 | |
List Price: $24.96 | | Label: Sony Pictures
Salesrank: 23745
Released: December 23, 2003 |
| Our Price: $14.81 |
| Used Price: $7.95 |
|
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
|
Editorial Review:
When her family moves into a glamorous castle in the English countryside, Cassandra (Romola Garai) imagines great things will happen. But the decaying castle loses its appeal as her novelist father (Bill Nighy, Love Actually) develops writer's block and her mother dies of cancer. From this sad beginning, I Capture the Castle turns into an utterly engaging coming-of-age story as 17-year-old Cassandra and her older sister Rose (Rose Byrne) struggle to win the attentions of their new American landlord (Henry Thomas, E.T. The Extraterrestrial)--but when everything goes the way Cassandra hopes, her hopes fall apart. Garai's wonderful performance carries the audience through bittersweet discoveries about life and adulthood with hope and yearning. The entire cast---also featuring Tara Fitzgerald (Brassed Off) and Marc Blucas--is superb. I Capture the Castle is an absolutely lovely movie, delightful and surprisingly wise. --Bret Fetzer
I Capture the Castle Reviews:
A gorgeously photographed British film about the agonies of love and the pain of growing up. 
2009-08-19 - This film is splendid: it is a meditation on life, love, and the the intense allure as well as the perils of a life devoted to art. Set in the gorgeous English countryside during the 1930s, the film tells its delicate story with a quiet grace. To summarize the plot briefly: an English family moves to a massive, decaying but impressive castle in the countryside with the hope of encouraging the writer-father (the brilliant Bill Nighy) to finish a second novel. The family is unusual, decidedly Bohemian, and believes in an ideal of Art but suffers bitterly for it, wallowing in poverty. The eldest daughter, played by the beautiful Rose Byrne, desperately longs for a life of luxury and wealth, which is represented by the two attractive American brothers who come to claim the castle as part of their heritage. Rose Byrne as Rose and her younger sister Cassie (played by the excellent, exceptionally talented Romola Garai) become entangled in a difficult, life-changing relationship with the American brothers as the family's fortune ebbs and flows. The film also features gorgeous cinematography as it is filled with breathtaking shots of the countryside (it was filmed on the Isle of Man) and the rambling castle.
I have read the wonderful novel by Dodie Smith, an accomplished English playwright and novelist (who also happened to be the author of The Hundred and One Dalmations, among other works) and I have seen the film several times. The film does not disappoint; in fact, I consider it a lovely and articulate adaptation of the novel. The acting is brilliantly fine: the best performance by far is Bill Nighy's fabulous turn as the crippled (by writer's block) writer who was once hailed as the next great British novelist, a po-mo version of James Joyce. He has been damaged by life and inhibited by the highest of expectations that were unfairly imposed upon him after his debut made a dramatic splash. The story is told through the point of view of Cassie (Garai), who writes compulsively to sort out her emotions and who matures as the film progresses, discovering secrets about herself, her family, and the American brothers that change the lives of everyone involved.
Beguiling period piece and a poignant coming-of-age drama 
2009-05-29 - I have yet to read the novel upon which this movie is based, so I can only comment on the movie itself. I enjoyed it and thought that both the female leads, Romola Garai and Rose Byrne delivered commendable and credible performances.
The story itself is a coming-of-age story set in 1930s England - the movie begins via flashback as a once successful writer [Bill Nighy] moves his family [2 young daughters and a wife] from London to the countryside, taking up residence in an old castle which they lease from the owner. A decade passes and the writer is still struggling to overcome his writer's block - the movie progresses with narration by his younger daughter Cassandra [Romola Garai who also shone in "Daniel Deronda"], a 17-year-old with a talent for writing. It is Cassandra who makes candid observations about her family, now almost destitute with no income to live on. The family has lost the mother [died], and her place is taken by bohemian stepmother Topaz [Tara Fitzgerald,], an artist and free spirit who likes dancing nude in the rain. Rose [Rose Byrne] is the older sister, beautiful yet troubled, and there is also a much younger sibling, a boy who seems unperturbed by the deprived circumstances the family lives in.
Things change when a pair of brothers come to visit the estate - the older Simon [Henry Thomas] is the heir to the estate and Rose, much aware of the opportunity at hand is determined to become his bride. The younger brother Neil [Marc Blucas, most famous as Riley in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" series] thinks both sisters are nothing better than gold diggers. Their mother is portrayed by Sinead Cusack, who is marvellous in her brief role, spouting wry observations in each scene she appears in.
The rest of the drama follows the girls as they get more deeply embroiled in matters of the heart with some predictable outcomes. Both Romola Garai and Rose Byrne share credible chemistry as a pair of siblings who are as different as night and day, yet very much connected to each other. Their performances carry the movie for the most part - though the romantic element is also a major part of the movie, it is the struggles of the sisters that drew me in the most. Though the movie starts off on a light footing, it gets darker as the movie progresses, exploring the characters in depth and adding more substance to an otherwise tepid plot.Various themes get explored, some more convincingly than others, but it kept my interest.
The cinematography perfectly captures the lush beauty of the English countryside and on the whole, I'd recommend this to fans of British period dramas.
I Capture the Castle
2009-03-12 - Romola Garai is very cute and fresh. B.B.C drama is very good.
Boring compared to the book 
2009-02-27 - I dont have to go into what the movie is about. There are enough comments that explain the plot, etc. It was not faithful to the book that much. I HATED THE CHOICE OF ACTORS. The dad was a good actor, but as for the main charactor Cassandra? Hated her. I did not picture the actor as her. It was horrible and boring to watch IF YOU HAVE READ THE BOOK. I like the feel of the movie. It was smooth and well directed, but whoever chose the actors sucked. That is my main issue.
I Capture the Castle
2008-03-31 - I love Romola Garai. Everything movie she is in is good. She seems to pick perfect scripts with great story lines. This movie really "captures" you and lets you get involved with each person in the film. Great acting!
