The Slap 

Traces the shattering repercussions of a single event upon a group of family and friends. Based on Christos Tsiolkas' best-selling novel.

Stars:

Jonathan LaPaglia, Sophie Okonedo, Alex Dimitriades

12 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Jonathan LaPaglia	...	Hector 8 episodes, 2011
Sophie Okonedo	...	Aisha 8 episodes, 2011
Alex Dimitriades	...	Harry 8 episodes, 2011
Essie Davis	...	Anouk 8 episodes, 2011
Lex Marinos	...	Manolis 8 episodes, 2011
Melissa George	...	Rosie 8 episodes, 2011
Sophie Lowe	...	Connie 8 episodes, 2011
Blake Davis	...	Richie 8 episodes, 2011
William McInnes	...	Narrator 8 episodes, 2011
Anthony Hayes	...	Gary 7 episodes, 2011
Julian Mineo	...	Hugo 7 episodes, 2011
Adrian Van Der Heyden	...	Adam 7 episodes, 2011
Diana Glenn	...	Sandi 6 episodes, 2011
Toula Yianni	...	Koula 6 episodes, 2011
Liberty Townsend	...	Melissa 6 episodes, 2011
Raffaele Costabile	...	Rocco 4 episodes, 2011
Jane Allsop	...	Tracey 3 episodes, 2011
Steve Mouzakis	...	Andrew Petrious 3 episodes, 2011
Gillian Jones	...	Rachel 2 episodes, 2011
Oliver Ackland	...	Rhys 2 episodes, 2011
Dimitri Baveas	...	Ali 2 episodes, 2011
Maude Davey	...	Tasha 2 episodes, 2011
Eugenia Fragos	...	Elisavet 2 episodes, 2011
Emily Wheaton	...	Jenna 2 episodes, 2011
Ivan Bradara	...	Lenin 2 episodes, 2011
Tony Briggs	...	Bilal 2 episodes, 2011
Charlotte Nicdao	...	Tina 2 episodes, 2011
Basil Sikiotis	...	Jordan 2 episodes, 2011
Peta Brady	...	Shamira 2 episodes, 2011
George Vasilakakos	...	Sava 2 episodes, 2011
Caitlin Tsiolkas	...	Angelika 2 episodes, 2011
Carlin Briggs	...	Ibby 2 episodes, 2011
Soraya Briggs	...	Sonja 2 episodes, 2011
Mia Lethbridge	...	Camilla 2 episodes, 2011
Jack Haycox	...	Handsome Jack / ... 2 episodes, 2011
Tawni Bryant	...	Resort Waitress 2 episodes, 2011

Storyline

Traces the shattering repercussions of a single event upon a group of family and friends. Based on Christos Tsiolkas' best-selling novel.

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Plot Keywords:

tv mini series | 

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Taglines:

Whose Side Are You On?

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

ABC [Australia]

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

2011 (Australia)

Also Known As:

The Slap

Filming Locations:

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company Credits

Production Co:

Matchbox Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

354 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Connections

Remade as The Slap (2015)

User Reviews

A brilliant piece of relevant, 21st-century drama.

Some time ago I wrote a critical piece about Australian TV dramas and received a fair amount of flak from my Aussie readers for so doing. Well rightly or wrongly, I stuck to my guns, but I am now delighted to report that the Aussies have totally redeemed themselves by making a programme which I can honestly say is one of the finest pieces of TV Drama I have seen.

'The Slap' is an 8 part Aussie mini-series based on the best-selling book of the same name, by Christos Tsiolkas. If you haven't seen it yet and you like your drama to be gritty, thought provoking, edgy and sometimes so realistic it is painful to watch, then go no further than 'The Slap'. It follows the lives of several characters who attend an otherwise innocuous 40th birthday party when one of the guests controversially slaps a four-year old who is misbehaving. The resulting court proceedings blows apart lifelong friendships and family relationships and the ensuing story covers virtually the whole gamut of present day social controversies; including rape, infidelity, substance abuse, domestic violence, alcoholism, breast-feeding, cultural ethnicity, interracial marriage and so on. I am sure my Aussie readers would be familiar with some, if not all, of the actors in this piece, but they were all new to me, and I have to say that the entire ensemble cast – including the kids – acted their socks off, without exception.

I will be picky and offer one criticism. I hated the intermittent comments made by a hidden, unknown, ghostly, (ghastly?) narrator. The lines narrated were undoubtedly taken from the novel, where 'omniscient narration' can be an acceptable literary device; but in a piece of TV visual drama, it is simply a lazy, old-fashioned cop-out. Everything told to us by this 'mystery' narrator, could just have easily been acted out by the players.

But I am being picky – good on yer Oz – I take my hat off to you, for a brilliant piece of relevant, 21st-century drama.