Review of I Capture the Castle (2003) by John C — 17 Feb 2004

This is a movie that I really had a hard time deciding whether I liked or not. The film, based on a novel by Dodie Smith, tells the story of an eccentric English family struggling to get by in a middle-evil castle in 1920s England. The father was once a prominent author who, after spending some time in jail for attacking the mother, finds himself unable to write again and thus unable to support the family. The two girls dream of a better life until one day the sons of the owner of the castle drop by and a love story ensues.

I will not get into the rest of the plot for its heavy on the melodrama. The movie is well acted, despite a script that could have been better. My guess is that pre- and early-teenage girls will like this movie very much. Their male counterparts probably would not. I thought that movie was OK, not something that I would go out of my way to see again.

One note, why this movie is rated R is beyond me. With the exception of some very, very brief nudity, there is almost nothing objectionable in this movie. No steamy sex, foul language or violence.