From Time to Time (2010)

In 1944, the young teenager Tolly (Alex Etel) travels to the family real estate Green Knowe in the countryside of England to stay with his estranged grandmother Mrs. Oldknow (Maggie Smith). His mother went to London to search for information about his beloved father, who is missing in action in World War II. Mrs. Oldknow is trying to sell Green Knowe since she has financial difficulties and does not have any valuable asset to sell. During the night, Tolly meets two ghosts in his room and he goes to his grandmother to ask whether she believes in ghosts. Mrs. Oldknow explains that the manor has many ghosts from their family. Soon Tolly learns that he can travel to the beginning of the Nineteenth Century and he discloses secrets from the past of his family while waiting for his mother and the news about his father."From Time to Time" is a flawed but highly entertaining film with a naive story of ghosts and time travel. The cinematography is very beautiful and the cast has great names, such as Maggie Smith, Pauline Collins and Carice van Houten among others. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): Not Available (on DVD or Blu Ray)

I hadn't heard a thing about this movie when it came out, but seeing Maggie Smith and Dominic West and Hugh Bonneville in the cast, I had to give it a try. I loved time travel books a lot when I was young and I wish I'd known about the book series this comes from, because it would've been perfect for me. I loved the look and the tone of the movie, with just enough adventure and mysteries to solve to keep me riveted. Yes, the tone is a bit somber at times, and I wasn't crazy about Alex Etel's performance as Tolly (he's fairly wooden), but it really moves well and there are enough other characters to focus on, so overall, I quite enjoyed it. Maggie Smith isn't as fun as she is on Downton Abbey, but few things are that amusing, after all. Dominic West, Pauline Collins, Hugh Bonneville, Timothy Spall and Harriet Walter are wonderful in smaller roles, while Eliza Bennett and Kwayedza Kureya, both new to me, are charming as the children in the Regency era. I also have to say that I loved the fashion in the past, with both Carice van Houten and Douglas Booth looking especially dishy in those clothes. I would say this is definitely a children's movie, but also good for adults who are children at heart (like me).

This film is about a young boy who goes to stay with his grandmother's stately home during the Second World War. He finds the house's secret ability to transport him back in time."From Time to Time" successfully weaves together past and present events in a logical manner. Many time travel stories have major plot loopholes, but "From Time to Time" has a logical plot that even when people from present interacts with people in the past and alter events from the past. I particularly like the fact that bits of stories weave together, such as the "miracle light" and the jewels, so everything in the film happens for a reason. I enjoyed watching "From Time to Time" a lot.

I put off watching this film for a long time because of the 6/10 IMDb rating and because it seemed like one of those films you 'need to be in the mood for'.Well, it is but when you are in the mood for a good story then watch this film because the overall experience is well worth it. Technically and visually the film is successful (i.e. cinematography, location, costumes etc.) but it was the story itself that kept me interested. I am not sure if the success of the film is owed to the book it was adapted from or if the script added anything but the story was really engaging.The funny and tragic moments never felt forced or embellished and the actors were extremely committed and convincing.I am not a viewer who knows too much about the film making process so the most I can comment on really is that whilst the ending was rather predictable I was happy I had watched the film and would highly recommend it to others.I hope the IMDb rating increases as it easily deserves 8/10