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United Kingdom · 2016
1h 36m
Director Philippa Lowthorpe
Starring Dane Hughes, Orla Hill, Teddie-Rose Malleson-Allen, Bobby McCulloch
Genre Adventure, Family
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Four children dream of escaping the tedium of a summer holiday with their mother. When finally given permission to camp on their own on an island in the middle of a vast lake, they are overjoyed. But when they get there they discover they may not be alone…
It’s heartening to see Ransome’s fiction taking on a new and more independent form, suggesting an ongoing relevance for a series of books that could easily be viewed as too dated for modern children. As the kids put it: Swallows and Amazons forever.
Time Out London by Dave Calhoun
The film’s pleasures are simple – soaring landscapes, old-school DIY adventure and some sweet performances by the child actors. It makes for a charmingly old-fashioned family adventure.
Screen International by Fionnuala Halligan
For a film industry determined to open itself to a diversity of voices, this is very much a safe, back-to-basics play for British audiences in need of some reliable comfort food.
It still feels old-fashioned rather than timeless and even on its family entertainment terms, it just doesn’t quicken the pulse-rate.
It's a gem of a film to be cherished by one and all.
There’s an undeniable charm here that, allied with the picturesque locations, results in a nostalgic throwback to a gentler age.
The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw
This Swallows and Amazons is decent enough: but probably best savoured on the small screen after tea on a rainy Sunday.
The Telegraph by Robbie Collin
This is high adventure in safe hands.
Los Angeles Times by Sheri Linden
As clunky as the movie can feel, there’s a winning toughness to its unsentimental view of childhood and its nostalgia for a pre-digital age.
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