Halifax f.p: Afraid of the Dark (1998) (TV)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Steve Jodrell

Writers:

Jutta Goetze (story)
Roger Simpson (written by)

Genre:

Thriller

Plot:

When several people are brutally murdered at a service station, Jane Halifax lends her forensic psychiatric...

Plot Keywords:

Police Investigation | Murder | Profiler | Catharsis | Mass Murder

Awards:

1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Rebecca Gibney	...	Jane Halifax
Shane Connor	...	Ray (as Shane Feeney-Connor)
Hugh Jackman	...	Eric Ringer
Susan Lyons	...	Helen de Castro
Catherine Wilkin	...	Marion Walters, Jane's Analyst
Barry Langrishe	...	Martin Ledger
Myles Collins	...	Detective Twomey
Brett Swain	...	Lauper
Matthew Crosby	...	Vassalo
Bryan Marshall	...	John Halifax, Jane's Father
Matylda Buczko	...	Young Jane
Stephen Whittaker	...	Tabloid Photographer
Tasos Petousis	...	Tony Martini
Emma Buckland	...	Mrs. Martini
Jake Notarfrancesco	...	Marco Martini

Also Known As:

Profile of a Serial Killer (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

USA:101 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Cinevex)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

USA:R

Filming Locations:

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company:

Simpson Le Mesurier Films

Quotes:

[first lines]
John Halifax, Jane's Father: Now, pull it in against you. Not too tight. Lower your cheek. Come on Jane, it won't bite you. Look along the sights. Breathe in. And... squeeze.
[Jane's father is teaching her to shoot a rifle, she seems reluctant]
John Halifax, Jane's Father: Here, let me show you.
[He encircles her hands and pulls the trigger, she grimaces]

The pointlessness of Jackman's naked butt

This film is from the Australian TV film series, 'Halifax FP' where Rebecca Gibney plays a forensic psychologist (FP). 'Afraid of the Dark' was released in 1998 and obviously takes its cue from Australia's worst mass murder case which occurred in 1996. That is, the tragedy of the Port Arthur Massacre in which Martin Bryant killed 35 people. This is not to suggest that this film is an adaptation of that event.

Here, workers of a countryside diner/garage are killed. One worker, Ray (Shane Feeney-Connor of 'Neighbours') and a dining family are not killed. Typically, being a mystery - the film's primary concern is to find the killer but this is only the surface. The film's true focal depth is concerned with Ray's ability to cope with the tragic loss of his friends. In parallelism, Halifax works through paternal issues. That is, the loss of her father who died some years before. So, as Australians mourned the tragic deaths of the Port Arthur victims - this film is largely centred on denial, mourning, and letting go of loved ones.

Ironically, this being the strength of the film also amounts to one of its weaknesses. Since so much time is spent focusing on Ray and Gibney's aligned relationship, the motivation behind the killings are left simplified and the viewer is forced to accept them with a sense of disbelief. While, this idea of senseless killing may be deliberate - it would have been equally interesting to reveal more of the murderer's character. But as I said, Australia was a nation in mourning and the empathic tone existing within the film sets out to do the same.

The greatest weakness is the score. The score in the opening sequence is captivating but fails to measure up to the rest of the film and at times seems wholly inappropriate and thematically disarrayed.

Overall, the quality of the acting is superb and Feeney-Connor steals the limelight away from Gibney and Hugh Jackman. Jackman plays the prime investigator but since the mystery is downplayed somewhat - his character takes a backseat. There is a one-way love interest between Gibney and Jackman left under-developed and so sex scenes and Jackman's naked butt seems quite pointless. All the same, this doesn't prevent me from pushing pause on his butt for a few seconds but I am only human afterall. However, that's not the fundamental reason why this film is enjoyable.