"You Can't Take My Daughter" was inspired by a true story. Amy Thompson is raped by a deranged narcissist, then finds herself mired in the nightmare of a "medieval" legal code. Her heroic struggle for justice and for change in the law was motivated by the love of her daughter, who was the product of the rape. When Amy's insensitive mother Suzanne urges her to terminate the pregnancy, Amy simply replies, "Her name is Maddy."
It is not until the final stretch of the film that Amy finally discovers a couple of allies in her pursuit of justice. Bob Moss is an attorney who volunteers his investigative skills to learn more about Amy's nemesis, Demitry. The martial arts expert McDevitt assists Amy both in self-defense skills and his background in the law to learn more about Demitry's past.
While the performances were first-rate, the reluctance of the police and the district attorney to vigorously prosecute Dmitry lacked credibility in the twenty-first century. And the introduction of McDevitt late in the film had resonances of "The Karate Kid" when little Maddy joined the martial arts school.
Bob Moss quoted JFK with a meaningful passage about social change: "Change is the law of life and those who only look to the past or the present are certain to miss the future." In this case, Amy Thompson was a pathfinder for the future in changing the law to ensure basic human rights for women.
