Just perfect...

Fantastic!

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

A seaside inn is run the Fischer family, consisting of two daughters and their parents. Their lives are in a rut as they mark time, day to day.When we first meet Emilia, she is lighting firecrackers and dropping them in a barrel, inciting action by the local police. She is an irreverent 17-year-old who likes to break the rules and shake things up. When she is introduced into the Fischer household, she is like a spark that lights a fuse.The actions that follow are sometimes predictable, sometimes not. But the result of this volatile situation is what the viewer must wait for.The film's title is a reference to Coleridge's Albatross; the film reveals how it applies differently to three of the characters. It is up to the viewer to determine in what other ways the title refers to burdens the characters must bear.Albatross is a delightful film. The story is charming even as it is fraught with dangers. The acting is top notch. I would not change one performer. The background music ranges, appropriately, from whimsical to poignant. This British film is a drama filled with comedy. And it shows how life's resolutions sometimes come from tragic moments.

There are some characters in this film, there really are, and they are all so very different, and, at the same time, very alike. Emilia, at times quite brilliantly played by Jessica Brown Findlay, is the superficially confident teen who commands the scene and will not be put down easily. Beth, well played by Felicity Jones, is the girl who likes the rebel instinct of Emilia, but is waiting on a place at Oxford. The two girls, and their families, live in a fictitious English south coast town. Beth's parents own a hotel/guest house proceeds from the only book her father has successfully authored. There is much friction between Beth's parents.The plot develops around the friendship between Emilia and Beth, and then between Emilia and Beth's father, and takes us down a number of diversionary routes until we get to the revelations that make the story tie up its loose ends.Not entirely satisfactory or convincing as a film but it has some promising acting from its younger stars. Well worth a rental.

This film depicts a dysfunctional family owning a Bed and Breakfast house in a coastal British town. The father wrote a wildly successful novel many years ago, and the family lives off his early success. He has had writer's block for quite some time since. His wife resents him and maybe even hates him. Is it because he is still the star and she gave up her acting career to be his wife? What a b-word! She ought to be thankful for whatever good has come their way.So what if he hasn't done much since his novel? He is still the husband and the dad, and his money afforded a comfortable lifestyle. If there is something about him that his wife and daughter resent, let's here what it is, besides his writer's block. I need a clear explanation.We do see a glimpse of it late in the film, when he verbalizes the fact that he doesn't really respect his daughter's blandness, so maybe I am overlooking that.Yes, like other reviewers have stated, that Jessica Brown has talent, and will undoubtedly have some future acting success, or popularity. She pulled off a character with at least two dimensions, and did it well.Even if his wife wasn't such a "shrew," as they called her during the film, it is hard for a man to resist the attention of a young, adoring woman, as they aptly depict here. A little attention, gives him the self-esteem needed to rouse him out of his funk. I can relate.This is definitely not a comedy. It is a coming-of-age film first and a mid-life crisis film secondly. Good scenery, poignant interaction between grandparents and granddaughter, and just the right amount of comedy and sex.

Introducing a new mega-star: Jessica Brown Findlay. Some films are destined to remain in the shadows of the stars they create. Albatross is one of those films.The story follows Emelia, a rebellious, seductive and intelligent teenager played by Brown Findlay. Taking a job as a cleaner at a guest house, Emelia befriends the teen daughter of the house, begins an affair with the husband and gets scowled at by the wife and mother of the family who live there.Alternating between comedy and drama, the film has an awkward tone. The writer Tamzin Rafn claims it was written as a comedy but there are only occasional really funny moments. Instead, it is the drama that is more gripping with a range of characters who are trapped in miserable lives in a beautiful but dead-end location. Filmed with a great eye for scenery on the breathtaking coast of the Isle of Man by director of photography Jan Jonaeus, the narrative takes in the kids on the beaches, the family in the guest house and most notably Emelia and new friend Beth. But these disparate people all appear confined and resigned to unfulfilling and disappointing existences.Emelia's snarky way with words brightens and amuses what could be a depressing film. There are laughs to be had and there is hope for a better life for many of the characters, but the film is dealing with some serious issues like Alzheimer's, suicide and unfulfilled potential. Perhaps director Niall MacCormick saw an opportunity to inject more drama into what could have been a fluffier lightweight British comedy and went for it.The cast are all excellent, Sebastan Koch all guilty nervous ticks, Julia Ormond neglected, spiteful and probably the saddest character in the story. But Felicity Jones and Jessica Brown Findlay carry the weight of the film and are believable opposites, angel and devil, bookworm and loose cannon. Brown Findlay particularly shines with comic delivery of vicious put-downs but also scenes of more hefty emotional weight. It is the moments spent with Emelia's grand parents that help to explain the actions of this troubled young woman and will keep audiences sympathising with what could have been a one-dimensional typical teen tearaway.See it for the scenery, the performances and for the drama. Witness the making of a star! Writer Tamzin Rafn and star Jessica Brown Findlay attended a screening and answered questions from the assembled audience on Monday (03/10/11) night. Thanks to LoveFilm as always for another great opportunity to hear from the people involved.