Safe (TV series)
| Safe | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | Drama Thriller |
| Created by | Harlan Coben |
| Written by | Danny Brocklehurst |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Ben Onono |
| Opening theme | "Glitter & Gold" by Barns Courtney |
| Country of origin | France United Kingdom |
| Original language | English / French |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Running time | 41–47 minutes |
| Production company | Red Production Company |
| Original release | |
| Network | C8 (France) Netflix (international) |
| Release | 10 May 2018 |
Safe is a British television drama mini-series[1] created by crime author Harlan Coben and written by screenwriter Danny Brocklehurst. Set in England, the series is a production Canal+, with C8 airing the show in France, and Netflix streaming the show internationally outside France.[2] The series began filming in Manchester, Liverpool and Cheshire in July 2017. It consists of eight episodes that premiered in 190 countries on 10 May 2018.[3][4]
Plot
Safe focuses on Englishman Tom Delaney (Hall), a pediatric surgeon and widowed father of two teenage daughters. He is struggling to connect to his daughters as they still grieve the loss of his wife from cancer one year prior. After his 16-year-old daughter Jenny goes missing, Tom ends up uncovering a web of secrets as he frantically searches for her.
Cast
- Michael C. Hall as Dr. Tom Delaney, widowed pediatric surgeon[3]
- Amanda Abbington as Detective Sergeant Sophie Mason, Tom's girlfriend and neighbour[3]
- Marc Warren as Dr. Pete Mayfield, Tom's best friend[5]
- Audrey Fleurot as Zoé Chahal, a French teacher accused of impropriety[5]
- Hannah Arterton as Detective Constable Emma Castle
- Nigel Lindsay as Jojo Marshall, Sia's father[5]
- Laila Rouass as Lauren Marshall, Sia's mother[5]
- Joplin Sibtain as Neil Chahal, Zoé's husband
- Milo Twomey as Bobby, owner of Heaven Lounge bar
- Emmett J. Scanlan as Josh Mason, Sophie's ex-husband[5]
- Amy James-Kelly as Jenny Delaney, 16, Tom's elder daughter
- Amy-Leigh Hickman as Sia Marshall, Jenny's popular classmate
- Freddie Thorp as Chris Chahal, Zoé and Neil's son, and Jenny's 19-year-old boyfriend
- Hero Fiennes-Tiffin as Ioan Fuller
- Louis Greatorex as Henry Mason, Sophie's teenage son
- Isabelle Allen as Carrie Delaney, Tom's younger daughter
- Karen Bryson as Helen Crowthorne
Episodes
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Episode 1" | Daniel Nettheim | Danny Brocklehurst | May 10, 2018 | |
|
A year after the death of her mother, Jenny Delaney (Amy James-Kelly) goes missing after a house party. Her father, surgeon Tom (Michael C. Hall) is racked with worry, especially when he learns that Jenny's older boyfriend Chris Chahal (Freddie Thorp) has also disappeared. Chris' mother, French teacher Zoé (Audrey Fleurot), is accused of having an affair with a student after an incriminating USB drive is found in her locker. Party hostess Sia Marshall (Amy-Leigh Hickman) makes a horrifying discovery of a dead body floating in the pool and kicks everyone out before they can discover it. | |||||
| 2 | "Episode 2" | Daniel Nettheim | Danny Brocklehurst | May 10, 2018 | |
|
Sia's father Jojo (Nigel Lindsay) goes to extreme lengths to protect his daughter by hiding Chris' body in the freezer instead of calling the police because Sia supplied drugs for the party. Tom's friend Pete (Marc Warren) comes under suspicion when a video emerges of him picking up Jenny from the party. D.S. Sophie Mason (Amanda Abbington) butts heads with her new colleague, D.C. Emma Castle (Hannah Arterton), over the case against Zoé. Pete reveals that he is inclined to be more interested in Tom than Jenny and simply dropped her off back home. Tom discovers Chris' bike at the train station and that she bought a fake ID online to go to a bar called Heaven in the city. The owner Bobby claims to have never seen Jenny but is later seen visiting her mother's grave. While attempting to move Chris' body after lying to the police, Jojo and Sia are caught by a neighbor who she hits in the head with a wine bottle in panic. | |||||
| 3 | "Episode 3" | Julia Ford | Mick Ford | May 10, 2018 | |
|
It is revealed Pete actually followed Jenny into the community after dropping her off that night. Sia and her family are keeping their neighbor Martin hostage but she releases him after threatening to accuse him of being a pedophile should he ever talk. An anonymous tip off leads Tom and Pete on a frantic chase across the city, and leads them to confront the mysterious 'Bobby' (Milo Twomey) the owner of Heaven. Sia takes action to protect her family, but they botch disposal of evidence. | |||||
| 4 | "Episode 4" | Julia Ford | Mick Ford | May 10, 2018 | |
|
Sophie and Emma break devastating news to the Chahal family, while the Marshalls are forced to face the music as their lies are revealed. Tom and Pete follow a new lead on Jenny, but a dangerous showdown has devastating consequences. | |||||
| 5 | "Episode 5" | Daniel O'Hara | Alex Ganley | May 10, 2018 | |
|
