By a mistake of the broadcasting company, this film was listed as Safe House starring Patrick Stewart - so we sat down eagerly to watch this. The Safe House kept us watching, an adequate thriller with all the trademarks of a contemporary British tv-production. Fine acting, cleverly made, nice locations, a good watch. Geraldine Sommerville (surely loved by all fans of the Cracker-series) does a good job, bit of a shame that her character should be so erratic. Story is ok, with few loose ends.
7 Reviews
Fine for 90 Minutes, but then....
hfk14 October 2002
Warning: Spoilers
Caught this on BBC America tonight and, like most Brit mysteries it began well enough, but unlike many it ended poorly. I won't drop any spoilers, but the ending had a king-sized flaw-or-two that left a sour taste. The actress that played Sam did a fine job, just as she did in "Cracker". The young lady I recall from a "Prime Suspect": she was fine in both. Unforunately, despite the combination of two fine actresses, "Safe House" never quite rises to the heights of the better Brit television mysteries. Actually, the last 15 minutes drag it down into "If there's really nothing better to watch..."
And is anyone else getting tired of the growing 'Lifetime' feel of BBC America mystery movies? Or have they always been that way and I'm just now noticing it?
And is anyone else getting tired of the growing 'Lifetime' feel of BBC America mystery movies? Or have they always been that way and I'm just now noticing it?
One of the best novel-adaptations I've ever seen
trudykloet14 August 2001
At first I was very sceptical about this movie, I'm a big fan of Nicci French and I wondered if the movie would capture the tension that makes the book so great. The answer is, it did.
Geraldine Somerville did a great job as Samantha, she's exactly like I had pictured her. You can almost feel her desperation in the climax of the movie. The other actors did great as well. The English landscape, the setting of the film, looks great, it really helps increasing the tension because it all looks so deserted.
I highly recommend this movie to everybody who has read the book (and to everybody who hasn't), because you won't be disappointed at all.
Geraldine Somerville did a great job as Samantha, she's exactly like I had pictured her. You can almost feel her desperation in the climax of the movie. The other actors did great as well. The English landscape, the setting of the film, looks great, it really helps increasing the tension because it all looks so deserted.
I highly recommend this movie to everybody who has read the book (and to everybody who hasn't), because you won't be disappointed at all.
Superb suspenseful thriller
ehamartens16 August 2001
Excellent performances and well-chosen locations build up the tension throughout this film. I particularly liked the eerie dark side of the character Finn. It's a pity the actress who plays Finn is not mentioned as a cast menber on the IMDB website.
I like thrillers by authors like Tim Krabbe, Elizabeth George and Stephen King. The thriller which was shown the next day on BBC "What they did that night" was also a class apart: very tense, nice locations: comparable to "The Safe House".
I like thrillers by authors like Tim Krabbe, Elizabeth George and Stephen King. The thriller which was shown the next day on BBC "What they did that night" was also a class apart: very tense, nice locations: comparable to "The Safe House".
One of the worst adaptations ..
hortus1817 October 2001
One of the worst adaptations of a novel I have ever seen: the last ten or fifteen minutes were made up by the script-writer, while the book itself left a lot of things open. Other parts of the book were neglected which might have improved the script, but no. And why change the name of Michael Daley into Adam Daley? To make him different from the character in the book?
Full of intrigue, a good watch.
Sleepin_Dragon3 August 2021
Doctor Sam Graham is asked to help and accommodate Finn, a young girl who's parents have recently been murdered.
It's a good watch, even after twenty years have past, I still enjoyed it, I've read the book twice, and would say that this is a faithful adaptation.
It's full of intrigue, it's very well paced, and certainly dramatic, it doesn't hold up for a second. There are definitely a few occasions where you have to suspend your disbelief, the shopping trip is definitely one moment for example.
On the whole though, it's a fine watch, plenty of suspense, definitely a few moments that will surprise you, especially the ending.
Great acting, Geraldine Somerville is always spot on, she never lets us down, Kelly Reilly and Phil Davies are fantastic also.
I miss this style of one off drama thriller, sometimes you don't want to watch a six part series, this is still a very satisfying watch, 8/10.
It's a good watch, even after twenty years have past, I still enjoyed it, I've read the book twice, and would say that this is a faithful adaptation.
It's full of intrigue, it's very well paced, and certainly dramatic, it doesn't hold up for a second. There are definitely a few occasions where you have to suspend your disbelief, the shopping trip is definitely one moment for example.
On the whole though, it's a fine watch, plenty of suspense, definitely a few moments that will surprise you, especially the ending.
Great acting, Geraldine Somerville is always spot on, she never lets us down, Kelly Reilly and Phil Davies are fantastic also.
I miss this style of one off drama thriller, sometimes you don't want to watch a six part series, this is still a very satisfying watch, 8/10.
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