10 - 10 - 10, ad infinitum. First of all, to the critics who are so hung up on the movie not following the book. So, what else is new? And, who cares. They are two separate entities. Duh!! This Masterpiece was an unknown for me. What a great, great surprise. I was raised during WW2 and drove my family nuts. I was an - er Anglophile - greatly admiring the Brits and their stance during those years. Oh, and I never missed a John Mills movie.A man that befriended me came from England to get away from the war and opened a record shop a few blocks from my home and it became my second home. Most of his records crossed the Atlantic with him so I had a host of British RCAs and Parlophones.One more item of a personal nature. There was a mag called Picture Post and I wrote them a letter. The first part - I was just a kid - had to do with what was right about America and wrong about England, the second part was vice-versa. Guess what? They published the good stuff about England, eliminating the rest of my tome. I got a lot of letters from all over Britain and met a merchant seaman who later became a radio operator on the Queen Mary. He stayed with us whenever the ship came to NYC (where I was born and raised).The setting of the movie automatically appealed to me. The story had my wife and myself shedding a few tears, it was so beautifully told - warm and wonderful. The acting by the main characters was excellent. At times, early on, the lad reminded me of Roddy McDowall at that age.As far as I'm concerned this is one of the most impressive things ever put on film. I recommend it - highly.As I said in the beginning ---- 10 - 10 - 10, ad infinitum.

Marvelous film again dealing with the trials and tribulations of World War 11 England. What makes this film so good is the touching of the human element.This film is definitely in the tradition of such British line classics such as "Mrs. Miniver" and "Hope and Glory." As is the case with this film, we see the desperation of people in the time of war.The performances are outstanding here especially by the embittered John Thaw, who is assigned a child who has been evacuated from the London bombing.We soon see why this child wets his bed. He comes from a lunatic mother who has abused him terribly.The old man takes to the child and brings happiness into his sad life. When the child is returned to his mother, the old man goes to London and seeks him out only to find tragedy. He literally kidnaps the boy and is able to convince a higher up that the child is better off with him than being in a boy's home.The picture is so good because it deals and builds on endearing relationships.

Sometimes I watch a movie and am really impressed by it – and still it is not easy to explain why I liked it that much. This is mostly true for the uncommon movies – the ones one can hardly compare with the rest out there. Goodnight Mister Tom is one of these special movies. There is a lot of emotion in that movie – and the acting was so good that while watching the movie, I was crying and laughing as the story went on. The young Nick Robinson – is a young boy (William) evacuated from London because of the air strikes there during the Second World War. Mr. Tom played by John Thaw is an old man leaving in the village the evacuated children were send to.At first Tom refuses to take any responsibilities - such as taking care for a troubled young lad – but accepts since he is left without a choice. During the stay Mr. Tom discovers how horrible the life has been for the William – alongside his luggage his mom sent a belt and written instructions to the host of her son – not to hesitate to use it. This belt is berried in the field – never to be used in such a brutal manner. Mr. Tom provides a real home for William, and the boy is happy with his new life, he goes to school, makes new friends and discovers hidden talents. All of the sudden a letter William is called home in London with a letter mentioning that she is not feeling well…and it starts all over again – only this time it gets much worse… There are many feelings you can sense in this movie – love, fear, sadness, happiness, pain, hope – and much more. Goodnight Mr. Tom is another masterpiece of the British cinema comparable only with others such as Dear Frankie and Billy Elliot – if one is to compare. I have truly enjoyed watching it and highly recommend it. Before finishing this review I would also like to mention the great performance of Thomas Orange in the role of Zac – reminded me of a friend of mine from my own childhood ( :

If John Thaw had never played "Morse", "Kavanagh", or starred in "The Sweeney" and other productions, he'd be remembered for this wonderfully unforgettable performance in "Goodnight Mr Tom".Superbly supported by an equally tremendous performance by his co-star (young Nick Robinson in his first role), and an unobtrusive cast, this adaptation of Michelle Magorian's charming novel is a fitting memorial to his art.When I read this story of an old widowed Norfolk countryman having to accommodate a young boy from London before and during the Blitz, I found a rather obvious time-line error in it, and credit must go to the makers of this film for rectifying this error. They also must be applauded for not over-sentimentalising the tale, and preventing what could have been turned, quite easily, into a mushy mess.If you keep a CD or video library then this feel-good made for TV movie is an absolute must inclusion.