Summerland

A moving journey of womanhood, love, and friendship

Drama Romance War
100 min     7.532     2020     United Kingdom

Overview

The story comes from the perspective of the writer Alice Lamb, who lives as a recluse in a small town in Kent in the mid-70s of the last century. The locals consider her a witch, and the children constantly mock her because Alice is not only a writer, but also a researcher of local folklore, and she is especially interested in the pagan past, rituals, conspiracies, and spells. The heroine settled here in the 40s.

During World War II, a single woman had to take care of a little boy. He was evacuated from London, which was bombed by the Nazis. Alice does not want to take care of the child, because she believes that his presence will distract her from literary work and prevent the creation of another novel. Yet she allows the boy to stay in her house, since she realizes that he simply has nowhere else to go. The woman hopes that she can get rid of the kid in a week.

However, Frank is staying for longer. Reluctantly, Alice takes care of him as best she can, and gradually becomes attached to the boy. It soon becomes clear that they have something in common. The boy begins to show interest in the legends and folklore that Alice is studying. He is particularly interested in Summerland, a pagan term for the afterlife, and its ancient depictions.

Frank and Alice gradually get closer. But when the news of the death of Frank's father in the war comes, Alice hesitates to tell him about it right away. He learns the sad truth from others and travels to London. Alice rushes after him. His parents' house is destroyed, but they are unable to find Frank's mom, Vera. A little later, she comes to Kent herself. It turns out that she and Alice were happy lovers once in the past.

That love was not destined to last. People condemned the unnatural attraction of girls. And since then, Alice became angry at the whole world. But her heart was melted by a little boy who needed her kind heart.

Reviews

SWITCH. wrote:
'Summerland' goes beyond its often-tired narrative beats to deliver a moving story about love, loss and belonging. Its masterstroke, however, is in how it manages to take its devastating subject matter and present it in a mostly jaunty way. Bring some tissues and an iced tea, and you've got the perfect film to escape from the summer heat with. - Ashley Teresa Read Ashley's full article... https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-summerland-sweet-and-sentimental

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