It’s brilliantly acted but poorly filmed. The overuse of shadows and light by director Joe Wright in pretty much every scene becomes wearing, and quickly feels clichéd, as does the naff music. In fact it’s quite “flat” all round.
Kristin Scott Thomas and Lily James are strong in supporting roles as Churchill's wife and secretary respectively. Oldman is superb and the film is worth seeing (once) if only for him.
The “Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” is an informal book club set up by a small group of people on Guernsey during the Nazi occupation. A London-based writer, Juliet (Lily James) begins a correspondence with one of them that leads to her visiting the island. As she slowly becomes drawn into their way of life, she also learns about their secrets.
It’s a hugely entertaining drama. Some of the reviews, such as Peter Bradshaw’s for The Guardian, dismissed it as twee fluff, but there’s more grit there than you might imagine. There’s certainly human pain and suffering. (Then again, Bradshaw gave five stars to the truly awful Inside Llewyn Davis, so what does he know?)
The performances are superb. Lily James is as charming and lovable as ever. Penelope Wilton and Tom Courtney convey depth as two of the older members of the group. Katherine Parkinson exudes charm as the slightly scatty Isola Pribby, and Michiel Huisman has rugged appeal as the kindly pig farmer Dawsey Adams.
A lot of little sub-plots add further depth and texture, although a fair amount has been cut from the novel by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows to make it work on screen – leading to a couple of loose ends.
I was reminded of Local Hero at times – visitor from afar falls in love with a small coastal village and its way of life. And while it doesn’t have the laughs of that film, it’s similarly heartwarming.
Jack Malik (Himesh Patel) is a struggling singer who – owing to a mysterious electrical event it’s best not to ask too many questions about – suddenly finds himself in a world in which no one has heard of The Beatles. In fact, it appears that they never existed. He begins performing their songs, is recognised as a genius, and swiftly finds himself on the path to fame and fortune. But there are problems. He’s clearly not cut out for the life of a rock star – especially one whose success is built on a lie. And he also happens to be in love with his friend and former manager Ellie (Lily James).
It’s a sweet and touching story. The songs are wonderful, too, as you’d expect. The joy of the film is that through people’s stunned reactions it feels as if you get to hear The Beatles’ songs for the first time.
Patel and James are extremely endearing. You are rooting for them from the very beginning, able to identify with the pair in every scene.
Ed Sheeran appears as himself and is a feasible enough character in his own right rather than merely a walk-on famous-person role. Kate McKinnon is also fairly strong as Jack's ruthless new manager, who makes no secret of her desire to make a fortune out of the singer.
Fun and rewarding.
