Absolutely outstanding and breathtaking movie about a girl and her family, that was riddled with abuse, fires, death, despair, and mysterious secrets. This is a superb masterpiece series of the highest calibre that should not be missed by anyone. A devastatingly emotional rollercoaster ride of unbelievably masterful acting by everyone. I have never cried so hard in my life and been so thrilled and so sad and so deeply absorbed all at once watching a drama. It has a dreamlike quality in its tragic tale of misguided love, mystery, tragedy, horror, drama, life lessons, romance, darkened sadness, joy, life and death. The characters are so strong, the story of Alice's life journey, a minefield of emotional tragedies, accidental deaths, fires, abuse, family misunderstandings, too many secrets in the garden, diaries revealing family atrocities, uncommunicated feelings, and her Grandmother's overly smothering protective love that ultimately dissolves their relationship further at every turn, due to poor choices, misunderstandings, vulnerabilities, and violence. Australia's beauty is truly filmed, almost a character itself in this film, though it seems in its beauty to also have a lot of secret danger at a closer look. Another thing than seems painful in this film is the amount of drunken Australian violent abusive alcoholic men, at least in this film. Just when you thought these actors and actresses had made their best films or series' in the past, they unleash a series that will surely be remembered as one of the best that everyone involved has ever done, a true masterpiece modern classic. Rather than a series, it plays more like an a long epic movie and a truly emotionally mysterious and heavy, though extremely enjoyable one. Watch it one sitting.
Sigourney Weaver as June Hart, Alice's paternal grandmother who takes her in after the death of Alice's parents, but hides many secrets from her granddaughter.
Alyla Browne and Alycia Debnam-Carey as Alice Hart, the abused daughter of Agnes and Clem who is raised by June after her parents' death, only to face another crisis as a grown-up. Browne portrays Alice as a child, and Debnam-Carey portrays her as a young adult.
Asher Keddie as Sally Morgan, a librarian who realizes the abuse Alice and her mother suffer, and later tries to adopt Alice before adopting Charlie.
Leah Purcell as Twig, June's wife
Frankie Adams as Candy Blue, June and Twig's adopted daughter
Catherine Laga'aia as young Candy
Alexander England as John Morgan, a policeman and Sally's husband
Charlie Vickers as Clem Hart, Alice's abusive father, Agnes' husband and June's estranged son
Jack Latorre as young Clem Hart
Tilda Cobham-Hervey as Agnes Hart, Alice's mother
Sebastiรกn Zurita as Dylan, a ranger Alice falls in love with as an adult
Shareena Clanton as Ruby, a ranger who becomes Alice's friend
Guests
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Catherine McClements as Sarah
Emma Lung as Nurse Brooke Jansen
Jeremy Blewitt as Charlie Morgan, Alice's brother who was adopted by Sally and John as a newborn.