The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
4 stars
Director: Mike Newell
Stars: Lily James, Matthew Goode, Jessica Brown Findlay
Duration: 124 mins
Class: 12
KRS Releasing Ltd

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is idiosyncratic British cinema at its best. It is an utterly charming, lovingly romantic and terribly twee (in a good way) offering, with a cast list that boasts several Downton Abbey alumni.

After the harrowing experiences of World War II, where she lost both her parents, writer Juliet Ashton (Lily James) is enjoying the fruits of her literary creations. And yet, despite her being set up for life financially, and the attention of her dashing American boyfriend Mark Reynolds (Glen Powell), Juliet is restless.

She is seeking inspiration for her next book but wants to tackle something less commercial than her books charting the adventures of fictional character Izzy Bickerstaff (which earned her a small fortune) and more serious a’ la her first book, a critical biography of Anne Bronte (which sold just 28 copies).

When she receives a letter from Dawsey Adams (Michiel Huisman), a Guernsey farmer who found her address in a book he was reading, the two strike up a correspondence.

Juliet is intrigued by Dawsey’s tales of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, a book club he and his friends set up during the dark days of Nazi occupation of the island.

Unexpectedly, the cast take to their roles like fish to water

As her curiosity deepens, Juliet impulsively decides to go visit Dawsey in person, wanting to write about the society. But, once she gets there and learns more about them, she realises there is more to the story than the origins of a simple book club.

Based on the book of the same name by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows (and kudos to the filmmakers for keeping it, even though it is quite a mouthful – as observed by one of the characters), The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society ticks all the right boxes in terms of narrative, characters and production design.

Its outcome may be fairly predictable. Yet, it undoubtedly makes for a perfectly entertaining couple of hours. It engages the heart for the most part, although the brain does kick in at some point with its sub-plot as Ashton tries to track down a missing member of the society.

Unexpectedly, the cast take to their roles like fish to water. James sparkles as Juliet, a bright, talented and sensitive young woman who cannot shake off the darkness left behind by the war and is almost embarrassed by the money she has, which explains her search for something deeper.

Her Downton Abbey co-stars Jessica Brown Findlay and Penelope Wilton fare equally well as, respectively, Elizabeth, the society’s founder – a tough, headstrong young woman who bravely and often stood up to the Nazis; and Amelia, who carries her own grief over war losses with dignity and detachment. Huisman and Powell are the two male protagonists of the piece. The former is a sensitive, quiet man of the land. The latter is an American war hero who promises the earth to Juliet.

Veteran stage and screen star Tom Courtenay provides some humour as the local postmaster, inventor of the not exactly delicious Potato Peel Pie. While Katherine Parkinson is a scream as the eccentric gin-brewing Isola, the final member of the club. Good ol’ Matthew Goode also features as Juliet’s best friend and publisher Sidney.

Inadvertently or not, the film also serves as a splendid advertisement for the island of Guernsey, while commemorating the hardships its citizens sustained during the war. 

With long, loving sweeping vistas of its magnificent coastal cliffs, verdant landscapes, beautiful beaches and its cobbled streets, quaint buildings and forts, it effortlessly captures, through the scenes of post-war rebuilding, a sense of peace and community. Like Ashton in the movie, it is a place that is extremely inviting… though maybe I wouldn’t sample the Potato Peel Pie.

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