Summerland (2020 film)


Summerland is a 2020 British drama film written and directed by Jessica Swale. It stars Gemma Arterton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Lucas Bond, Dixie Egerickx, Siân Phillips, Penelope Wilton and Tom Courtenay.
The film stars Arterton as a reclusive writer who is forced to bond with a young boy who has been entrusted to her care after the London Blitz.
It was released in the United Kingdom on 31 July 2020 by Lionsgate.

Plot

In the mid 1970s Alice Lamb, a reclusive writer, lives by the seaside in a small town in Kent where she is bullied by local children and viewed as a witch. She has lived in the village since the 1940s.
During WWII, as part of the war effort, she is entrusted with the care of a young boy, Frank, who has come from London where it is unsafe. Though Alice does not want to care for him as she fears it will interfere with her work, she reluctantly lets him stay believing that he has nowhere else to go and she will be able to be rid of him a week.
Reluctantly bonding with Frank, she begins to remember her previous connection with Vera, a young writer who she met and fell in love with during her university days.

Cast

It was announced in April 2017 that Gemma Arterton has been cast in the playwright Jessica Swale's directorial debut, with Swale also writing the screenplay.
In May 2018, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Penelope Wilton and Tom Courtenay were added to the cast. Filming was underway by September, production occurring throughout East Sussex in the towns of Seaford, Brighton and Kent. Filming had concluded by November.

Release and reception

It was released in the United Kingdom on 31 July 2020., 82% of the 49 reviews compiled on Rotten Tomatoes are positive, with an average rating of 6.56/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "In Summerland, the living is a little too easy to raise dramatic stakes -- but Gemma Arterton's performance adds some much-needed extra heat." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 55 out of 100, based on 18 "mixed or average" reviews.