I Capture the Castle

Sweet and charming, if not all conquering. The greatest strength here is the performances, particularly from lead Romola Garai, who is thoroughly appealing in her role as narrator and lead character in a coming of age story that runs the full gamut of firsts. Rose Byrne and Henry Thomas are also good in supporting roles, the former as the pretty and vivacious older sister who is the object of everyone’s passion—well, almost everyone—while the latter provides a strong, understated performance that demonstrates that the talent he displayed in early roles was no fluke. Just as important to the appeal of the film is the English (or rather, Welsh) country setting, including an actual castle, which lends everything an air that is rustic, archaic and mildly magical all at the same time. The only quibble here is that the tale sinks into a bit too much heaviness towards the end; that weight dulls the sense of delight that permeates the rest of the story, though I suppose heartbreak is life’s invariable, inevitable result. Overall, the fun and charm are enough to achieve victory. To the winsome go the spoils.