Swallows and Amazons – Review
From Flickreel
Though an experienced, accomplished director on the smaller screen, Philippa Lowthorpe tries her hand – for the very first time – in the world of cinema, by bringing Arthur Ransome’s timeless literary classic Swallows and Amazons to the big screen. In so doing she introduces a tale that has tapped into the hearts and imaginations of children and adults alike across the last century to a new generation. That said, here’s a film caught between demographics, perhaps likely to be more popular amongst the parents in the crowd, than the kids they’ve taken along with them.
We delve into the life of the Walkers, as a mother of five (Kelly Macdonald) takes her offspring away for a much needed holiday in the Lake District. With a lack of patriarchal presence, given her husband is away, the eldest son John (Dane Hughes) takes on the role, though he’s hardly much help when part of the chorus of pleas, to allow the children to set off to a remote island and camp for a few days – without any adults. Reluctantly agreeing, Mrs. Walker waves John, Susan (Orla Hill), Tatty (Teddie-Rose Malleson-Allen) and Roger (Bobby McCulloch) off, as the self-titled Swallows row into the distance…