Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
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Bobby McCulloch | ... | Roger Walker |
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Dane Hughes | ... | John Walker |
Kelly Macdonald | ... | Mrs. Walker | |
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Abbie Glozier | ... | Baby Vicky |
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Megan Glozier | ... | Baby Vicky |
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Teddie-Rose Malleson-Allen | ... | Tatty Walker (as Teddie Malleson-Allen) |
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Orla Hill | ... | Susan Walker |
Andrew Scott | ... | Lazlov | |
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Dan Renton Skinner | ... | Zukin (as Dan Skinner) |
Rafe Spall | ... | Jim Turner / Captain Flint / Polski the Parrot | |
Harry Enfield | ... | Mr. Jackson | |
Jessica Hynes | ... | Mrs. Jackson | |
Fenella Woolgar | ... | Miss Crummock | |
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Jack Ibbotson | ... | Postman |
Richard Bremmer | ... | Old Billy |
About two different groups of children who encounter one another on a small piece of land in a lake which they both live by. Both groups try to claim the land as theirs and do so role playing as two sets of enemy pirates. Whilst this happens they encounter another boat and a stranger, they must now work together to work out who he is and why he is there, but have they got themselves involved in something much bigger?
The makers of this rather odd film don't seem to have been able to make up their minds whether they were doing Swallows and Amazons or The Thirty Nine Steps, and so have gone for a rather awkward blending of the two. Clearly they don't think that Ransome's gentle story of a boating holiday in the Lake District is exciting enough for modern audiences, and they may be right. So on the train on the way to the lake District we get Sinister Spies erupting into the Walker children's compartment (mother has gone outside for a smoke) and one of them (Uncle Jim no less) ends up climbing about on the outside of the train and jumping off. Uncle Jim is in fact the world's worst spy ever. He leaves secret papers and photos lying about in the cabin of his boat in plain view, and doesn't even bother to lock the door when he goes out. He does everything to draw attention to himself except wearing a hat with 'Spy' on it. There is still room for some boating and camping on the island, and when the film stick to what is actually in the book it isn't bad, but the spy stuff weighs the film down, and gets steadily more absurd as the film goes on, culminating in a scene of such joyous absurdity i was reduced to tears of laughter. As a film of Swallows and Amazons this is badly flawed, but is worth 5 out of 10 for making me laugh so much.