Tsunami: Race Against Time: Review

Possibly one of the most harrowing yet enlightening docu-series of the year, Tsunami: Race Against Time's use of footage from the fateful day when the Indian Ocean was overrun by waves after an earthquake in Sumatra nearly 20 years ago is jaw-dropping stuff.

While using interviews with survivors from the events of December 26, 2004 is an obvious necessity, it's the footage from a swathe of different sources that makes this four-part series something that gets under your skin in both its urgency and its unfolding horror.

The show's producers rely a little too much on a few narrative sleights of hand as emotional interviewees recount what happened on that day - it works fine for the first episode, but then becomes somewhat of a crutch as the story is told by others.

But it's the footage from the various islands and towns affected in the Indian Ocean that proves to be the most compelling. As any newsgatherer will tell you, a picture tells a story and the images of those standing on the beach confused at what's unfolding has a power that's hard to shake.

But rather than overdramatise the tsunami's impact, the imagery complements what's being talked about - the human cost of being separated from families, the uncertainty of knowing what's going on and what will happen is all expertly told and framed by footage from the scene. It's even more impressive when you realise some of those telling the stories have been captured in the video footage that plays out.

It's a sobering series that offers a powerful reminder of how utterly insignificant we are in the face of nature - but it's also a powerful reminder of how utterly capable of astonishing humanity we are in such dire situations.