EssenceStory Well Deserved Praise

Greenes Please don't spend money on this.

Pluskylang Great Film overall

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

robert-temple-1 This is a very fine British family film. Because it is British rather than American, it is not stuffed full of artificial and mawkish sentimentality, but is more effective for being 'straight up'. The central role is played by an excellent child actor named Matthew Beard (born 1989), who since then has appeared in many films and TV series, most recently playing Guy Bellingfield in the rather notorious recent film THE RIOT CLUB (2014), which parodies the Bullingdon Club at Oxford. The young girl who plays opposite Beard is played by Charlotte Wakefield (born 1990), who is also excellent. Since then she has appeared in four TV series. Angeline Ball does an excellent job of playing the highly nervy and objectionable mother of Beard and does some really good hysterical scenes. (Let's hope she does not take her work home with her.) Sturdy Tom Wilkinson is there, like an English oak, supporting the whole effort with his unflappable demeanour as a farmer who is the adoptive father of the girl. Anna Massey plays 'Rosie' and gives a marvellous professional polish to the proceedings, as she did to everything. Of all the actresses I have known, she was certainly one of the nicest and most intelligent. She was married to a delightful, gentle scientist named Uri Andres (who once astounded me by handing me a chunk of kimberlite containing diamonds), having earlier somehow survived marriage to Jeremy Brett, which was evidently not easy. (She also had sadly unsatisfactory relationships with her father and her brother, the actors Raymond Massey and Daniel Massey, so you could say she had a rough time with the male gender for much of her life.) She was a truly fascinating woman. The well-known character actress Dora Bryan has a bit part in this film, and it is a shame we see so little of her. Willard Carroll has done a very good job of directing this film. The story is a 'slip through time' one, where the little boy of today goes back to the days of World War Two and then returns much wiser. It is quite an adventure, and children will love it. The film was shot entirely on location in South Yorkshire, with much beautiful scenery. The film is entirely wholesome, and the coarsest thing in it is milking a cow.

apophus6 A thoughtful and sensitive film. Several intriguing plot turns and all the possibilities of time-paradox without the usual (which I generally don't mind either)"earth shattering" consequences. Nice blending of real life dramas effecting so many young people today and a compelling story line that succeeds in convincing the viewer that lives can be altered in a positive way by the virtues of courage and compassion. Overall, a great story for young and old alike, a believable cast and the beautiful backdrop of the English countryside. It is a shame that this one did not get widespread distribution, it could have been one of those sleepers that reaches nearly cult status and even awards. See it soon.

gradyharp In AN ANGEL FOR MAY director Harley Cokeliss has assembled a fine cast and production team to bring this 'children's classic' novel by Melvin Burgess to the screen (screenplay by Peter Milligan), and in doing so he has quite successfully transferred a very tender little tale into a full blown motion picture that still maintains the gentle message of Burgess' book.Tom (Tam in the book - played by Matthew Beard) is a disillusioned young lad, living in a broken home in Yorkshire England, and in need of finding meaning to his brittle life. He happens upon a relic of a structure where he encounters a dog and a 'bag lady', and also the entry port to a trip to the past!Time traveling to WW II he lands in London during the blitz attacks, befriends a young girl named May (Charlotte Wakefield) and then time travels back to the present where he encounters disbelief in his adventure. He feels he must return to the past to save May from an impending doom and in his attempts in doing so he comes to learn much about life, death, devotion, promises, and the effects of the passage of time.The actors are exceptional, both Beard and Wakefield as children but also Tom Wilkinson and Anna Massey in roles as adults whose participation in Tom's plight are deeply touching. The cinematography is breathtakingly beautiful and the pacing of the direction is excellent. Stories such as this require a certain amount of fantasy participation in order to be effective, and this is where Cokeliss shines. He does not allow the sentiment to become cloying and he maintains enough reality checks between the adults and the children to make us believe in angels a bit. It is a sweet film, very well made, and worth the viewer's time with its important message. Grady Harp

jotix100 "An Angel for May" came unexpectedly the other day on cable. We hadn't heard about this film, at all, as we don't remember it having played locally. This English film, directed with style by Harley Cokeliss, proved to be a surprise and we recommend it for young audiences and their parents as it will provide quality entertainment with a good story to boot!The film opens in England after an air raid during WWII, in which a young girl is calling for help, although we don't see her. Right after that, we are in the present time following Tom, a young boy who lives with his mother in a rural community after the parents separated. Tom is a boy in turmoil by what's going on. As a result, Tom goes on his bicycle all to the nearby countryside where he had spotted a dog that seems to be lost.His search brings him to an old ruined structure where he finds the dog. Little does he know that he is going to embark in an adventure he didn't bargain for. In fact, this ruined placed used to be a farm that holds a mystery and involves Tom and a childhood friend. Not wanting to give out anything else, let's say that Tom is completely surprised by what he discovers among the ruins.The closing sequence of the film was handled with great care by Mr. Cokeliss, as it involves Tom going to the old church trying to find out about the whereabout of someone dear to him. Tom's mind is put at ease when the kind Rosie comes to him as he is contemplating the names in a tomb in the church's cemetery. The scene is lovely and it finally puts Tom's mind at ease because he has deciphered the mystery of what he experienced.The two young actors, Matthew Beard and Charlotte Wakefield are wonderful in their roles. They are intelligent children and a delight to see. Any film that has Tom Wilkinson and Anna Massey in it can't be bad. Mr. Wilkinson does a great job in his short appearance. Anna Massey is lovely in that tender scene at the end of the film. Geraldine James, Julie Cox and Angeline Ball are seen in supporting roles.Congratulations to Harley Cokeliss for bringing this beautiful tale to the screen and we recommend it to anyone who is young at heart.