the children act…

I went along to the Watershed again this afternoon (twice in four days!) to see Richard Eyre’s “The Children Act”, based on Ian McEwan’s novel of the same name. I’d read (and enjoyed) the book some three years ago. Emma Thompson plays the part of a widely-acclaimed judge who is married to her work (and her marriage is correspondingly suffering - much to the frustration of her husband, played by Stanley Tucci). A 17-year old boy with leukaemia (played by Fionn Whitehead) needs a life-saving blood transfusion – but it’s against his Jehovah’s Witness beliefs. As the boy is just short of adulthood, the judge is asked to determine the case...
It’s a beautifully-constructed, well-paced, intricate, painful and sensitive story which encompasses relationships, legal argument, moral responsibility and music (amongst other things!)… and I thought the music was wonderfully effective (something you can’t quite get from the book). Indeed, Thompson reveals her wide-ranging talents by also playing the piano and singing!
All the principal actors were excellent, but I thought Emma Thompson was quite brilliant.
A rather beautiful, powerful film.
Highly recommended.

PS: The cinema was virtually full this afternoon... with perhaps 90% 'elderly' women, 5% 'elderly' men and 5% 'others'!