User reviews

Good premise, good enough plot but abysmal acting.

Tovey looks as though he's constantly trying to remember where he is and what his lines are. He spends most of every scene in a trance struggling to breathe. The supporting cast are serving up the usual trope that fleshes out every crime filler right down to the female cop who seems far to intelligent to be friends with such a clueless family.

Bertie Calver is giving the full Dickensian villain Performance, unfortunately it's out of place in this production and would seem more at home in doctor Who.

This was a pretty decent mini series that's about the guilt and aftermath of an event.

The show flits about here and there in time showing the lead up to said event but once it hits, the show stops jumping around.

There is a character in this that's odd and wonders of there are ghosts after we die, he is a famous radio medium (Derek Acorah like).

Russell Tovey is the star of the show and is becoming quite a good actor as he is branching out of comedy and started starring in more serious drama shows.

Give it a watch

This mini series had a combination of mystery, suspense and aspects of a psychological thriller with a hint of the paranormal all in one. My favorite character was Bob- I've only seen that actor in a few things that I can recall, but I've enjoyed him every time. I was so anticipating the conclusion that I ended up watching the four episodes in one evening. I enjoyed the show overall and I'm glad I watched it. However there was a bit too much skipping around thru the three time periods in which this show takes place for my taste. Every once in a while I found the back flashes too jarring and a little confusing. Some also felt a little unnecessary, or maybe it's that the timing was off in the placement? Can't quite put my finger on it.

Also, I rather grew to dislike the main character, Nathan. I kept waiting to see if his character would redeem himself and his actions, but he just kept digging his hole deeper. I have to say though that as much as I always want to like or identify with the main character in some way- sometimes it's a nice surprise when a main protagonist turns into more of a 'villain' than a 'hero'. Of course this is a personal view of Nathan and what I took away from the character. I hope anyone who's a fan of the genre/genres will watch and decide for themselves!

So don't understand the low score at all deserves a bit high than that. The sister is a 4 part British psychological thriller starring Russell Tovey. A good suspense series with a good cast. Very well directed even though it's a bit weird in places but I really like it. Don't go on by the low rating and watch for yourself to find out. It certainly is not boring me and mum I thought it was good. Give it a watch

The missus made me watch this show.

We are now getting divorced!!

Who is responsible for rubbish like this?

My favourite part was when something nearly happened and then nothing happened!

The acting is awful. The directing is terrible.

Anyway I'm off to the solicitors.

Bye

I think it was a good 1st episode and i am curious how the plot will unfold.

Those are the lines that keep replaying in my head by Bob, but should be directed to the writers/producers of this drivel. As usual, the drama starts off with enough intrigue for you to watch the next episode. Then it all goes downhill and at the end, you wonder why you ever bothered. I never knew until now how bad Russell Tovey was at acting, but Bertie Carvel's annoying voice and character didn't surprise me as he was pretty awful in Doctor Foster. He's a poor man's Paul Kaye. The plot didn't make sense as it was so far fetched. Also, did Nathan have a problem with doors and keys, he seemed pretty incompetent in opening them.

Not sure if the majority of other reviewers got super hyped up about this show, and were bitterly disappointed when it wasn't the best thing they've ever seen; but crikey, it isn't deserving of the plethora of 1-stars and vitriol.

Yes, it's slow, moody, and a bit shallow when it comes to character and plot development; but if you want a classic British TV thriller with a few twists and turns and you're not a complete misery guts that thinks everything should be a televisual marvel, this definitely isn't a bad way to spend 4 hours.

It works from an interesting angle, and you're kept guessing as to what's going to happen right until the end. Tovey is good, and plays his character well, and the colour palette and score support the tone of the piece. It does a stellar job of expressing the feeling of being trapped and weighed down by guilt, to an extent it was almost a little uncomfortable to watch.

There were definitely things that could have been done better, but all-in-all it was captivating and worth watching.

