"Secrets & Lies" is an Australian miniseries starring Martin Henderson, Anthony Hayes, Anthony Hayes, and Diana Glenn.Henderson plays Ben Gundelach, a house painter who has two daughters and is in the process of breaking up with his wife (Glenn). One day while jogging he finds the body of the little boy who lives across the street. He becomes the main suspect. And when he submits to a DNA sample, he's in for a big surprise.Ben tries to solve the murder himself as he watches his life disintegrate before him. Everything he shows the police detective (Hayes) is dismissed. With an expression that never changes, the chief investigator quietly drives Ben to near insanity. Very tense story with a twist ending. Henderson is a hunk with a capital H and does well as a laid back person dumbfounded and confused by what is happening to him as his life spins into more and more chaos.Some of the characters are stereotypes, but for the most part, this is a good, well-acted story that sadly reflects the modern world we live in.

*NO SPOILERS YET* I will keep the first part of this spoiler free, and will provide fair warning before I divulge any spoilers. This was a pretty well crafted series. Cinematography, acting, writing, and directing were all very good. New bombshells and twists presented themselves around every corner, always keeping the audience guessing. The finale was incredibly intense. However, the final twist I just didn't buy, and for me it caused the entire series to fall apart. In the end, I felt there was no payoff for this series, with an awful ending and a final twist I just didn't feel worked. Now I am going to start getting into spoilers. I personally wish I had read spoilers previously, as I probably wouldn't have wasted six hours on this show. *SPOILERS BEGIN* So the final twist for those who don't know and decided to proceed, is that Ben's youngest daughter Eva is the killer. Now Eva looked to have been somewhere between 8 and 10 years old. I know that children kill. It is hard to believe, and it is a rarity, but it has happened. Eva was just not developed in the show to be a psychopath though, and the motive given is that she believed killing Tom would cause Jess to leave town (thus saving her parent's marriage). I guess it's debatable as to whether the ending was plausible. I just didn't buy it. And so what are we left with? A series that showed Ben frantically trying to figure out who killed Tom for six episodes, while his family fell apart and his wife left him, taking the kids. And in the end he seems to be back together with his wife, but now his youngest daughter is facing prosecution for murder. What an awful ending. I just didn't buy it, and felt there was no payoff. Overall the series is well done, though, hence the three stars given. I wish I hadn't wasted my time though.

Set in a suburban Australian neighborhood, this one-off series follows the story of family man Ben Gundelach, a painter (as in 'paint the basement') whose life spirals into a s**t-storm of suspicion, lies and vigilantism after finding the body of a young, neighborhood boy in the woods on his morning jog.At its core a real whodunit-type story, the plot development serves us a platter of red-herrings in Ben's quest to prove his innocence by discovering the truth, all the while having to deal with characters such as the Suspicious Detective, the Annoying Wife, the Bitchy Teen Daughter, the Womanizing Best-Mate, the vulnerable Victim's Mother across-the-street, and a host of possible-suspect neighbors. The story does a good job of keeping viewers intrigued, with frequent plot twists, layered characters and will- he-snap, won't-he-snap moments.The cast of C-list actors all fulfill their roles (some better than others), and as the story progresses we catch glimpses of who they all really are. A few small inconsistencies can be noticed by the keen-eyed viewer, but can be overlooked as most most details fall into place with the concluding episode.So, if you like whodunits, don't mind Aussie accents, can overlook some fairly stock-characters, and have some free time on your hands, by all means give this series a watch. It's shortcomings are made up for by an interesting story that keeps you guessing, enough tense moments to punctuate the talky-scenes, and a final twist that, while some may find unsatisfactory, certainly comes as a surprise. As a whodunit, it ticks almost all the boxes.Lets hope its American counterpart, soon to be released, will keep some of the same atmosphere!NR

Well-acted. Very good drama. Good mystery. Well-cast, but...And this may be a spoiler: The ending ruined the whole season for me. I was so put off by "who-dun-it", I wish I hadn't wasted my time on the first episode. Most of the story is centered around a man accused of murdering a young boy. He faces distrust from the police and even most of his own family. Time and again he stumbles upon a clue that might vindicate him, only to be knocked down. With all this struggle and suspense, I just knew there would be a satisfying pay-off in the end. But I would have preferred general dissatisfaction to the wretched wrap-up of this story.I'm guessing the writer of this story has a very bleak picture of humanity. My advice is to stay away from "Secrets and Lies".