It's been a long time since I saw The Railway Children. I don't think it connected with me at all as a kid, but maybe I'm getting more sentimental in my old age. It really is quite charming. Once you get past the initial gloomy depiction of the north of England. Three suburban London children find their world turned upside down when their father goes away, leaving them and their mother to head up to Yorkshire to get by without the trappings they're used to. There's a lot of sweet sentimentality and it's rather dated, but it's actually a lot more fun than I recall. Largely due to the wonderful Bernard Cribbins as Mr Perks and to the general air of everyone looking out for one another. Alright it's set in simpler times, it was perhaps easier to strive for an idyllic existence in 1905. But watching through a modern lens it's a breath of fresh air. It's slow. Easy on the action and heavy on the quintessential British ideals of a bygone age. Truth be told, not all that much happens, just a few events that give the children the chance to show their true colours. Good things come to good people and the Railway Children are good people in a good film.
Review of The Railway Children