Cut to 3 episodes, maybe it would've been watchable, but the endless gormless silences between snatches of mumbled dialogue just overstrained my patience. The plot is good enough, apart from the kitschy bit of halloween at the end, but the main characters are so boring and unappealing, and the pace so slow that I lost all interest in their fates.

Rather surprised by all the bad reviews here as my wife and I thoroughly enjoyed The Sister, a slow burning, creepy 4 part serial. Perhaps it's because viewers seem to be impatient today judging by the fast editing of many movies now. The Sister is perhaps old fashioned telly but we enjoyed Russell Tovey and Bertie Carvell's chemistry together. Mostly expressionless Russell and Fagin-like Bertie rather appealed to us, at least it kept us wanting to see the next episode. It's all a bit ghoulies and ghosties and things that go bump in the night but we liked that. I'll not say more in case you're planning to watch on a recording or re-run but if you're a patient viewer and like creepy plot lines, give it a go.

The main reason I watched The Sister was Russell Tovey who plays Nathan an odd character who ( no spoilers) marries the Sister of his dead girlfriend Elise. The recent ridiculous hoo/ ha controversy about James Cordon a heterosexual being cast as a flamboyant gay man in Netflix "The Prom" and in my opinion giving a wonderful light song and dance performance made me wonder . Why ! isn't the "Straight " community rallying and protesting about Russell Tovey a proud out Gay man being cast as a handsome heterosexual male married to a beautiful woman.? My answer is It doesn't matter a jot Actors Act that's there profession for heavens sake. If they have to simulate an intimate scene with a gender not of their persuasion they fake it because they act and want the role. The problem arises with Casting Directors and Producers who think just because an actor is open and honest about their sexual orientation that they won't seem credible to film going audiences. For Heavens sake give audiences credit to recognise a bad performance from Heterosexual or Homosexual male Female Trans or Fluid gender Actors for their acting ability not their sexuality. Russell Tovey is a very fine actor and deserves his success . Actors like Russell Tovey and Ben Whishaw are paving the way for other out gay actors to just be considered for their acting ability not their marketability. Is it a coincidence that these are British film actors? or is Hollywood and Australia still living in the Golden Era where Rock Hudson and Tab Hunter among others had to stay firmly in the closet at the peril of their career? Now that's not telling you much about the Sister except its well worth seeing this 4 episode mystery drama for the fine performances of Russell Tovey and Bertie Carvel as Bob a sinister and almost Dickensian character who turns up on Nathan's doorstep ten years after his girlfriend's death. The other very nice performances is from Amrita Archaria as The Sister Holly Fox who step by step finds out her husband has withheld crucial details of her sister's involvement with him before they married. The plot is interesting but implausible in many ways Neil Cross the writer of the fine Crime series Luther and Director Niall McCormack have created a story again just my opinion ( everyone has one) that would be better suited to a Hollywood suspense thriller of the 1950's or 1960's . In this enlightened crime solving era of DNA and mass ability to interrogate witnesses and get public support I found the flashback scenes lacking credibility. Saying that though without any spoiler alerts The Sister is entertaining and keeps your interest in the characters to its conclusion.

Don't know where to start but perhaps the best place is the lead actor Tovey. Just painful to watch. This low grunty style that just didn't convince, apart from not understanding what he said most of the time. Every time his wife asked him a question it was facial moves and about 5 mins each time to answer her. This four part series was way too long and drawn out. He had guilty written all over him when confronted by his friends and the police yet they did not see that.

The script was way off beam and it was just painful to follow. I kept asking my wife ' what did he just say' but I guess this is a general problem these days as good sound producers seem to have all fell down a big hole.

I was very happy it just ended.

Was a good film to watch, had a bit of suspense, good performance by Bertie Carvel and Russell Tovey

I thoroughly enjoy these British dramas. I really liked the supernatural element to the theme too! It was different! I thought there was just enough tension throughout, kept me watching right until the end. Although I will say, I hit the 'skip 10 seconds' arrow quite a lot,(watched on netflix) as there are aLOT of long pauses and dragged out time. It definitely adds to the tension in one sense, but not that much was needed I believe.

