dreamwood3 As a new fan to David Tennant I wanted to get my hands on everything this brilliant man has done. However; when I read the synopsis of this movie, I knew that this was one that I would not be eager to watch. David is a brilliant actor and I absolutely love seeing him as and of the number of adorable characters he usually portrays. The point is that in the majority of David's roles, he portrays good guy characters. "Secret Smile" is not one of them and as a fan it is difficult to see him as anything other than the likable, charming, 10th regeneration of The Doctor.This movie is promoted as a drama and a thriller. David's character Brendan Block has been described as a stalker and a psycho; terms that completely miss the mark on what Brendan truly is. This movie is about romance gone wrong, and obsession but the terms that seem to be missing in most comments about this show are; abusive relationships, domestic violence, control, and manipulation.I finally sat down and watched this show because I wanted to be able to discuss its background themes, and have a working knowledge of David's work. The movie itself is well done, the storyline is good, David is brilliant as ever, but I will most likely not be watching this show ever again simply because the subject matter hits way too close to home (I'll explain). Having said all of that, it is definitely a movie worth seeing. The movie does have quite a few plot twists and dramatic turns, although I pretty much knew how things would play out not because of poor writing or poor storytelling but because I've lived it. I knew things would escalate and I knew Miranda was making all the wrong moves because I made them too.The character Brendan Block is not just a psycho he is a sociopath. What is the difference, you may ask? Everyone can spot a psychopath, a sociopath is clever and charming enough to move through society undetected but still be a bit psycho. David's natural skill at being charming was perfect for this role. Abusive partners are generally very charming and skilled at the art of control and manipulation. They know how to say just the right thing at the right time. Once the trust is gained, the abuser begins to control by crossing social boundaries and then the threats begin if they do not get what they want. All of these points are touched on within the movie if you pay attention.In the beginning Brendan was extremely charming to everyone but was able to hide his possessive nature by directing the blame off of his actions and directing them at the victim or the victims family. On a basic level we want to trust people and want to believe that everyone is good. Abuser's know this fact and use it against their victims. If you have the stomach for it, and you've already seen it once, see it again with new eyes with the knowledge you now have of what Brendan did. You will see just how he lied and manipulated his way through all of their lives, with no proof and little more than a suggestion.David has played dual roles before as twins who dressed and acted differently in "Nativity 2", and as a clone of himself in "Dr Who". As Brendan Block he does an excellent depiction of a man who although does not have a dual personality, he does lead a double life. The difference in his eyes when he is acting "sincere" to his lover, and the maniacal look he has when he looks at Miranda as if to say "I win", is ever so subtle but there nonetheless and highly effective. How well he portrayed the two sides of Brendan was quite frightening, and for me made it difficult to watch because it brought up flashbacks of my own life with a sociopathic husband. David is a brilliant actor, but frankly I don't ever want to see him in this role ever again because he did it just a little too well.Being American, I had to watch this on You Tube because we are horribly deprived of David Tennant in this country. I am not sure if there were any promotions for help with domestic violence centers shown with this program or with the DVD but there should have been. In my opinion this was a much better portrayal of domestic violence issues, than "Recovery" was at portraying head trauma injuries. "Secret Smile" depicts just how bad it can get, whether or not the abuser physically hits you. When will people realize that the real abuse in abusive relationships is mental abuse, not always physical abuse?Some people commented on how they thought Brendan was a creep but were strangely attracted to him regardless because he was portrayed by David Tennant. Most sociopaths such as Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacey, and Charles Manson were all described as very charming and strangely attractive. The movie was trying to point out the fact that Brendan got away with many of the things he did because he was charming and attractive, and nobody questioned his integrity they just assumed he was telling the truth.Some people have commented that there was no real evidence that Brendan actually murdered anyone. I don't think there is any evidence that Hitler actually murdered anyone either but that doesn't make him any less of a monster either. In closing I would suggest that after watching this movie you have a movie readily available to cleanse your pallet of the character that David played so well. I suggest either "Decoy Bride" or "Nativity 2" to remind you that David generally plays adorable roles and is just as good in those movies too.

