The Correspondent (film)

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The Correspondent
The Correspondent Poster.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Kriv Stenders
Screenplay by Peter Duncan
Based onThe First Casualty
by Peter Greste
Produced byCarmel Travers
Starring
CinematographyGeoffrey Hall
Edited by Veronika Jenet
Music byTom Ellard
Production
company
Pop Family Entertainment production
Distributed byMaslow Entertainment
Release dates
  • 23 October 2024 (2024-10-23)(Adelaide Film Festival)
  • 17 April 2025 (2025-04-17)(Australia)
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish

The Correspondent is a 2024 biographical legal thriller directed by Kriv Stenders from a screenplay by Peter Duncan. The film stars Richard Roxburgh, Julian Maroun, Rahel Romahn, Yael Stone, and Mojean Aria. The plot focuses on Australian foreign correspondent and journalist Peter Greste, who was arrested in Cairo and held in an Egyptian prison, and is adapted from Greste's 2017 memoir The First Casualty.

Contents

The Correspondent is scheduled to be released in Australia on 17 April 2025.

Synopsis

The film is based on the real-life story of Australian foreign correspondent and journalist Peter Greste, who was arrested in Cairo after being accused of spreading false news and aiding the Muslim Brotherhood.

Cast

Production

The Correspondent is a legal thriller film directed by Kriv Stenders from a screenplay by Peter Duncan.[ citation needed ] The screenplay, written by Duncan, is adapted from Greste's 2017 memoir The First Casualty.[ citation needed ]

The film wrapped production in March 2024, after six weeks of shooting in Sydney. [2] [1]

When discussing his performance, Roxburgh said he made no attempt to imitate Greste; instead he focused on "empathetically reaching into his experience as much as I could". [3] He described the shoot as a "gruelling and horrendous" due to the confined, claustrophobic nature of the story and production.[ citation needed ]

Release

The film premiered during the opening night of the 2024 Adelaide Film Festival. [4] The film had received support from the Adelaide Film Festival Investment Fund.

The Correspondent is scheduled to be released by Maslow Entertainment in Australia on 26 December 2024. [5]

The first trailer was released on the 24 September 2024. [6]

Critical reception

Screenhub's Stephen A Russell said the film stands tall on Roxburgh’s "capable shoulders even as it zips through the ordeal at a fair clip". [5] While Penelope Debelle said Roxburgh's performance manages to encapsulate "Greste’s unshowy character" and is "notably quiet... devoid of sentimentality and free of heroics". [7]

The film received praise for Duncan's "strong" screenplay. [7]

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References

  1. 1 2 Slatter, Sean (15 March 2024). "Richard Roxburgh, Julian Maroun, Rahel Romahn play captured Cairo trio in Kriv Stenders' 'The Correspondent'". if.com.au.
  2. Frater, Patrick (14 March 2024). "Richard Roxburgh Wraps Peter Greste Detention Film 'The Correspondent' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety.
  3. "Program: "It was absolutely appalling" - actor Richard Roxburgh on filming The Correspondent". ABC Listen. ABC Radio Adelaide. 26 October 2024.
  4. Keen, Suzie (20 August 2024). "Thriller about Peter Greste's jail nightmare to open 2024 Adelaide Film Festival". In Review.
  5. 1 2 Russell, Stephen A. (24 October 2024). "The Correspondent, film review: Peter Greste thriller on a vitally important topic". Screen Hub.
  6. "THE CORRESPONDENT Official Trailer". Youtube. Maslow Entertainment. 24 September 2024.
  7. 1 2 Debelle, Penellope (24 October 2024). "Film Festival review: The Correspondent". In Review.