I Capture the Castle (2003)

Director:

Tim Fywell

Writers:

Dodie Smith (novel)
Heidi Thomas (screenplay)

Release Date:

9 May 2003 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

I love, I have loved, I will love.

Plot:

A love story set in 1930s England that follows 17-year-old Cassandra Mortmain, and the fortunes of her eccentric family, struggling to survive in a decaying English castle.

Plot Keywords:

Narration | Historical | Writer's Block | Bohemian | Castle

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Marc Blucas	...	Neil Cotton
Rose Byrne	...	Rose Mortmain
Sinéad Cusack	...	Mrs. Cotton (as Sinead Cusack)
Tara Fitzgerald	...	Topaz Mortmain
Romola Garai	...	Cassandra Mortmain
Bill Nighy	...	James Mortmain
Henry Thomas	...	Simon Cotton
David Bamber	...	Vicar
Henry Cavill	...	Stephen Colley
James Faulkner	...	Aubrey Fox-Cotton
Sarah Woodward	...	Leda Fox-Cotton
Helena Little	...	Mother
Florence Jones	...	Rose (aged 10)
Harrison Ward	...	Thomas (aged 4)
Joe Sowerbutts	...	Thomas
Ray De-Haan	...	Neighbour
Sorel Johnson	...	Lady in Simpsons
Dolly Wells	...	Fur Department Vendeuse
James Warrior	...	Station Master
Christopher Ettridge	...	Station Bystander
Jean Warren	...	Waitress in Café
Bernadette Windsor	...	Girl in Café
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Richard Shelton
Sophie Stuckey	...	Cassandra - aged 7

Directed by
Tim Fywell

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Dodie Smith		novel
Heidi Thomas		screenplay

Produced by
Steve Christian	....	executive producer: Isle of Man Film Commission
Cleone Clarke	....	assistant producer
Mark Cooper	....	co-producer
Keith Evans	....	executive producer: Take 3 Partnership
Mike Newell	....	executive producer
David Parfitt	....	producer: Trademark Films
Mark Shivas	....	executive producer
Anant Singh	....	producer: Distant Horizon
David M. Thompson	....	producer: BBC Films

Original Music by
Dario Marianelli

Cinematography by
Richard Greatrex		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Roy Sharman

Casting by
Kate Rhodes James

Production Design by
John Paul Kelly		(as John-Paul Kelly)

Art Direction by
Paul Cross		(supervising art director)
Mike Stallion
Leigh Walker

Set Decoration by
Judy Farr

Costume Design by
Charlotte Walter

Makeup Department
Jayne Buxton	....	hair stylist
Jayne Buxton	....	makeup artist
Deborah Jarvis	....	hair stylist
Deborah Jarvis	....	makeup artist
Lisa Westcott	....	hair designer
Lisa Westcott	....	makeup designer

Production Management
Jo Beckett	....	unit manager
Duncan Flower	....	unit manager: Isle of Man
Jeremy Johns	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Phil Booth	....	second assistant director
Guy Heeley	....	first assistant director
Vicky Marks	....	third assistant director

Art Department
Stanley Apperley	....	supervising plasterer: Wales (as Stan Apperley)
John Bohan	....	construction manager
John Botton	....	dressing props
Tom Brown-Jones	....	assistant art director
Peter Brown	....	carpenter
Thomas Brown	....	assistant art director
Colin Burgess	....	stand-by props
Roy Chapman	....	chargehand dressing props
Darren Conway	....	plasterer
Nigel Crafts	....	stand-by carpenter
Gary Crosby	....	supervising painter: Isle of Man
Dean Dunham	....	painter
Michael Finlay	....	painter
Barry Gibbs	....	property master
Gavin Gordon	....	carpenter
Bill Hargreaves	....	property storeman
Sean Higgins	....	plasterer
Roger Holden	....	greensman
David Knight	....	supervising plasterer: Isle of Man
David Lowery	....	carpenter
Emma MacDevitt	....	stand-by art director
John E. Madden	....	plasterer (as John Madden)
Thomas Martin	....	head carpenter (as Tom Martin)
Eamon McLoughlin	....	supervising carpenter
Colin Mutch	....	stand-by prop
Daniel O'Regan	....	carpenter (as Danny O'Regan)
Seamus O'Sullivan	....	carpenter
Darryl Paterson	....	chargehand dresser
Darryl Paterson	....	chargehand prop
Sui Rajakaruna	....	art department assistant
Colin Smith	....	plasterer
Glenn Start	....	stand-by painter
Clive Ward	....	supervising painter: Wales
Derek Whorlow	....	stagehand
Robert Wishart	....	carpenter
David Youngs	....	carpenter

