Find out what critics have had to say about this new version of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic story.
The Guardian: ** “Mary is played by 14-year-old Dixie Egerickx, and she does bring the right kind of ingenuous, tomboyish confidence and innocent boldness – the way I imagine Lucy Pevensie from the Narnia stories.”
Tatler: ** “I expect this film will appeal to kids; there weren’t any available when I sat down to watch it. But the best children’s films are capable of double speak: they enchant the little ones whilst keeping adults amply entertained. This one has nothing to offer grown-ups; no shivers of dark humour or acerbic asides. It is, sadly, wholly missable, unless you’re under 14, and probably still even then.”
City Am: “This latest incarnation of The Secret Garden will most likely be seen on the small screen, being released in both cinemas and on Sky’s movie channel. With this in mind, besides some impressive visuals it’s hard to recommend it over the superior 90’s version that’s also just a click away.”
Empire: *** “Egerickx is a more sympathetic Mary than some but still awkward and snappish, Hayhurst is pitch-perfect and Wilson is likeable in an underwritten role. The film is best when it focuses on them. Sometimes, all you really want from a film is a breath of fresh air and some kids building a better world for themselves, and anything else is just a distraction.”
The Telegraph: **** “Frances Hodgson Burnett’s children’s classic is brought to vibrant life by Colin Firth, Julie Walters and the bright young Dixie Egerickx.”
Indie Wire: “This film is not the best representation of Burnett’s works, which toed the line between the magical and the painfully — but in the moments when it succeeds, “The Secret Garden” blossoms into something beautiful.”
Evening Standard: ** “Spectacular is the only word to describe the plants, wallpaper and costumes in this CGI-boosted adaptation of the Frances Hodgson Burnett classic.”
The Independent : *** “The Secret Garden has always been admired for its simple humanity – the moral that we must nurture people in the same way we tend to gardens. Here, the emotional pay-offs are grander in scale, but far less satisfying. The children are more invested in uncovering the mystery of their own childhoods than in showing each other compassion.”
The Secret Garden is now in cinemas and on Sky Cinema.