The Haunting of Barney Palmer

As a child I read the book and I remember the blue cover. I recently listened to the Audiobook and was struck by how English the whole story sounded, in part because the narrator was from the UK, and partly because they were always fussing about with cups of tea.

As a child I was unaware of a lot of stylistic and practical decisions that were made in the TV adaptation. The screenplay is a lot more normal Kiwi dialogue. Instead of travelling across town to a doctor's office for a lengthy exposition scene, the narrative is more concise (and, pragmatically, uses fewer sets).

Rewatching it as an adult is an exercise in 80s nostalgia (all that yellow!) and the visceral sense memory of that pert telephone ringing took me back; it really places us at a specific point in NZ history.

Speaking as a UK person who's never been there, it's so very interesting to see the New Zealand landscape and architecture - the NZ atmosphere, which is very distinctive - this is not like seeing a drama set in the UK or the US or Canada, especially (or Australia). Enjoyable drama. Beautiful oceanic scenery and atmos. Thanks so much for posting.

This is very enjoyable but its fantasy not science fiction.

Good to see these interesting films available on-line. :)