Directed by: Simon Bird
Produced by: Matthew James Wilkinson
Starring: Monica Dolan, Earl Cave, Elliot Speller-Gilliot, Tamsin Greig, Rob Brydon, Tim Key & Alice Lowe.
Days of the Bagnold Summer is a feel-good movie that is gripping from the start, with tears of laughter and feelings of sadness too.
A first film as a directorial debut from Simon Bird (who may be known as Adam Goodman from Friday Night Dinner, and also Will McKenzie from The Inbetweeners), he directs Days of the Bagnold Summer. For a debut directing role, this is an excellent film to watch.
This film focuses on the story between a teenager who loves heavy-metal music and a mother who, like any loving mother, just wants the best for her son Daniel (Earl Cave) and does her best to help him as best she can, regardless of the apparent distance which continues to grow between both of them.
After Daniel is told his father’s wedding has been postponed, meaning he will no longer be spending his summer in Florida, it’s down to Sue (Monica Dolan) to keep Daniel entertained and happy for six weeks. She tells him to work on his CV and to hand them out the next day to try and motivate him and get him out of the house. He does just that but shows as much enthusiasm as he can, which to a 15-year-old is very little.
Upon handing a CV into a store he visits, Daniel finds an advert requesting a singer for a ban, but when he acts to call the number he backs down at the last minute, where the same thing happens when he visits the address on Hornchurch Drive resulting in Daniel going as far as listening to the music being rehearsed through the door.
Later in the film, Daniel returns to the house on Hornchurch Drive with his friend Ky (Elliott Speller-Gilliat). Still, Daniel runs away when Ky opens the garage door, resulting in him refusing to speak to Ky, leaving Sue confused about what has happened between the two friends and struggling to know how to respond to Ky’s mum (Tamsin Greig), who is an energy healer.
Days of the Bagnold Summer is essentially a coming-of-age film, focusing on the relationship between Daniel and Sue and the bond they share with their Labrador dog, Riley.
This film creates a great summer feel and a distinctly British atmosphere, which is particularly evident in the ending. The gentle conclusion effectively showcases the developing relationship between mother and son, providing the audience with a satisfying ending to the movie.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching this and would recommend it to others. I found this to be a great delight to watch from start to finish, a superb summer feel-good film of 2020, and very funny.
I give this film a 5 star rating!
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