Sound Department
Paula Boram	....	foley artist
Gianluca Buttari	....	foley assistant
Fiona Curran	....	additional dialogue editor
Evelyn Ficarra	....	supervising dialogue editor
Peter Gleaves	....	adr mixer
Peter Glossop	....	production sound mixer
Mike Grimes	....	assistant sound re-recording mixer
James Harris	....	sound assistant
Alex Hudd	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby
Dan Johnson	....	assistant sound re-recording mixer
Hugh Johnson	....	sound re-recording mixer
Melissa Lake	....	foley artist
Miriam Ludbrook	....	additional adr editor
Dave McGrath	....	adr recordist
Shaun Mills	....	sound maintenance
Bernard O'Reilly	....	supervising sound editor
Barnaby Smyth	....	foley editor
Barnaby Smyth	....	foley recordist
Greg Steele	....	adr mixer
Graeme Stoten	....	dubbing mixer
Ruth Sullivan	....	foley artist

Special Effects by
Dominic Tuohy	....	special effects supervisor
Jim Davey	....	scanning and recording (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Robin Beard	....	digital artist
Steve Boag	....	visual effects producer
Simon Frame	....	visual effects supervisor
Tom Hocking	....	digital compositor
Gruff Owen	....	digital compositor
Matthew Symonds	....	digital compositor
Sabine Kertscher	....	digital compositor (uncredited)

Stunts
Jim Dowdall	....	stunt coordinator
Steve Griffin	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Nick Beeks-Sanders	....	camera operator (as Nick Beek-Sanders)
Fred Brown	....	electrician
Frederick Crawford	....	rigger (as Fred Crawford)
Adam Dale	....	aerial camera operator
Wick Finch	....	gaffer
Will Finch	....	electrician
Keith Hamshere	....	still photographer
Dermot Hickey	....	focus puller
Scott Hillier	....	stand-by rigger
Tom Lowen	....	stand-by rigger (as Thomas Lowen)
Tommy O'Sullivan	....	best boy
Steve Pattenden	....	electrician
Ed Rutherford	....	clapper loader
Ronnie Savory	....	generator operator (as Ron Savory)
Jim Smart	....	electrician (as Jimmy Smart)
Steve Weightman	....	grip
J. Glyn Williams	....	first assistant camera: aerial unit (uncredited)

Casting Department
Deborah Aquila	....	casting: USA
Rachel Himbury	....	casting assistant
Buffy Kirkpatrick	....	casting assistant
Stephen Moore	....	casting assistant
Jennifer L. Smith	....	casting associate
Mary Tricia Wood	....	casting: USA (as Tricia Wood)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Richard Cooke	....	assistant costume designer
Kate Eden	....	costume supervisor
Helen Hill	....	costume maker
Carin Hoff	....	second assistant costume designer
Ann Nichols	....	costume maker
Yvonne Otzen	....	costume assistant
Luan Placks	....	costume assistant
Caroline Rigby	....	costume assistant
Jilly Thompson	....	costume dyer
Tom Hornsby	....	daily wardrobe assistant (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Ian Differ	....	first assistant editor
Laura Evans	....	assistant editor
Martin Walsh	....	color grader
Jason Wheeler	....	negative cutter

Music Department
Matt Biffa	....	music supervisor
Mikael Carlsson	....	executive soundtrack producer
Dario Marianelli	....	orchestrator
Maggie Rodford	....	music supervisor

Transportation Department
Ian Clarke	....	vehicle technician

Other crew
Mark Barry-Jackson	....	helicopter pilot
Irena Brignull	....	script editor
Daniel Budd	....	assistant accountant
Tom Crooke	....	location finder
Tim Desbois	....	helicopter coordinator
Chloe Emmerson	....	dialogue coach: UK
Duncan Flower	....	assistant location manager
Jane Gibson	....	movement consultant
Peter Hawkins	....	supervising rigger
Sue Hills	....	script supervisor
Daisy Isabel Hughes	....	runner
Daisy Isabel Hughes	....	stand-in
Marshall Leviten	....	production coordinator
Darren Mackie	....	floor runner
Ivan Mavor	....	accounting assistant
Victoria Mielewska	....	dialect coach
Huw Phillips	....	rushes grader
Becky Scoffield	....	production runner
Shruti Shah	....	production accountant
Amanda Stevens	....	location manager
Anthony Swaby	....	floor runner: Isle of Man
Hollie Unett	....	floor runner: Isle of Man
Keith Whale	....	location assistant: Isle of Man
Sarah Wheale	....	assistant coordinator
Julia Wilson-Dixon	....	movement consultant (as Julia Wilson Dickson)
Christopher Hutchins	....	production runner (uncredited)
Sean Thornton	....	driving double (uncredited)

