In 1993, a gunman's rampage on a crowded Long Island commuter train prompted one of the dead victim's wives (here played by Laurie Metcalf) to start a campaign for firearms control. This well-meaning TV drama re-enacts the true story, moving speedily and sketchily through the shocking incident and its far-reaching aftermath. Metcalf gives a gutsy performance as the ordinary suburban housewife transformed into a political crusader by tragedy, adding heart to an overly busy feature that's otherwise surprisingly short on emotion. Ultimately director Joseph Sargent tries too hard to cram everything in and therefore loses the impact of significant events that should have packed a more provocative punch.

On December 7, 1993, a gunman opened fire in a crowded commuter train on Long Island. This fact-based story focuses on the events that swell around Carolyn McCarthy, a woman whose husband is killed and her 26 year old son is severely wounded in the massacre. The result is she is forced out of her comfortable suburban existence and she becomes an out-spoken crusader against assault weapons. The film shifts from her perspective to the mind of the killer and finally to the media frenzy that surrounds both.