Safe (1993) (TV)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Antonia Bird

Writer:

Al Ashton (writer)

Release Date:

13 October 1993 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Alcohol | Homelessness | Juvenile Delinquent | Night Shelter | Rape

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Aidan Gillen	...	Gypo
Kate Hardie	...	Kaz
Neil Smals	...	Robbo
Robert Oates	...	Businessman Punter
Joe Swash	...	Marley
Gillian Hanna	...	Eileen
George Costigan	...	Sean
Steven Mackintosh	...	Greg
Carol Leader	...	Tessa
Cheryl Maiker	...	Sammy
Kevin T. Walsh	...	Jamie
Robert Carlyle	...	Nosty
Marc O'Shea	...	Brendan
Jimmy Gallagher	...	Jimmy
Louise Heaney	...	Nikki

Also Known As:

Screenplay: Safe (UK) (series title)

Runtime:

66 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Decent Early-'90s TV-Movie!

I remember seeing this TV movie when it was first aired as part of BBC2's 'screen:play' series back in 1993, and it had quite an impact on me. Not only was it one of the few films I'd seen addressing the problems of homelessness, but it had some powerful performances, most notably by Robert Carlyle (the first time I'd come across this talented actor) and the much under-rated Kate Hardie (who gave a memorably impressive performance in Peter Medack's 'The Krays' (1990)). The film dealt with the subject of homeless people in a compassionate way, but avoided the saccharin-induced sentimentalism you would expect of a Hollywood production, opting for more of a gritty, slice-of-life drama in the vein of Ken Loach, Mike Leigh or Alan Clarke. Other notable appearances in the film included George Costigan ('Rita, Sue & Bob Too', 1986) and Steven Mackintosh ('Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels', 1998). The film also marked the feature-length debut of director Antonia Bird, who'd previously worked on television series such as 'Eastenders', 'Casualty' and 'The Bill', but would later direct films like 'Face' (1997) and 'Ravenous' (1999), as well as the US production 'Mad Love' (1995) starring Hollywood icon Drew Barrymore. It's a shame that dramas like this get forgotten about and left to gather dust on studio shelves; I doubt it's ever been screened again since it's first transmission a decade-and-a-half ago and as far as I know it's never had a video release (I had it taped on Beta-max at one point but my player has been on its last legs for some time!). If you ever do get the chance to see this film, though, it's well worth a look, even if just to see the early work of some of British cinema's more significant names.