Worth: $13.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
Gemma Arterton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Penelope Wilton, Tom Courtenay, Lucas Bond
Intro:
… wholesome cinematic comfort food.
British playwright, Jessica Swale marks her feature length directorial debut with this heart-warming piece of World War 2 nostalgia wrapped around a tale of lost romance. Gemma Arterton plays Alice, a reclusive writer with heavy emphasis on reclusive. When she’s not writing about Fata Morgana mirages, she’s chasing away visitors from her seaside cottage and pretending to buy chocolate for children, just so she can whip it away from them to make them cry.
Swap the British coast for 19th century London at Christmas and Alice could Scrooge it up with the best of them.
Her bitter peace is shattered when she finds out that she’s been entrusted to care for young evacuee, Frank (Lucas Bond), who has been shipped out to Kent to escape war torn London.
Summerland goes in the direction you pretty much expect it to, with Alice’s leather-bound heart softening as she cares for the cherubic Frank. Not that it’s all smooth sailing, with Alice receiving news from London that digs up painful memories; not least her doomed romance with university sweetheart, Vera (Gugu Mbatha-Raw).
This is very much Arterton’s film, excelling as the grumpy writer with a heart of gold. You almost don’t want her to see the error of her ways; she is so much fun as a Blackadder-esque protagonist who can no longer bear the cloying stiff upper lips around her. Of course, her borderline nihilism is not just because of a broken heart, but also because she doesn’t feel that she can talk to anyone about it.
As multicultural as her village is shown to be, it’s hinted that her neighbours are keen to share whispers about her past. Perhaps the strongest scene between Arterton and Bond comes when Alice realises that her forced upon ward is blissfully free of judgement and more than happy to talk about Vera. It’s one of several tender moments that make up for the film’s fallings in its by-the-numbers plot.
Summerland plays it a bit too safe with the narrative, and you may find yourself having to suspend disbelief for the ending to truly stick, but it works as wholesome cinematic comfort food.
