When the Whales Came

Trailer—When the Whales Came

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source: When the Whales Came

I very much enjoyed this film and wondered why I had not seen it before. The acting was terrific and the two children perfect. The scenery was perfect too. Paul Scofield was absolutely superb. "Suspend belief" said the bard, and that was the effect here. The only small squibble I have is the inclusion of an aerial fly around of the boy at the end. That did not fit in any way.

I found this film a decent watch. The pace is a little slow in parts and towards the end, it has a darker tone to it and becomes somewhat thought provoking, due to what comes to light. It made me think about the consequences of things that people end up involved in - there's definitely a strong element of social morality and conscience. There's an allegorical side to it, with the film set on a seemingly somewhat idyllic island, when there are some less than lovely things going on. Nothing awful - just a bit grim and we learn about peoples recollections of history and the like. I liked that it had, ultimately, a sense of optimism - something we could do with more of, frankly. From a film perspective, I enjoyed seeing Helen Mirren in a film from the late 80s (which this is). I hadn't seen her in many roles from over 2 decades ago - thats why I decided to watch this film. The music isn't too 'in your face' I'd say, its perhaps a little over sentimentalised maybe, but only just - it certainly didn't put me off the film to any large extent. It also pushes home the optimistic elements of the story, which was nice. Overall I'd say its worth a watch.

When the Whales Came is a low key adaptation of Michael Morpurgo's book. It is set in the Scilly islands in 1914, just at the outbreak of World War One. Gracie and Daniel are two children living in this impoverished island fishing community. The local school is stern, Daniel's father is sterner. Gracie faces tragedy as her father went off to fight in the war and was reported to be killed. Both children befriend Birdman (Paul Scofield.) This deaf old man lives an isolated life, doing wood carvings. When Birdman finds a beached whale, he wants to push it back out to the sea. The islanders wants the whale for the money it will bring them. The Birdman tells a story of what happened when the last time the whales were beached up in Samson. He was a little boy then and greed bought tragedy with it. With eerie, haunting music, this is charming simple tale with an ecological subtext. It is a bit slow to get going. It portrays life in this gloomy harsh small island environment. Even in 1914, Gracie's father is fearful what life is going to be like for his child when she grows up.

It's the Isles Of Scilly! Excellent cinematography, beautiful scenery, drags on a bit but worth a watch to pass the time.

WHEN THE WHALES CAME is a lesser-known but engrossing adaptation of a Michael Morpurgo novel, made with more heart and realism than a dozen WAR HORSEs. It's shot on location in the Scilly Isles and features a WW1 plot involving islanders attempting to survive in the usual harsh conditions. As usual for Morpurgo, when the war arrives lives are affected forever, while a couple of islander kids befriend an old recluse and discover his secret. A fine cast do justice to the material here, with grizzled Paul Scofield as the cranky old-timer, Helen Mirren, Barbara Ewing and David Threlfall as the impoverished parents, and even the likes of Jeremy Kemp and David Suchet in more minor roles. The story is slow but atmospheric, keeping you guessing throughout, and there are many magical moments.

Even a good cast can't save this film from being slow and dull.Virtually nothing happens in the first hour till the husband enlists,with predictable consequences.Then the big excitement,the whale gets stranded on the beach.However it all ends happily.Why did they bother?

This one sneaked up on me a Thursday afternoon and the Fox Movie Channel tossed it in. God bless 'em for that. Hope they repeat it soon. (They have that tendency). This film about life on a remote, barren English island during WWI (it is by no means a war flick) is, in words of one, MAGNIFICENT. The direction, superb photography, excellent music (unobtrusive, unlike too many of today's noisy movies) and the acting all combined to choke you up, or bring tears to your eyes, depending on your level of emotion. This well told, beautiful tale has the big plus of some fine, fine performers, particularly the youngsters Helen Pearce and Max Rennie. For whatever ungodly reason neither of these two achieved any kind of fame. Young Max only made one other movie, "Hard Road," while Helen did nothing else. Both youngsters received the Young Artists Award, an honorary but justified recognition. Paul Scofield and Helen Mirren the entire cast were heavily responsible for the success of this G-rated movie. The accents were not too heavy so, no problem in understanding. It was a tad slow at first, but that is nit-picking. Overall, it can be rated as one of the best movies of its kind hell, any kind ever made.