Safe Harbour (2007) (V)

Director:

Bill Corcoran

Writers:

Danielle Steel (novel)
Edithe Swensen (writer)

Release Date:

2 January 2008 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Cast

Melissa Gilbert	...	Ophelia
Rebecca Staab	...	Andrea Wilson
Idalis DeLeon	...	Millie
Michael Jace	...	Jeff
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dakota Brinkman	...	Chad MacKenzie
Michael DeLorenzo	...	Bob
Brad Johnson	...	Matt Bowles
Liana Liberato	...	Pip Mackenzie
Kimleigh Smith	...	Nurse
Brittny Lane Stewart	...	Amy
Ryan Thomas	...	Josh
Katie Walder	...	Vanessa

Also Known As:

Danielle Steel's Safe Harbour (USA) (complete title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, a scene of violence and some thematic material.

Runtime:

Greece:103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

Singapore:M18 | Finland:K-11 | USA:PG-13 | New Zealand:M

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Daniel Grodnik Productions

Trivia:

Adapted From the Danielle Steele novel, Safe Harbour.

Okay, if you like a film which doesn't require much thinking

This is a typical Steele novel production in that two people who have undergone some sort of tragedy manage to get together despite the odds. I wouldn't call this a spoiler because anyone who has read a Steele novel knows how they ALL end. If you don't want to know much about the plot, don't keep reading.

Gilbert's character, Ophelia, is a woman of French decent who has lost her husband and son in an accident. Gilbert needs to stop doing films where she is required to have an accent because she, otherwise a good actress, cannot realistically pull off any kind of accent. Brad Johnson, also an excellent actor, is Matt, who is recovering from a rather nasty divorce. He is gentle, convincing and compelling in this role.

The two meet on the beach through her daughter, Pip, and initially, Ophelia accuses Matt of being a child molester just because he talked art with the kid. All of them become friends after this episode and then the couple falls in love.

The chemistry between the two leads is not great, even though the talent of these two people is not, in my opinion, a question. They did the best they could with a predictable plot and a script that borders on stereotypical. Two people meet, tragedy, bigger tragedy, a secret is revealed, another tragedy, and then they get together. I wish there was more to it than that, but there it is in a nutshell.

I wanted mindless entertainment, and I got it with this. In regard to the genre of romantic films, this one fails to be memorable. "A Secret Affair" with Janine Turner is far superior (not a Steele book), as are some of Steele's earlier books turned into film.