she’s struck with a sense of déjà vu - Terrence is behind the wheel, and she can’t help but feel an unsettling connection to the fleeing driver. She chases after him, her own vehicle fueled by a mix of determination and adrenaline. However, their high-speed pursuit takes a deadly turn when Terrence slams into a pedestrian, leaving Karla reeling in horror.

Undeterred, Karla continues her relentless chase, only to find her own car running on fumes. Spotting an authority vehicle on the road, she attempts to flag down a ride, but Terrence has other plans - he rams into the vehicle, killing the driver and leaving Karla unconscious and helpless.

When Karla comes to, she’s met with the eerie silence of the Volvo’s empty interior. Her search for answers is short-lived, as Terrence emerges from the shadows, gun in hand. Karla makes a break for her own car, with Terrence hot on her heels. In a daring move, she puts the vehicle in reverse and speeds into the woods, using the treacherous terrain to her advantage.

As Terrence becomes entangled in a thicket of branches, his cries are drowned out by the sound of crunching metal as Karla’s car hits a tree. She approaches Terrence’s lifeless body, demanding answers about Frankie’s whereabouts. Though she finds no solace in his response, Karla seizes the opportunity to claim his wallet and uncover his true identity.

With this newfound intel, Karla sets her sights on Terrence’s home address, driven by a desperate desire to find Frankie. Her visit reveals a shocking truth - Terrence was once married to Margo, and the two shared a dark past. As Karla navigates the shadows of their twisted operation, she stumbles upon a phone conversation between Margo and her accomplice, detailing plans for Terrence’s latest escapade.

Karla’s discovery sets her on a collision course with Margo, who returns to find Terrence’s lifeless body. The two engage in a high-stakes game of cat and mouse as Karla tracks down Frankie to a nearby barn. Her relief is short-lived, however, as she discovers that Frankie is not alone - he’s being held captive alongside two other abducted girls.

As Margo closes in on her quarry, Karla concocts a daring plan to distract the villainess. She lures Margo away from Frankie by letting a small boat drift across the water, creating the illusion that she’s hiding beneath the dock. The ruse works, and Margo fires blindly at the boat before spotting Frankie taking shelter under the dock.

Seizing the opportunity, Karla plunges Margo underwater in a desperate bid to escape. A fierce struggle ensues as the two women battle for dominance. In the end, it’s Karla who emerges victorious, striking the final blow that sends Margo to her watery grave.

As Karla ventures back to the rustic barn, a sense of urgency propels her towards retrieving the remaining two victims. The unexpected arrival of Del (Kurtis Bedford), a long-time neighbor brandishing a shotgun, shatters the tense atmosphere. His ears perked up by the commotion, he enters the scene with a mixture of concern and skepticism. Karla’s candid revelation that Terrence and Margo are responsible for abducting innocent children is met with incredulity from Del, who has known them for over a decade and struggles to reconcile this notion. His initial denial notwithstanding, Del takes a moment to address the captives as “girls,” only for Karla to correct him, pointing out that she never specified their gender. The subtle shift in tone signals a sudden escalation of tension, culminating in a violent confrontation when Karla swings a shovel with precision, striking Del’s face and ending his life before he can raise his gun against her.

In the aftermath, the authorities arrive on the scene, escorting Karla and the rescued children to safety. As news reports begin to circulate, it becomes clear that Karla has single-handedly dismantled an international sex trafficking operation of unimaginable scope, with arrests being made in major hubs like New York, Paris, and Dubai. The magnitude of her heroism is palpable as the world learns of the breadth of this nefarious enterprise, now foiled by Karla’s unwavering determination to protect the vulnerable and bring perpetrators to justice.