When the family man and mechanic Stuart (Christopher Eccleston) finds that his beloved only daughter Lucy (Maddy Garrood) was beaten and humiliated by her schoolmates in a public school, he decides to take Lucy out of the school and give home schooling to her with his wife Alison (Susannah Harker). Then they seek another public school since they can not afford to give a private education for Lucy, but all the places are worse than her original school. When they find the wonderful Catholic School St. Mary of the Veil, they prepare the application of their daughter. However, due to the high demand, one of the basic conditions to be accepted is being Catholic but Stuart and Alison are atheists. Stuart meets the smalltime crook Ed (Brendan Coyle) that charges an amount to provide the necessary documentation proving that Stuart, Alison and Lucy are Catholics including the testimony of Father Thomas (David Warner). Lucy is accepted St. Mary of the Veil, but the life of her family changes when Father Thomas is killed and Ed blackmails Stuart, while the mother of a rejected applicant does not believe that Lucy and her family are Catholics."Perfect Parents" is a surprisingly good and original movie. The story about parenthood, religion, competition and education has a simple beginning with a family pretending to be Catholic to get a better education for the young daughter. However, the simple lie complicates in a big twist, with murder, blackmail and greedy. With the exception of Lucy and Emma that are pure girls, all the characters are amoral and have serious deviation of behavior. Stuart is cynical and together his wife, they corrupt a priest, use false documentation and lie to get the aimed spot in the school. Ed is simply a scum. Jane is a woman that claims to be a religious and faithful Christian, but eagerly seeks a spot for her daughter, and does not show sympathy of mercy with Lucy. Father Thomas is a former pedophile and corruptible to afford to pay the blackmailer. Sister Antonia in the end shows that is a fair woman. The acting is excellent and gives credibility to the plot, and it was great to see the great David Warner again. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "O Segredo – Pecado em Família" ("The Secret – Sin in Family")

I recently watched flesh and blood in my media studies lesson and was impressed with seeing Christopher Eccleston's moving role of how working class families handle with "disabled" children.This encouraged me to watch more of Christopher's performances. Perfect parents did not disappoint. With a believable performance and interesting plot twists the story is engaging. The gun was a huge surprise for me. While sections may seem mellow dramatic that can be part of the fun when watching drama. Interesting camera angles used appropriately and plenty of aesthetically pleasing scenes which are both believable and eye catching.Recommended for anyone who wants more from Christopher Eccleston.

I personally could have done without the thriller part. To me the best parts of the show dealt with the daughter Lucy's religious awakening. Particularly the last scene of the movie. I could see a sequel (or ongoing series) highlighting the increasing conflict between the devout daughter and her atheist father.You could do a show every Christmas ending in a show where the daughter decides to become a nun or missionary (perhaps in a very dangerous part of the world). There is lots of material for in between episodes also with all the issues there are in the world for a devout girl to reconcile her faith with.

I thought this was a great drama, a bit far-fetched maybe but very well acted and full of suspense. I am a big fan of Christopher Eccleston and always watch stuff that he's in. I'm also a teacher and have a young child so was very interested in the stuff to do with choosing schools etc. I do agree with the comment saying that they had tried to include an awful lot of themes e.g Religion, Education, Murder, Paedophilia etc.I was really enjoying this drama, having recorded it. Unfortunately I got to almost the end and it hadn't recorded so I missed the end. Would anyone be kind enough to tell me what happened after the Mother Superior arrives at the house? I'd be very grateful, Thanks.