Swallows and Amazons is a very pleasant film, it is nowhere near perfect, but it is very enjoyable. The film does look absolutely beautiful, with lovely views of the Lake District. What the film does lack is a narrative, it is a lovely story, based on Arthur Ransome's superior book, but personally I would have liked more narrative entwined into the story. Consequently, because the film wasn't to be that, despite some undeniably charming scenes, the film is a little shallow. What also let the film down was some of the casting. I had no problem with Virginia McKenna as the mother, she was lovely, and most of the children were very well done, especially Titty and Susan(a very young Susanna Hamilton). The two exceptions to this rule is Roger and Nancy, Roger being too gormless for my liking, and Nancy perhaps too old. Ronald Fraser as Uncle Jim was another problem. I liked his scene at the end with the children, when he plays the accordion, but on the whole he did overact, so I found it difficult to relate to his character. On a positive note, there are some really charming scenes with the children, like any scene on the water. Also the music score was lovely, and was careful not to overshadow the action. I had no problem with the script either, and on the whole the story made the film as charming as it actually is, despite its flaws, but there could have been more narrative. Overall, I really liked it, certainly not the best family film, but one worth looking out for. 7/10 Bethany Cox.

Set in 1929, the four Walker children go with their mother for a holiday in the Lake District of England.

They sail a dinghy called named Swallow and form a rivalry with the Blackett girls who have a dinghy named Amazon.

The Walker children camp on a small island in the lake where they engage in a pirate adventure with the Blacketts.

The Blacketts' Uncle Jim accuses the Walker's of stealing his chest although one of them noticed some strange men hanging about.

This is a slight children's tale which now looks listless, nothing much exciting happens. Ronald Fraser's Uncle Jim is just all wrong in his characterisation. It looks like Arthur Ransome's book was gutted in the adaptation.

SWALLOWS AND AMAZONS is the best-remembered film adaptation of the classic Arthur Ransome novel. The plot is simplicity in itself: in 1929, a group of siblings and their mother go on holiday to the Lake District, where they are given the freedom to spend their days boating around the lakes and setting up a camp on a wooded island. While there, they meet up with some rival adventurers and a rich man who lives on a house boat at the edge of the lake.

I've never read the book, so I can't comment on how close an adaptation this is, but as a film it's serviceable enough. It ably captures the spirit of a bygone era, where children were left to their own devices in the great outdoors and all the better for it. It's hard to dislike a movie where much of the time is spent on minor intrigue and plotting the intricacies of getting one over on rivals.

There's a small adult sub-plot in the film, involving the belligerent house boat owner (played by the affable Ronald Fraser),and this sub-plot particularly reminded me of the writings of Enid Blyton. SWALLOWS AND AMAZONS might be slimly-plotted and rather simplistic in tone, but for its depiction of a forgotten world it's hard to beat.