Television series
The Cry
- Family drama
- Very dark
A taut psychological drama about a marriage shattered by a baby's abduction in an Australian coastal town. Told across two timelines, it strips away comfort and certainty to reveal how trauma exposes a couple's fault lines, and how the world judges mothers with brutal speed. Gripping and claustrophobic.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you like slow, unsettling domestic drama where the tension lives in what a marriage won't say aloud, and you're happy to sit with a story that keeps questioning how a mother gets judged.
Skip it if you need a case moving briskly toward answers, since its tension comes from silences and lingering close-ups rather than plot momentum.
What it asks of you: Four hour-long episodes make a short commitment, but it stays patient and watchful, with long quiet scenes between the couple that you have to sit through without being rushed.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Liar2017
Laura Linney and Ioan Gruffudd in a cat-and-mouse thriller about competing versions of the same night. Like The Cry, it's interested in who we believe and why, and how quickly sympathy can evaporate.
But The second season loses momentum, and some plot turns feel contrived. But the first is excellent and complete if you want to stop there.
The Fall2013
Stella Gibson's moral certainty collides with a serial killer's fractured mind. It shares The Cry's interest in how public narratives devour private truth, and Gillian Anderson's performance is magnetic.
But It can feel slower and more methodical than it needs to be. Some viewers find the killer's backstory too sympathetic, which may or may not bother you.
Bodyguard2018
Jed Mercurio's six-part masterpiece about trust, loyalty, and how institutions protect themselves. Every episode raises the stakes; the paranoia is suffocating. Political thriller with real emotional weight.
But The ending divides people sharply. If you need neat resolution and clear answers, this will frustrate you.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Cry
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Fleabag2016
Both are about women under scrutiny—how others interpret our actions, and how we lie about ourselves. Fleabag just does it with wine and sex instead of tragedy, but the fracture is the same.
A woman talks to camera while her life implodes around her, breaking every rule of how drama normally works. Like The Cry, it's about performance versus truth—the masks we wear for different people. But it uses comedy as armor, and it's hilarious.
But The tonal shift in season two toward genuine pathos alienates some viewers who just wanted jokes. And the frequent fourth-wall breaks won't land if you find them gimmicky.
More like this (6)
MINDHUNTER2017
The birth of criminal profiling, told with precision and dark humour. It shares The Cry's fascination with how people think, lie, and reveal themselves. The detail work is meticulous.
But Season two loses focus and the show was cancelled unresolved. It's also very long, and some episodes feel like procedural wheel-spinning.
The Affair2014
Marriage seen from both sides, with contradictory timelines revealing how perspective warps truth. The structure mirrors The Cry's exploration of who we believe and what we know about the people closest to us.
But It runs five seasons and outstays its welcome. After season two, it repeats itself conceptually, though it remains watchable.
Broadchurch2013
A small town, a murdered child, and the machinery of suspicion that grinds through community and marriage alike. Like The Cry, it's about how tragedy turns neighbour against neighbour, and how easy it is to become the accused.
But The American remake exists and is worse, which doesn't help. The third season diverges tonally in ways some find misjudged.
Happy Valley2014
Sarah Lancashire's determined detective hunts a killer while battling her own trauma. It has The Cry's unflinching look at how violence ripples through families and communities, with more direct action than introspection.
But It leans toward the procedural, so it's less interested in moral ambiguity. If you want clearer stakes and answers, that's actually a feature, not a bug.
The Missing2014
A child disappears; the search destroys a marriage. Two timelines, one haunting. It's the closest structural match to The Cry, with the same interest in how absence reshapes everything.
But It has two seasons with different missing children, and the second is noticeably weaker. Stick to season one if you're unsure.
Three Colors: Red1994
Both explore how we construct narrative around trauma and chance. The Cry asks 'Did she do it?'; Red asks 'Is any of this connected?' Both suggest that the truth is less important than the story we choose to believe.
Kieślowski's final masterpiece about fate, connection, and how lives touch without knowing. It's a three-hour meditation on coincidence and the stories we tell ourselves. Visually extraordinary and deeply moving.
But It's very slow. It's in French with subtitles. And it requires patience for ambiguity—nothing is resolved or explained. If you need plot momentum, it will test you.
People
Cast
Production
- Claire MundellExecutive Producer