opusv5 I found this quite gripping, the acting very good, the characters believable. Manipulative (here to the point of psychotic) people such as Brendan do exist, though, despite being a liar, rapist, and bully, he does not seem to have actually committed murder. In fact, though he is associated with other violent deaths(his parents', Troy, Laura's), it is implied that he only had a psychological hand in them. One perhaps weak point: he is sentenced to life with possibility of parole only after 22 years. The sentence may be unrealistic if only because, despite the incriminating key,Miranda's body was still not found. The basic credo is: no body, no murder. Also: one person commenting on this film may have mentioned Miranda's emigrating to Austalia using a false identity when, the dialog says, she was actually visiting there as a tourist

stormy_daze I watched this because I'm not particularly familiar with David Tennant, and wanted to see him act in more than 3 minutes of Harry Potter before moving on to see him replace Chris Eccelston in Doctor Who.I was really surprised at it, I mean some of it was a bit predictable, but the tale of a good thriller is that even if you know what's coming, you're heart-rate still pumps higher with anticipation.My bruvva (who has an attention span of a 5 year old) stayed to watch all of part 2 with me, so you know it's interesting.Basic premise is that of many a Lifetime movie -- woman comes upon a mysterious seductive man, only to realise he's a bugger, bail out, and then can't shake him off. Only she knows he's dangerous -- everyone else sees her warnings as jealous or bitterness. How Lady Cassandra.DTennant plays the role of the creepy guy who gets away with everything perfectly. Frighteningly well, really. But give him due credit at least for being able to carry the movie.The plot is not that original, but what is original these days. The acting, directing and producing really carry the movie, and I guarantee you by the end of the movie you will dislike Brendan.My only complaint comes at the end of the movie (SPOILERS BEWARE!!) because they sort of pull a Hollywood trick on ye. I much prefer the illusional ending of the main character dying, instead of sneaking her in at the last minute. I sort of think that a cheat.Other than that, two thumbs up, brilliant, highly recommended, will watch again!

ikanboy Miranda meets Brendan, a charming bloke, beds him in an instant, and then is amazed to find out he's a cad! Excuse me dear, in this day and age that's self destructive. He gets royally ticked off when she dumps him and gets his own back by dating her sister and ingratiating himself with her clueless family.There is her brother, mentally ill, and a certain foil for Brendan's evil influence. He mugs Miranda's next love, apparently at Brendan's urging, who then departs the scene when he thinks Miranda is too obsessed with Brendan's manipulations. Miranda discovers Brendan's past is full of "crazy" behavior and dumps it all out at a family gathering, but no-one believes her, the silly saps all go against her "evidence". Why? Because Brendan has a bombshell of his own to drop. Miranda slept with her sister's former boyfriend back in God knows when! How does he know: he read it in her diary.Does anyone, including Miranda, point out that her "evidence" come from a source that can be contacted and verified whereas his "evidence" comes from underhandedness. No! Mom and Dad go with Brendan's obvious "cattiness", because that drives on the drama! Then her brother kills himself, and we are left to believe Brendan had something to do with it, but he's so cloyingly self effacing at the funeral that everyone - except Miranda - falls for it.When Brendan dumps the sister and marries Miranda's best friend, are the parents chagrined by their disloyalty? There is no sign of it. The sister even blames Miranda for it! What did Miranda do to deserve such a clueless and uncharitable lot? Then Brendan's new bride shows up dead in her bath tub. The police, evidently without any access to CSI technology, declare it as an accident! Another plot device to drive on the drama: make the cops look like idiots! It goes on and on, with poor old stupid Miranda being out foxed at every turn by this evil SOB! She's so stupid that when he manages to convince a Judge (who also does not seem to have access to evidentiary procedures) that she is a menace, and has a restraining order placed against her, she goes running off to his home when his latest bride calls her! Hey, it's effective to most of the female audience! By now they're so wrapped up with him getting his come uppance, that they don't care if the usual detective work goes missing! In the end she gets her revenge and poor old Brendan is hauled off to Jail for something he is innocent of, namely her murder. She lets her family believe she's been murdered, until Brendan is safely ensconced in Jail and then shows up to meet them at the airport in Australia! The dim witted couple are so pleased to see her, and evidently so pleased that Brendan is in Jail on trumped up charges, that they all live happily ever after! The plot is exasperating yet enthrallingly bad, It's enthralling if you accept that everyone has to ignore the obvious, and that is: The authorities are all stupid and incompetent! The main protagonist has a past, as our heroine uncovers. Do the police check it out: NO! Does the Judge check it out? NO! Do her parents check it out: NO! Does her sister: NO! It's all a typical BBC production, predicated on the audience being interested enough in the unfolding drama, that they accept that this guy is going to continue to fool everybody, so that our heroine has to take justice into her own hands. Roll over Agatha!