Safe Harbour

Loved it! Not sure how some other reviewers can say it was over acted - for an emotive topic it can't be acted in a bland way. The script rips along as we see all of the characters come to terms with a humanitarian disaster the subsequent impact it has on all their lives and the way they each choose to deal with the ramifications.

I enjoyed the backdrop to this show, and the fact that I hadn't seen anything with this kind of storyline previously. However, it was difficult to really get invested in the show as the characters, particularly the Australia's, were entirely dislikable.

The best thing about this dud of an Australian mini series is the acting. But how the actors got through this ridiculous script is a mystery. Implausible from start to finish - what boat is unable to send a distress call these days? Mind numbingly politically correct and yet lacking any sympathetic characters or authenticity this 'thriller' fails to thrill on any level.

Great premise, great cast, and very well done. Moves at glacial speed. The "lesson" could be imparted in about 2 episodes. I really don't care if two people had an affair, if the teenage couple texted back and forth, etc. These vignettes just make the series longer and actually detract from the "lesson" the film seeks to impart.

Five years before the events depicted in this drama a group of five Australian friends enjoyed a sailing holiday in the seas south of Indonesia. Then they came across a boat overloaded with refugees hoping to cross to Australia; after some discussion they decided to give them a tow. In the present Ryan Gallagher, the boat's skipper, meets Ismail Al-Bayati, one of the refugees, who is now a Brisbane taxi driver, and invites him and his family to dinner. It soon becomes clear that the Australians hadn't towed the refugees back to Australia. They are accused of cutting the tow rope during the night and abandoning the refugees, leading to the death of Ismail's sick daughter.

As events unfold questions are raised... did one of the people on the yacht cut the rope, and if so who? Or was it cut by one of the refugees when they realised that the yacht was in fact towing them towards Indonesia as a storm approached. The pressure rises further when the police start an investigation and truths start to emerge.

This was an impressive four part drama. I raises interesting moral questions that has the viewer wondering what they would do if they found themselves in a similar situation to the five sailors. There is a good sense of mystery as we wonder who cut the rope and the finger of suspicion moves from one character to another. If there I have one complaint it is that the identity of the person who cut the rope is revealed at the end of the third episode leading to a rather melodramatic finale. The cast does a solid job bringing the various characters to life and making the dilemma seem real. Overall I'd say this is well worth watching.