Production Companies

• 50 Cannon Entertainment
• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• Distant Horizons
• Isle of Man Film Commission
• Perpetual Motion
• Take 3 Partnership
• TradeMark Films

Distributors

• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• Momentum Pictures (UK)
• Pretty Pictures (2005) (France) (theatrical)
• Samuel Goldwyn Films (USA)

Special Effects

• Cine Image Film Opticals
• Effects Associates
• Men From Mars

Other Companies

• Shepperton Studios  movie studio
• 2020 Casting  extras casting
• ARRI Media  camera equipment
• Angel Recording Studios  music recorded at
• Animals Okay  animals supplied by
• Cosprop  costumes
• Edit Hire Post Production Services  editing equipment
• Flight Logistics Ltd.  aerial coordination
• Flying Pictures  aerial filming services provided by
• Lee Lighting  lighting
• Lofty's Lab  stills processing
• Lyps Inc.  voice casting
• MovieScore Media  soundtrack
• Sapex Scripts  post-production script
• Shaun Webb Design  titles and opticals
• Telefilm  transfers
• Videosonics Cinema Sound  sound re-recorded at

MPAA:

Rated R for brief nudity.

Runtime:

113 min | USA:111 min (Palm Springs International Film Festival)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:G (British Columbia) | Iceland:L | Canada:PG (Alberta/Ontario) | Finland:K-11 | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | New Zealand:PG | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 | South Korea:15 | UK:PG | USA:R | Mexico:C

Filming Locations:

Eltham Palace, Court Road, Eltham, London, England, UK

Company:

50 Cannon Entertainment

Trivia:

Rose Byrne did all of her own piano playing.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Simon is drinking his tea in the first shot, he receives the cup with his right hand and then turns the handle to actually drink with his left. The handle switches back and forth in subsequent shots.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Cassandra: I write this sitting in the kitchen sink.

Movie Connections:

References "Pride and Prejudice" (1995)

A Weird Family, Devilish Comedy, Roiling Drama

How many viewers of "I Capture the Castle" have a legal background and understand the humor underlying the family name of the central characters, "Mortmain?" Literally, "mortmain" means "Dead Hand" and in law it denotes the attempt of a person to control his property postmortem. The humor here is that the paterfamilias, James Mortmain (well played by Bill Nighy) is a dried up author who hasn't penned a word since a successful novel of twelve years past. He claims to be working on a new book, an assertion that may be face-saving but is of dubious credibility. James has a past that the family neither wishes to remember nor can face seeing its reappearance (can't reveal what that is, can I?).

When still at the top of his game Mortmain and his then wife (who later dies, no foul play here) and his two little girls stumbled upon a rodent infested castle which he leased.

Jump quite a bit ahead to a now remarried Mortmain who lives in the still unrestored castle with his new, young, artist wife, Topaz (the beautiful, funny and accomplished Tara Fitzgerald) and his two teenage daughters, an appropriately mischievous little son and a sort of retainer in farm clothes, young Stephen.

The family is now, as the English say, "on their uppers."

Rose (Rose Byrne) is a gorgeous redhead solely obsessed with marrying out of the castle into the squirearchy or at least the solvent. Younger sister Cassandra (Ronola Garai) is engagingly wise, funny and bewildered at the changes that overtake her family when two young Americans succeed to the ownership of a manor that encompasses the castle (for which rent is long overdue). The sisters' close, interdependent relationship is warmly portrayed.

So Rose pursues one of the Americans, Cassandra deals with first love, spurning one suitor while secretly pining for another. An interweaved subplot has Topaz and then Cassandra desperately acting as James's muse, seeking to ignite what may well be the drenched sparks of a one-novel author.

As would be expected of a drama set in England in the 1930s before the hideousness of war returned are the inevitable class clashes, both economic and trans-Atlantic. What would a film like this be without a formal dining room scene replete with persiflage and the ominous threat of words said that can not be retracted?

"I Capture the Castle" has a strong cast but Cassandra is the centerpiece as she shows developing resolve and growth. Her appeal is irresistible. She's the younger sister many have fantasized but few have had. Ms. Garai is marvelously believable.

Yes, the film is in the Merchant/Ivory and Masterpiece Theatre vein but what's wrong with that? I liked most of the characters and rooted for calm but troubled Cassandra and frenetic but basically good Rose.

7/10.