This is a movie about a lesbian relationship. I shouldn’t have to get halfway through the movie to find that out. So I’m putting it out there so other people know it up front. It was a nicely shot film and an interesting story. The main arc is about a child who is displaced by WWII and has to live with an eccentric hermit of a woman who doesn’t want him. There is a secondary storyline about the woman reminiscing about a gay lover from the past. Over the course of the film, the secondary storyline takes front-and-center stage. The film becomes all about the gay relationship. The film preaches about gay relationships and uses the child actor as a prop to not-so-subtly bash intolerant adults who don’t embrace their lifestyle. In the end, the writer makes sure to kill off the husband so the gay couple can live happily ever after. The ending is glib and trite and doesn’t honor the mood of the story.

For what it is, Summerland is solidly made, but don’t expect anything extraordinary from the production.

James Berardinelli

ReelViews

Ms. Arterton gets to play a few scenes worthy of her art before the film turns into a milking machine designed to wring feelings from a link between past and present that, once again, amounts to a construct.

Joe Morgenstern

Wall Street Journal

The main appeal of Summerland, a considerable one, is that it allows Gemma Arterton to hold the screen for a nearly unbroken 90 minutes. It showcases her in a variety of modes and moods and provide some huge acting moments that make us recognize that, somewhere along the line, Arterton has become a powerhouse.

Mick LaSalle

San Francisco Chronicle