Lantern Hill (TV 1989)

In 1935 Toronto, Jane Stuart's mother has taken ill, and the two of them have temporarily moved in with her rich, snobbish grandmother, where Jane is verbally abused and her mother bullied.... See full summary »

Director:

Kevin Sullivan

Writers:

Fiona McHugh, Lucy Maud Montgomery (novel),

Stars:

Mairon Bennett, Sam Waterston, Patricia Phillips

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mairon Bennett	...	Jane Stuart
Sam Waterston	...	Andrew Stuart
Patricia Phillips	...	Robin Stuart
Zoe Caldwell	...	Mrs.Kennedy
Sarah Polley	...	Jody Turner
Colleen Dewhurst	...	Hepzibah
Vivian Reis	...	Aunt Irene
Joyce Campion	...	Violet Titus
Florence Paterson	...	Justina Titus
Sharry Flett	...	Lillian Morrow
Glori Gage	...	Evelyn Morrow
Dora Dainton	...	Aggie
Robert Benson	...	William Kennedy
London Juno	...	Phyllis Kennedy (as Juno Mills Cockell)
Jillian Cook	...	Gertrude Kennedy

Storyline

In 1935 Toronto, Jane Stuart's mother has taken ill, and the two of them have temporarily moved in with her rich, snobbish grandmother, where Jane is verbally abused and her mother bullied. Jane is forced into a private academy, in which the other girls tell her that her father, whom Jane believes to be dead, is actually alive. Soon after, Andrew Stuart sends word that he would like to meet his long-lost daughter, so Jane is sent by train to Bright River to stay with him, where she encounters an old mystery that she must help her father overcome, new friends, and the chance to bring her father and mother back together again.

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Plot Keywords:

girl | train | long lost daughter | grandmother | canada | 

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Genres:

Drama | Family

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Details

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 January 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jane of Lantern Hill

Filming Locations:

Casa Loma, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sullivan Entertainment, Lantern Hill Motion Pictures, Disney Channel

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

Awesome film!

I first watched this movie when I was late-elementary-school age (about ten-ish, if I remember properly). I was mesmerized, ironically, by the scenes that did not take place in the book (Colleen Dewhurst's character, and the nightmares). I'll admit I haven't read the book, so if I had, I might be disappointed by the film, as some viewers have obviously been; but as it stands, I found the movie version uplifting as spellbinding. The young Sarah Polley demonstrates the abilities that would later lift her to iconic status in her native Canada, while Mairon Bennett, though decidedly less over-the-top, turns in a respectable performance as well. Bear in mind that I was only about ten when I first watched this film. Now consider this: I am now twenty-one years old. The nightmare scenes have stuck with me all through the past decade, to the point where for about two years, I would quiz people to find if they knew in which movie these scenes had been found. I even posted on the IMDb boards. In either September or October of '05, someone read one of my posts and pointed me in the direction of this film. I bought a DVD from eBay and watched it last night for the first time in at least ten years. Although I am an adult now, it held up extremely well. How I saw it in the first place, I'll never know: it was a Canadian made-for-TV film, and I'm from Ohio and, at that time, my family had only what our antenna gave us (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, PBS, TBN, and UPN). At any rate, I consider this an amazing film, and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for an under-appreciated cinematic experience.