Nur die See kennt die Wahrheit

This made for TV movie is based on one of my favorite books, by the same name, and out of all the true crime books I have ever read, I still feel at odds as to whether the person being tried was guilty of murder or assisting a murderer or not.

As other people have already said, it is a story of two very different couples who sailed to an island looking for adventure/escape. The younger couple consists of a hard man in his 30s running from the law, and a girl in her late 20s, who is totally dedicated to aiding his escape and usually going along with whatever he wanted. The older couple are in their 40s, upper middle class, attractive, and their yacht, the "Sea Wind" is a marvel, designed for a couple who would want to exist very comfortably for long periods at different ports.

The younger couple were annoying to the older couple, lacking in supplies and begging at times, always needy. They brought along annoying dogs, were always running out of supplies. Although the older man Mac is not fearful of them, the woman really is, and desperate to leave. They have quite a few clashes, despite Jennifer's(the younger woman)attempts to make peace and be friends.

Then one day Buck, the younger man, tells Jennifer that the older couple have "disappeared" - he thinks they got lost fishing and are gone. According to Jennifer, she was not with him the whole day and heard nothing. They sail back to Hawaii on the "Sea Wind assuming they are dead, and are eventually arrested.

The rest of the movie revolves around Jennifer - was she an innocent who believed her boyfriend's Buck's story and heard nothing, or was she a part of the murders, or an assistant? The character Jennifer is very baffling, lying to achieve certain desires and totally truthful in other areas. Even acting at times like she didn't care what her attorney Bugliosi did or didn't do. She is a complex character, sentimental but sensible, wonderful at chess but deluded in judging character.

So did Jennifer help commit these murders or know about them? Read the book/watch the movie. I still can't figure it out.

I wish this were on video, so I could see it again. I thought it was well-cast with Richard Crenna as Bugliosi, James Garner and Deidre Hall play the older couple, and Hart Bochner and Rachel Ward play Buck and Jennifer. The only problem I have is that I didn't think Ward was quite right for the cuddly, spacy, cautious Jennifer. I don't know who I would liked to see cast, but is was not her.

All in all, a 9 out of 10.

I saw this movie at 5am on a Friday morning, on EDrama. It has a cool vibe that pulls you in. Basically a good version of a Lifetime movie. The guy who plays Buck does a good job of playing a real creep. Movie takes place in Hawaii, and the scenes where they are out in the boat are pretty creepy, thanks to some good sound effects and camera work. Richard Crenna is good in this, but of course he basically always plays the same character in everything. Watching this straight through as a movie is a little weird, because every 10 minutes or so there is a weird break in the continuity due to the fact that it was originally made for TV. Rachel Ward plays dumb in this one, and it isn't that believable that she would be with "Buck". I do like Buck's style though; a mix of creepy cheap bar guy and Matthew Mcconaughey (or is that the same thing?).

I read the book a few years after it was published, but I just discovered that they had made this TV movie only recently. It was difficult to track down, but I got a copy. It was worth the time and effort and money.

The story of And the Sea Will Tell is completely fascinating. I read most of the long book on a long flight (I'd love to read it again, but no longer have my copy). The movie does a terrific job of telling this story from start to finish. I would suggest reading the book first.

There are a lot of TV movie screw-ups in the film bit they don't take away from such a great story. For example, when they first see land in Palmyra, there are mountains when the island is a tiny atoll just above sea level. And obviously, there was no diction coach on set to steer Rachael Ward through some American vowels. She had many moments revealing her English roots. Once again, the story survives.

P.S. There is no way the girlfriend was innocent. She should still be in prison. I would imagine that Bugliosi was doing her. It shows once again, if you have money in America, you can literally get away with murder.

I am a big fan of Vincent Bugliosi, going all the way back to "Helter Skelter", the book he wrote when he was the lead prosecuting attorney of one of the most riveting crimes of the 20th Century in the USA. I have read several other books he has written; all good. This is a terrific read, but the film is pretty limited, being a "made for TV film". You have to understand this was back in the day when that was not so good. Now (well over 25 years later), "made for TV" is an outdated term, as there are so many different forms and avenues of film production and direction. I read book this on a fairly long plane flight, finishing right before landing. A good friend of mine picked me up at the airport. I mentioned this book, and how I thought it could be made into a very good film. My friend then told me he had read in the local TV listings that not only had it been made into a film; it was scheduled to be shown the very next evening! I was stunned, to say the least. The book had been out for about 2 years, if memory serves correctly. The film follows the book without too many changes; it was a true crime, which I prefer to read (or watch) over fiction. This is the case when you are dealing with Bugliosi, a brilliant true crime novelist. All in all, this is a very good read and a fairly good film; but best of all, a true story

Told in flashback this true-crime mini-series is very hard to follow. Having read the book several years prior to viewing the movie was quite a help to me. The film does present some questions to the viewer in a very subtle manner, but upon closer inspection, one has to wonder if Bugliosi was just trying to salve his conscience for defending a murderer. The movie shows that Bugliosi is just as adept in jury manipulation as a defense attorney as he was as a prosecutor. This one is easy to pass up.