Film review: On Chesil Beach (4 out of 5)

Famed author Ian McEwan has certainly managed to create a close relationship with the world of TV and film.
On Chesil BeachOn Chesil Beach
On Chesil Beach

Countless writers have seen their work turned into movies but very few have taken such a successful active role as McEwan.

He has written or co-written various screenplays and also produced three films involving his books.

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Back in 2007 Atonement came on to my radar, an excellent movie with an impressive performance by a young Saoirse Ronan that brought her to many people’s attention.

And here she is, years later, in another McEwan novel adaptation in the co-starring role.

This is basically a two-hander, set in the early 1960s, with Ronan alongside Billy Howle, who may not be as well known but produces a great performance and is someone to watch out for.

The two play Florence Ponting, a classically trained musician with a rich and snobbish family, and Edward Mayhew, a blues music fan whose mother has a serious illness.

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Despite their different backgrounds, they fall in love and get married, but as they start their honeymoon in a hotel by Chesil Beach in Dorset it becomes all too clear that there is a major hurdle to overcome that will test their love.

The first two-thirds of the film is full of flashbacks to how they met, with an impressive array of British actors filling the family roles (Samuel West, Emily Watson, Anne-Marie Duff and Adrian Scarborough).

My only concern was the occasional attempt at humour which seemed to be added a bit clumsily in an attempt to lighten the mood.

The audience I was in was mostly women but this is certainly not a film aimed at a female audience.

The acting on its own demands a wider appeal.

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If you liked Atonement all those years ago then the chances are you’ll enjoy this film as the tone and feel is similar.

Film details: On Chesil Beach (15) 110mins

Director: Dominic Cooke

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Emily Watson, Samuel West

Screening courtesy of Horsham Capitol

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