After the Party

My goodness, this series is just fantastic. It was a weekly must watch for me, but when it becomes more readily available, you might be lucky enough to go directly to the next episode.

It's hard not to spoil this, and I wont. Robyn Malcolm and Peter Mullen are husband and wife, Penny and Phil. They are celebrating Phil's birthday and everyone is smashed. The plot will reveal itself by the middle of the first episode, but I will say this...Accusations are declared, thus ending the party, and spiraling into an on-going 5 year debacle.

The plot twists and turns, the viewer never knows the truth or what the circumstances are until episode 6, thus concluding this near perfect New Zealand series.

Robyn M and Peter M are just sublime, as is, basically every side character including Grace (their daughter), Ollie and Tom (Graces mates), and dean O'Gorman as Simon.

This is such a Must Watch.

Not a subject matter I feel at all comfortable with watching and I tend to shy away from productions that include excessive swearing but I found myself being drawn into Penny's world spiralling out of control. Is she being gaslighted or not?

The performances of the main actors Malcolm, Mullan & Canton are top notch. The way they move you through feelings of sympathy, suspicion, anguish & frustration. The supporting cast didn't let you down either.

The scenes of nudity were probably unneeded but perhaps it was a way of showing Penny's vulnerability.

I didn't feel the episodes went slowly at all. Would definitely recommend.

This mini series is quite raw and purposely uncomfortable. Don't expect to see a hero storyline. The characters are messy and they draw you in starting with the first ep. The viewer will continue to question if they know where the show is going. Is Phil guilty of a horrendous and disgusting crime??? ...or has Penny convinced herself that certain events occurred when they actually didn't? Even Penny seems to be questioning her memory and what she really saw that night at the party. The first three episodes pack a lot of punch in terms of storyline and plot twists. Each episode only leaves more questions. The ending doesn't disappoint and you will likely be sitting there asking yourself how you couldn't see where the story was going all along. Get ready for a slight cliff hanger though with the show not quite answering one final question (although I think it's assumed it could only be answered one way with final scene). Amazing acting by Robyn Malcolm who totally steals the show.

I watched this over the course of two days and it held my interest. The cast was great, the story compelling and the location shooting was a nice change of pace for me as a Brit.

The story is a bit one note... in a sense that it's largely six episodes of one person saying someone did something, then another person saying they didn't. That's mixed with various other family stories, the aftermath of said party and other tribulations.

So it's no surprise that nothing really changes until the end when they begin to wrap stuff up for a conclusion.

Special mention goes to Robin Malcolm who was amazing and makes me want to see more of her work. She just very felt real. I also identified somewhat with some of her struggles when you feel alone and no one will listen.

Worth a watch, for sure. But could have probably done it in half the time with no real loss to the story. I'm not sure it warrants it, but I wouldn't object to a second season to see what happens next.

I see absolutely why some people find it slow moving, but really stick with it as the story/tension builds brilliantly to its quietly devasting climax. I binged watched as I just had to discover where the story would lead and, for me, that worked really well. I totally invested in Pennie's character and her dilemma. If it had been a 'film' that performance is Oscar-worthy. The direction is beautifully understated and the whole cast seems brilliantly chosen for the authenticity. If you feel uncomfortable watching this I suspect the writers, director and actors have achieved exactly what they intended.