I really liked the Bob character, the actor was captivating, and I loved the voice and demeanor he portrayed.

I would definitely recommend it, if you enjoy the usual BBC dramas etc... And you're not needing anything fancy or fast moving. Just a good drama,with an intriguing, mysterious, thriller plotline.

I enjoyed this series. It was very creepy. I don't agree with some of the comments that it was bad acting. I thought they were all very good. The lead man was supposed to be an emotional wreck as he was living with the guilt of it all.

It's a slow burn which I think a lot of people struggle with these days. Marvel and DC films have helped with that. Continual adrenaline rush. So anything remotely needing some thought is given a 1 rating. I've read some really scathing reviews about this series and I don't think it deserves it. It creeped me out when I watched the last episode and felt quite scared. That's what you want from a series.

Tovey's character is an all open mouthed mumbling, bumbling cardboard cliche. And as for Carvel's character with his lank hair and funny voice couldn't decide whether he was Fagin or Uriah Heep.

First three episodes are stellar, great at unravelling the story and building tension. There's also great performances from both Russel Tovey and Bertie Cavell. However the ending is just meh, it's not terrible but it's not particularly satisfactory either, it's just meh. Well worth a watch but far from the best thing I've seen recently.

What do Nathan and his wife do for a living? They seem to live in a million-pound house, but Nathan sits around worrying, while his wife deals with 'contracts.' When they first meet, Holly is an estate agent although she says that's not her real vocation. Nathan is something to do with a radio station, although he also mumbles something about being a car dealer to Holly. When they're married, we occasionally see Nathan working in a flashy-looking office of some sort. Holly's parents live in a sumptuous detached house with gardens running down to the Thames (?) What have they done to achieve this wealth? As for Nathan, he has no family and no siblings. His parents don't exist, and we know nothing about his background.

When Nathan is questioned by the police, how do they know he was at the party? Did they simply question every person who showed up on CCTV? Ditto Bob. Why did they question him? Why does the WPC deliberately tell Nathan that he is not a suspect, because the sister turns up the flat of her ex-boyfriend (who?) after Nathan & Bob appear to have buried her corpse? If the police really think Nathan is not a suspect, why does the WPC restart her investigations a few years later?

Is it 'just a coincidence' that our WPC happens to be a friend of Holly's family?

The whole thing (the 'final' episode is tonight) makes no sense, has no reality. It's set in a world where no one really exists. Maybe it will all be 'explained' tonight, but somehow I doubt it.

I almost ALWAYS read reviews before seeing anything. But after seeing this series was only 4 episodes long, i decided to go head and watch with unbiased eyes. And all I gotta say is....yall tripping. Definitely watchable. Acting was believable. And the tension was surprising in the last two episodes, especially after truly knowing the characters. Man....let me go peep some of these other "5" star shows. I see some yall a little tooo picky.

Ok, the acting was pretty bad, especially Bob the baddie with the squeaky voice and baddie facial expressions.

I've seen the main actors in other things and thought they were pretty good so I can only assume these odd performances were down to poor direction?!

Some very peculiar, even comical scenarios, made me feel this could've made a great spoof thriller!

Anyway, I've still given this a 6/10 as it was watchable, possibly for all the wrong reasons however I did want to find out what happened at the end...

If you're really at a loose end and have watched the rest of Netflix, then it might be worth watching.

........giving this a 1 is being kind! Absolutly shocking acting script., in fact, so bad it's laughable. Paint drying would win an Oscar in comparison.

It kept me wondering what happened to the poor girl and why. The storyline was quite intriguing but the acting was woeful. There was no chemistry between the husband and wife and Bob with his gravelly voice was a put off. Maybe the fault lies with the direction as the story had merit. Shame. Could have been a lot better.