The Correspondent (M) - 119 minutes

Highly regarded Australian journalist Peter Greste was arrested by Egyptian authorities in Cairo on 29th December, 2013.

He was working there for Al Jazeera as a two-to-three week Christmas cover for another journo.

Greste was taken into custody alongside two other Al Jazeera reporters, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed.

Written by Peter Duncan, The Correspondent is based on Greste’s 2017 memoir, The First Casualty, and it is an account of what happened.

Greste was detained on trumped up charges, including fabricating the truth and smearing the name of Egypt.

He was sentenced to seven years imprisonment, while his colleagues received terms of seven years and 10 years respectively.

The Correspondent shows them being moved around the Egyptian prison system.

It reveals how, on occasions, they turned on one another.

It champions the family support Greste received.

Peter’s brother, Andrew, was a source of comfort in Egypt, while his parents also flew there.

The film captures what Greste was subjected to, how he coped and what he thought about while in captivity.

Notable throughout is the fate of fellow war correspondent, Brit Kate Peyton.

The pair was working for the BBC in Mogadishu in 2005 when a bullet struck Peyton. Those memories loom large for Greste.

Without doubt, there is extra clout associated with a real-life story and so it is here with The Correspondent.

I dare say many of the people who will see this movie will recollect Greste’s predicament and fate.

What the film does is go into detail. We become invested in what happens, in the injustice of what has been perpetrated and continues to unfold.

Richard Roxburgh is well cast as cool operator Peter Greste. Coming across as intelligent and disciplined, he is shown to keeps his wits about him throughout.

The tension in the relationship between Greste and Mohamed Fahmy is an important subplot. Julian Maroun wears his heart on his sleeve as the opinionated Fahmy.

There is more simpatico between Greste and Baher Mohamed. The pair gels over backgammon, which they play regularly to pass the time in jail. Rahel Romahn is measured as Mohamed.

When initially imprisoned, Greste forms a relationship with young activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah, whose advise is sage. Mojean Aria presents the latter as decent and wise beyond his years, despite the invidious situation in which he himself is in.

Kate Peyton shows herself as being in the same mold as Greste, dedicated to uncovering the harsh reality of war-torn regions. As Peyton, Yael Stone comes across as a valued confidante and friend.

Peter Greste’s path is hardly a straightforward one and director Kriv Stenders pays attention to the twists and turns.

We witness the mental toll and are left to admire just how Greste worked his way through 400 days of captivity to come out the other end intact and sane.

Rated M, The Correspondent scores an 8 out of 10.