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Storyline
A semiautobiographical project by John Boorman about a nine year old boy called Bill as he grows up in London during the blitz of World War 2. For a young boy, this time in history was more of an adventure, a total upheaval of order, restrictions and discipline. The liberating effect of the war on the women left behind. And the joy when Hitler blows up your school. Written by
Colin Tinto <cst@imdb.com>
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The epic story of a world at war. And a boy at play.
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Did You Know?
Trivia
A 650 feet long suburban street set with seventeen semi-detached houses was constructed for this movie. Apparently, at the time at least, it was the largest set built in the UK for twenty-five years.
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Goofs
The string quartet of Grace, Faith, Hope and Charity are clearly not actually playing the piece of classical music near the end of the film. Also the Mozart serenade in G K.525 (Eine kleine Nachtmusik) that they are playing is scored for five instruments, not four.
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Quotes
[
last lines]
Bill Rowen:
In all my life nothing ever quite matched the perfect joy of that moment. My school lay in ruins, the river beckoned with the promise of stolen days.
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Connections
Followed by
Queen and Country (2014)
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Soundtracks
"We'll Meet Again"
Written by
Ross Parker and
Hugh Charles See more »
John Boorman seems to be telling us this story about his own experience about the first days of the Blitz, something that might well be the case because he must have been Bill's age when WWII broke. Mr. Boorman, working with his own material creates an accurate account of what Londoners lived through that time, in vivid detail.
We are introduced to the Rohan family, at the beginning of the story. They seem to be a typical English family of the time. When the conflict starts, Clive enlists and goes away, leaving Grace, his wife and the children, Dawn, Bill and Sue to fend for themselves. The Rohan's neighborhood suffers a lot of damage during the days of the Blitz, as homes are destroyed, even the Rohan's is badly damaged. With dignity and valor the Rohans survive the worst, although the experience seems to have been forever etched in their minds, especially young Bill, who is at the center of all that goes on.
Mr. Boorman gets excellent performances all around. Notable is young Sebastian Rice-Edwards as Bill. This young actor seems to be a natural, as well as the other young children in the picture. Sarah Miles and David Hayman, as the parents, are also quite good. Sammi Davis, the teen aged Dawn discovers love and makes us care about her character. Ian Bannen, Derrick O'Connor and Susan Woolridge are seen in minor roles.
Mr. Boorman creates a nostalgic look about the horrible experience families went through during those days.