"Child, child. If you come to this doomed 'ouse, what is there to save you?"- Judith Starkadder in COLD COMFORT FARM.The "child" in question is the lone offspring of one Robert Poste (deceased) and, as we are soon to discover, Poste's progeny, Flora, is hardly one in need of saving. Orphaned in her budding womanhood, nettled by the golden orb of an unrealized literary career, Flora strikes out from the discerning (or snobbish) urban sophistication of London ( leaving behind her good friend Mary and Mary's invaluable manservant, Sneller) and heads for the bucolic splendor of the Sussex countryside to lodge with her relatives, the Starkadders, and find herself.She finds instead: a muck-begrimed tumbledown estate wherein resides a ready-for- Hollywood womanizer (Cousin Seth), an estate-coveting farmer (Cousin Reuben), a daffy romantic (Cousin Elfine), a too-loving mother (Cousin Judith), a 'vengeful god', proselytizing father (Cousin Amos), and an iron-willed matriarch (Greataunt Ada Doom). There's also a smattering of Lambsbreath (Adam) and a smidgen of Hawk-Monitor (Dick).Inside the Starkadder fold Flora encounters a resistance to dish washing modernity (the twig versus the hand mop); the rumor of an unmentionable misdeed once perpetrated against her father; the oft-cited permanence of the Starkadders on their environs; and the matriarch's frequently mentioned trauma after having witnessed a particularly odious occurrence inside the outdoor log pile storage facility ("...something nasty in the woodshed"). Undaunted, Flora presents a cool brow and an almost impervious demeanor plus an extremely persuasive power to influence. Within COLD COMFORT FARM, where high fashion and applied scientific reasoning smash headlong into arrested sociological development and stunted personal/ familial growth, tear-inducing laughter is the order of the day.As mentioned in the comments of others, Ms. Beckinsale, clad in her natty period togs and radiating a winsome, unflappable aura (while also projecting a strangely prepubescent vibe), hasn't had as good a role since Flora. Meanwhile, those master thespians, Freddie Jones, Ian McKellan, and the inimitable Eileen Atkins nearly go mad with delight as they burrow gleefully into their characters. Rufus Sewell's Seth smolders hilariously while Stephen Fry's Mybug, "soaked in nature's fecund blessing", blusters uproariously. This sort of comedy of manners and cultural collision required an intelligent, perceptive and witty director. John Schlesinger (DARLING, 1965) fit the bill gloriously.

If you are searching for comparisons to help you decide whether to watch "Cold Comfort Farm" imagine a slightly older "Pollyanna" going to live on a rundown version of "Babe's" English farm with a strange and bleak collection of her country cousins. This is an excellent and very earthy adaptation of Stella Gibbon's 1932 satirical novel (which itself is an odd marriage of Hardy and Wodehouse). Where the village pub is named "The Condemned Man" and the cows are named Aimless, Feckless, Graceless, and Pointless. Both the novel and its adaptation are joyfully depressing and packed with literary eccentricity and subtle humor. If you like "Faulty Towers" then you can expect to get off on the humor. But if you prefer "Hot Shots! Part Deux", you should probably pass on "Cold Comfort Farm". There are three possible viewer reactions: It's not funny. I didn't figure out it was a comedy until halfway through but then I found it hilarious. I couldn't stop laughing. Kate Beckinsale plays Flora Poste (always referred to by her relatives as Robert Poste's daughter), a recently orphaned 19 year old who chooses to live with relatives (the Starkadders) she has never met, at gloomy Cold Comfort Farm in Sussex. Beckinsale, even more radiant than usual, pulls off a nice characterization of the resourceful yet snobbish heroine. Like Pollyanna, she is a catalyst for positive change, but they are calculated changes. Her instinctive snobbishness (Beckinsale has a real talent for this) is played for laughs since everyone would feel a bit superior and distanced from this eccentric collection of misfits.The adaptation nicely incorporates Gibbons's subtle parody of Jane Austen romantic clichés, from the controlling madwoman in the attic to wood nymph poetess, to the quivering parishioners. Even the production design is a funny send-up of the standard BBC mini-series look. This is really a terrific production, doubly so for Beckinsale fans.Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

This movie depicts a post-Victorian, but nonetheless backwards-glancing, (1930s) rural England. Given this material; the propensity of the English to believe it's their job to tidy up rooms, regions and nations, matched by the arrogance to subjugate and condescend to anyone they deem untidy over the centuries; it seems like the movie could be a drag. As a story it's been told one too many times... but a light touch and a off-kilter tone make it an enjoyable fable. It's a fond allegory of empire."Robert Post's child" w/o hope of fortune but with great confidence in her world-view, takes on a rural situation out of boredom, works absurdly positive miracles, and sets things right, handily rescuing everyone from their self-constructed cages; all while reckoning with the gravitas of an unseen Miss Havisham in the room off the landing While Flora has no humility of her own, she does have manners; and with those, she pushes a bunch of maladaptive family members to a place they can unload their baggage by rediscovering humility.Making it all more bearable, the urbanites (played by Lumley and Beckinsale), typically snide and unlikeable, instead are awfully pleasant when they condescend. A few lines still make me smirk. "It's not good to be dewy-eyed around smart people, but you can always secretly despise them" is given a bright, cheerful delivery by Lumley. While perfectly serviceable as an unspoken rule of etiquette, it sounds quite absurd when uttered. A house-man who develops a admiration for his dish-scrubber, "...me and my little mop" always makes me laugh.Manners come into play everywhere. Ruben's change from a gruff beast to a sweet fella is nicely done. A late scene in which Miss Post must gently rebuff his proposal has a sublime, light touch. Strangely, after countless viewings where I simply admired the writing, it made me tear up for the first time today. The cast all does expert work, making most of the movie look effortless. Lumley's bespoke Miss Smiley could make for a good movie on her own.The film was developed for British TV which explains a regrettable gag here and there, and some resolutions that are just too pat. Schlesinger replaced somebody else as director at the last minute. As director, it feels like he's confident in the material and just gets out of the way. I think there are just slight problems that prevent it from becoming a classic. Aunt Ada "saw something nasty in the woodshed" a few too many times. But there is an abundance of pleasures in it. The way manners are voiced... the ramshackle design of the old farmhouse. The production designer for Nanny McPhee has definitely seen this movie.Once upon a time, movies were made for learned adults.

"Cold Comfort Farm" has a familiar plot, but is very well done. Portraying young Flora Poste (Kate Beckinsale) moving in with her backwards relatives in 1930s England and trying to change everything, the movie has the perfect pacing. It's the sort of situation where her relatives sort of irk you, but you can't help but admire them (mainly due to Flora's snobbish attitude about everything). It just goes to show what a great director John Schlesinger ("Midnight Cowboy", "The Day of the Locust", "Pacific Heights") was. He will definitely be missed. Also starring Eileen Atkins, Stephen Fry, Joanna Lumley, Ian McKellen, Miriam Margoyles and Rufus Sewell.