Tom fights to save Pete's life after a brutal stabbing, and it prompts Emma to make a surprising confession of her own. Sophie warns Tom against interfering in the investigation, but he makes a shocking discovery close to home. Jojo's confession begins to unravel. | |||||
| 6 | "Episode 6" | Julia Ford | Karla Crome | May 10, 2018 | |
|
As a deadly fire rages in the community, Tom races against time to find Jenny. More details about Chris' death emerge, while Neil (Joplin Sibtain) makes a confession to a betrayed Zoé. | |||||
| 7 | "Episode 7" | Daniel O'Hara | Danny Brocklehurst | May 10, 2018 | |
|
Tom and Pete realise another of their neighbours has been keeping secrets. Sophie blocks Emma's attempts to ask her son Henry (Louis Greatorex) about the night of Chris' death. A secret long since buried comes back to haunt the community. | |||||
| 8 | "Episode 8" | Daniel O'Hara | Danny Brocklehurst | May 10, 2018 | |
|
Tom and Sophie make a desperate attempt to rescue Jenny, but as the past is exposed, Tom comes to realise that he can't trust anyone. | |||||
Critical response
Safe has received positive reviews. It has a 77% approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 22 reviews.[6] While British newspapers The Daily Telegraph and The Guardian found Hall's "odd" English accent to be a metaphor of overall peculiarities with the series, they both found many elements of the show to be entertaining. Ed Power wrote in The Daily Telegraph that Harlan Coben "makes every one of his characters feel plausibly sinister and throws in plenty of skilfully crafted cliff-hangers. Netflix's latest can be hackneyed and is written to formula, but the central mystery is assembled with a watchmaker's eye and the entire fandango whirrs by with ruthless efficiency."[7] The Guardian's Sam Wollaston wrote, "What looked at one point like it might be Netflix's Broadchurch – the disappearance of a teenager, a parent's anguish, the effect on a community, the police investigation – soon starts to look more like Desperate Housewives. I'm very much enjoying these people, without really caring about them."[8]
Maureen Ryan of Variety praised the series, writing, "It's a highly watchable, semi-pulpy serial loaded with reveals, clues and cliffhangers, and the core cast is generally quite good."[9] Ben Travers of IndieWire found the series entertaining and graded it a B, writing, "Safe leans into most of its increasingly preposterous moments, including Hall's accent. It's not that the show or its star’s elocution are bad, per se; they just don’t overwork themselves trying to convince you of their grand importance. Safe is a soap, and it's a fun diversion as such."[10]
Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter, who based his review on the first two episodes sent to critics, criticised Hall's accent and performance, the depiction of teens and other elements of the series as all off-tone. Fienberg wrote, "It could take watching the six additional episodes to know if there's a cliché-upending payoff or if Safe is just a muddle."[11]
References
- ^ Jeffery, Morgan (10 May 2018). "Michael C Hall on playing British in new Netflix thriller Safe and being part of two TV game-changers". Digital Spy. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
- ^ Clarke, Stewart (11 July 2017). "Netflix, Canal+ Order Harlan Coben Series With 'Dexter' Star Michael C. Hall". Variety. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
- ^ a b c Tartaglione, Nancy (11 July 2017). "Michael C Hall To Play It 'Safe' In Netflix, Canal+ Drama From Harlan Coben". Deadline. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
- ^ Ryan, Maureen (11 April 2018). "TV Review: Harlan Coben's 'Safe' on Netflix". Variety. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
- ^ a b c d e "Audrey Fleurot, Emmett J Scanlan & Marc Warren join Michael C. Hall and Amanda Abbington in Harlan Coben's 'SAFE' written by Danny Brocklehurst". Netflix Media Center.
- ^ "Safe: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- ^ Power, Ed (10 May 2018). "Safe, Netflix review: American take on British crime thriller is less Agatha Christie more Murder She Wrote". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
- ^ Wollaston, Sam (11 May 2018). "Safe review – Michael C Hall's odd, synthetic British accent is symptomatic of this Netflix drama". the Guardian. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
- ^ Ryan, Maureen (11 April 2018). "TV Review: Harlan Coben's 'Safe' on Netflix". Variety. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
- ^ Travers, Ben (11 May 2018). "'Safe' Review: Michael C. Hall's Netflix Murder-Mystery Is Like His British Accent — It'll Win You Over". IndieWire. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
- ^ Fienberg, Daniel (3 May 2018). "'Safe': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
External links
- English-language television programs
- Netflix original programming
- Canal+ original programming
- 2018 French television series debuts
- 2018 American television series debuts
- 2018 British television series debuts
- 2018 French television series endings
- 2018 American television series endings
- 2018 British television series endings
- Serial drama television series