Second Impressions

The opening scene shows MAGGIE, in her late 30’s, sitting in a plastic surgeon’s office. She not only wants to look exactly like her sister, her intent is to assume her sister’s identity – including fingerprints. As she awaits some of the plastic surgeries, her life story is told through a series of flashbacks. It begins when PRESTON, her father, takes her away from her family when she is 10 years old and flies her to an obscure, overcrowded prison in Latin America. Preston pays the prison director, CESAR, a large amount of cash to have Maggie killed and a death certificate issued. Maggie’s cellmate is SELENA, who adopts her as her own child. Maggie befriends SERGIO, a young boy her age who lives in the orphanage next to the prison. Selena approaches CESAR to ask if Maggie can play with Sergio and learns that Maggie will be dead soon. Selena offers herself to Cesar if he will let Maggie live and ends up saving her life. In time, Sergio tries to help Maggie escape the prison, but they are caught. Sergio is severely beaten and put in the prison. Maggie is cleaned up and given a new dress, then thrown into a cell with two men, who beat and rape her. Years pass until one day Maggie is brought into Cesar’s office where she meets NATHAN, a wealthy jewel thief, who springs both Maggie and Selena from the prison. He plans to use them as accomplices in his jewel thefts. Nathan trains Maggie not only in the technical end of thievery, but on how to assume the identity of his victims. This is where the idea of becoming her sister was planted. Over the years, Maggie has accumulated a great deal of wealth on her own. Her relationship with Nathan is one-way as he is dominating and sadistic toward her. One of her goals is to escape his control. A second goal is to be with her mother, who is now confined in a mental institute. The final – and most compelling – goal is to get revenge on her father. In order to kill him and avoid prison, she becomes the ultimate con artist by assuming the identity of her sister and playing her father, sister and Nathan against each other – and hope they fall for it. Her life depends on it.