paul2001sw-1 'Albatross' tells the story of a dysfunctional family (living in the Isle of Man) and all the cliches are on display: louche, middle-aged writer as a father; sympathetic, intelligent daughter; troubled, troublesome and sexy daughter's best friend; younger child with the knack of saying inappropriate things; mother-turned-harridan by the stresses of keepinng them all together. The soundtrack is obvious and plodding, too, and while the gorgeous Manx landscape is attractively filmed, I'm a bit baffled by the fact that characters apparently leave the island not by ferry or air, but by road. The ending is also bizarre, the "best friend" has supposedly wanted to be a writer, but having done nothing to encourage us to take that ambition seriously, the film suddenly asks it to serve as the crux of the its dramatic climax. Sadly, I've seen more offensive and incompetant movies, I've seen few with less orginality.

SnoopyStyle Emelia Conan Doyle (Jessica Brown Findlay) claims to be a descendant of the great writer Arthur Conan Doyle. She takes a cleaning job at a seaside hotel owned by Jonathan Fischer (Sebastian Koch). He's struggling with writer's block and holed up in the attic. He has combative wife Joa (Julia Ormond), bookish daughter Beth (Felicity Jones), and six year old Posy. Emelia befriends Beth who is applying for Oxford. Emelia claims to be a writer but she can't live up to her family name. As Jonathan mentors her, they begin an affair.Jessica Brown Findlay and Felicity Jones are both lovely although this movie may be better if there is a darker, sexier edge. This plays more like a light relationship drama. The story suggests an eroticism that this movie does not have despite Findlay flashing her boobs comically. There is a darker edge that nobody is able to deliver other than Ormond. The story, the performances, and the tone don't completely click.

colinmetcalfe This film isn't a stinker, far from it. I was entertained. It was professionally made. Visually it was lovely and the performances were fine but something still grated with me.For example can someone please tell me why does Emelia start an affair with Jonathan? He's not charming or wealthy, he's boring, has let his looks fade, he's lazy and stuck in the past and it turns out he can't even provide good sex! And don't say the little white sports car; this girl is drawn as too ballsy to fall for that. Yet this vivacious beautiful young woman greets his first advances seemingly with an almost casual: 'yeah alright then.'Let's go through the possibilities:Starved of male company – no she has a boyfriend her own age and almost as feckless as she is.It's a 'The hand that rocks the cradle' plot line – obviously not as the story pans out differently.She's looking for a father figure after losing hers at a young age – possibly but aren't these relationships born out of love, admiration, respect? How can you respect someone who on first meeting you catch them masturbating? In fact he has no redeeming qualities at all until almost the last scene in the film. Couldn't he at least of been charming? Bit of a cliché I know but it would understandable why she fell for him. (Is fell the right word? Because she didn't really - she just progressed into having an affair.)So if it not clear why she does this, then the rest of the film will go about telling you – right? No not to me, but if it's there and I missed it I apologise. As far as I can see the story proceeds traditionally, both young girls absorbing each other's worlds and developing because of it.The only conclusion I can come to is that it was prerequisite to have negative male characters throughout the film and boy have we got a few. From the pedantic and sleazy room guests to the arrogant snobbish undergraduate there is isn't one positive male character, save Emelia's Grandfather who isn't a central figure and is he really positive? Colluding in the great deception that eventually shatters her bond with her best friend?I'm interested to find out whether the original script contained the elements above that I'm whining about or had to be inserted, at the producer's request (in order to find an audience), during the 'development' stage.This is one of the problems facing the British film industry – they don't have the luxury of simply telling a good engrossing story – they have to try and guarantee an audience to backers by aiming it fairly and squarely at a specific audience. What's that I hear? All movie makers have to find an audience. Very true but as many fine film makers have demonstrated you can find an audience without spoiling the story and pandering to needs of a select group.

TxMike Thus it is in this story. Jessica Brown Findlay is Emelia, and her last name is Conan Doyle. She fancies herself as the great granddaughter of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the Sherlock Holmes character. This is her albatross, she expects great things of herself as a writer, but at 17 (actually in her 20s) she seems to be out of sorts, not happy with her writing or where her life is taking her.She needs to earn a living. Both her parents have died, she stays with her nice older grandparents. So she takes a menial job cleaning rooms at a local inn owned by a writer who once had a famous book some 20 years earlier.But there she meets the daughter of that family, Felicity Jones (actually in her 20s also) as 17-yr-old Beth, who is a rules- follower, unlike Emelia who knows no rule. They form a bond of sorts which eventually is strained when Emelia flirts with then begins an affair with Beth's author dad. Conveniently for this film, the age of consent in England is 16. Also the Isle of Man, where this was filmed.So the arc of the story involves Emelia getting the albatross off her neck, and the start was finding out her real last name was Doyle, and not actually related to the famous author. Interesting and often funny movie. I found it on Netflix streaming movies.