In a twist on the familiar fertility clinic scam, the 2024 Lifetime film “Cradle of Deception,” directed by Soran Mardookhi (originally titled “Conceived in Lies”), takes inspiration from real-life cases. Erin, a recent widow who conceived her child through IVF, finds herself in a desperate fight for her son’s life. Diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder, her newborn needs a bone marrow transplant. This throws Erin down a rabbit hole of dark secrets, leading her back to the very clinic where her son was conceived. Will Erin, with the help of her investigative journalist friend Charlie, be able to expose the web of lies and save her child?
Spoilers Ahead
Cradle of Deception (2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
“Cradle of Deception” opens with Erin working as a receptionist in an office where she is confronted by her inhumane boss. He asks for Erin to pick up some papers that are on the floor regardless of the fact that she is pregnant. However, she receives some help from her colleague as later we see Erin visiting her doctor named Jackson. She is at first greeted by the receptionist Fred who later realizes that Erin is a friend of Jackson and she is not required to fill any forms as the doctor knows everything about her.
Erin has lost her husband due to cancer (probably). Now, she is about to become a single mother. Therefore, the pressure supersedes her excitement about being a parent. She is taking the IVF procedure to welcome a part of her husband into this world. Jackson is basically the number one doctor in this fertility clinic named Blessed Beginnings. Anyway, when the right time comes, Erin delivers a beautiful son. She names him Ben. Erin starts managing the office, and Ben, as her mother, sometimes helps her out. The struggle of the single mother begins.
What does Erin learn about Ben?
Four months have passed since Ben’s birth. Soon, he was diagnosed with SCID, which is a genetic disorder. But, interestingly, neither Erin nor her husband’s family ever had this SCID. The doctor says that there are chances that it went ignored. Nevertheless, they need to find a donor who is willing to give their bone marrow so that Ben can be cured. Now, to match the bone marrow, the cousins will have the best chance. But since Ben has no one, the task of finding the donor becomes very difficult.
Meanwhile, Jackson’s wife, Diane, suggests to Erin that she should file an announcement for donors in local newspapers. The following morning, Erin receives a phone call from a journalist named Charlie, who asks her to meet him in person. From Charlie, Erin learns that another child from Blessed Beginnings clinics was diagnosed with SCID. He fears that this may be linked to a broader thing that might include some very disturbing information.
So, just to clarify the situation, Erin tags along with Charlie and meets the parents who have faced the same problem. They admit that their child looked completely different, which shocked them. They even did the DNA test, and the results were very disappointing. However, they are not ready to focus on those chapters of their lives again. Hence, Erin comes back from there empty-headed, only knowing that something shady is going on. They also learn that a guy named Sam had contacted them about this before.
How does Erin end up being an Employee at Blessed Beginnings?
Erin starts investigating the matter while also trying to find donors for Ben. With each passing time, it is becoming very difficult for Erin to understand the reasons behind this SCID. She starts to believe that there’s been a mix-up in the fertility clinic. When her investigation is almost at its peak, one night, Erin hears someone breaking into her house. The following morning, she sees that her laptop, along with her bank cards, is gone. Soon after, a welfare officer comes in and finds some drugs placed in the kitchen, about which Erin does not have any clue. Charlie tells her that since they are on the right track, someone is deliberately trying to put pressure on Erin.
With the constant pressure surrounding the donor and the continuous deterioration of Ben’s health, Erin struggles hard to keep up with her daily routine. Her superior in the office warns her a couple of times. But one day, things really get out of hand when Erin receives the doctor’s phone call by putting a client’s call on hold. When her superior confronts her, she speaks on her terms with her since she is already going through a lot of problems.
As a result, Erin is fired from the job. Later, she comes to Diane, where she learns from Jackson that Fred, the receptionist at Blessed Blessings, is dead. The police are searching for anything that will give solid proof about whether it was a suicide or a murder. Anyway, this comes as an opportunity for Erin as Jackson asks her to take Fred’s position as her previous job was as a receptionist. Erin is already going through a lot worrying about money, so when the chance arrives, she takes it swiftly.
Why does Erin start doubting Jackson?
While working, Erin suddenly finds a pen drive underneath one of the drawers where Fred used to sit. Erin hands over the pen drive to Charlie. He tells her that it has information about the victims who have gone through similar circumstances to Erin right now. So, she finally calls the chambers, where Jackson has told her that he has asked for donors. But after calling them, Erin realizes that Jackson had lied about it, as he had never called those centers for donors.
Trusting Charlie’s suspicion, Erin asks Jackson to conduct a DNA test on Ben, and the results seem to be all right. Charlie, however, asks Erin to double check the test results so Erin performs a second test. Meanwhile, Jackson tells Erin that Fred was using his sample in the IVF to tamper with the procedure, and Ben is Fred’s son. One day, Erin sneaks into the store room and collects Fred’s sample to give it to Charlie so that he can run a DNA test.
Soon after, they find another victim who informs the same. But this time, Erin learns that the Sam person who has been interviewing these families was none other than Fred himself. Now, they both realize that Fred was murdered because he knew too much. Also, the DNA report comes in that clearly suggests that Fred is not involved in the IVF scam and he definitely is not Ben’s father by any means. Erin later confronts Jackson indirectly. Soon after, someone tries to run over Erin. However, she luckily escapes.
Cradle of Deception (2024) Movie Ending Explained:
Is Erin Able to Bring Jackson’s Truth?
Now that everything points to Jackson, Erin goes straight to his house to confront his wife, Diane. Diane breaks into tears and admits that Jackson tampers with the IVF, and he has been doing it for a long time. So, basically, there are multiple children out there, including Diane’s and Erin’s, whose father is Jackson. Luckily, Ben has got a new donor. But Erin is disappointed in Diane as she thinks Diane could have been a donor because her child contains the same DNA, and they are kind of related.
Meanwhile, Jackson enters the house, and he admits that from stealing a laptop and trying to run over Erin, he has done everything to make sure no one knows about his scam. He is so self-obsessed that he thinks he is doing good by spreading his genes around. He thinks that no one else can produce more intelligent and beautiful children other than him. Anyway, just when he tries to take down Erin, Charlie comes from behind and pushes him.
A fight takes place between Jackson and Charlie when Erin hits Jackson from the back to make him unconscious. Jackson is perhaps handed over to the police. At the end of the film, we see Erin kissing Charlie while he holds a healthy Ben. Diane has also arrived with her child as together they celebrate Ben’s birthday. In the most bizarre way, Ben now has more than a dozen cousins out there. It is both disturbing and perhaps comforting at the same time. Well, family always sticks together, so, in a way, it is not really wrong to use the word: comforting.
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