CINEMA: Shadows in the Sun

Period dramas do seem to be an English speciality and are something that have travelled well around the globe, so this new film from director David Rocksavage set not in the distant past but the late 1960s is a wonderful portal into one small corner of the world then.

It tells the story of Hannah (Jean Simmons) who lives alone in a large house on the Norfolk coast. Retired now and getting along, the house is filled with old books and memories and she seems perfectly happy with her garden, her poetry and a much younger friend called Joe (Jamie Dornan) who visits her to help out around the house, chat to her and bring her cannabis to help ease her aches and pains.

But this tranquil existence is disturbed by Hannah’s visiting son Robert (James Wilby) with his daughter Kate (Ophelia Lovibond) and own son Sam (Toby Marlowe). Robert is shocked by his mother’s actions and her close friendship with Joe and is deeply suspicious of his motives; while Kate simply fancies him and her younger brother Sam thinks he could be a new friend. Tension mounts in the house and things occur that could either bring the family closer together or tear them apart.

Few films actually make you feel good and really involved with the characters therein but this is one of those rare ones. The story, by writer Margaret Glover and Rocksavage himself, is a simple one but culled from Rocksavage’s youth with Hannah based on an amalgamation of maternal aunts and people he knew and the role of Sam loosely based on the director. This semi-autobiographical feel to the film helps in creating a believable mood and feeling for the audience and the great performances only drive the narrative forward. It is stunningly photographed by cinematographer Milton Kam who captures the beauty of the English coastline in an almost magical light in places with the summer scenes often having an ephemeral quality to them. The music composed by Richard Chester also complements the film, and apart from the occasional 60s tune, the soundtrack remains timeless much like its rural remote setting.

The three central performances are all excellent with Simmons showing that despite her advanced age she can more than carry a film, imbuing Hannah with quiet dignity and strength. Dornan as Joe does well in his role as the mystery man who captures not only Hannah’s affections but those of Kate too and it’s good that he underplays his part in places as it could’ve easily become a gypsy cliché!

Wilby proves again to be a dependable English actor and suits his role as the father perfectly while the only slight let down is the rather simple acting of Marlowe as the young son and the giggly girl act of Lovibond. But this is a minor quibble in a film that is at times lonely, poignant and is after all a simple treaty on life and death and the bonds and understanding of a family.

It’s lovely stuff and the perfect way to while away a summer afternoon.

Mark Cappuccio