‘Summerland’ Blu-Ray Review – A Sensitive, Emotionally Rewarding Period Drama

Alice is a reclusive writer, resigned to a solitary life on the seaside cliffs of Southern England while World War II rages across the channel. When she opens her front door one day to find she’s to adopt a young London evacuee named Frank, she’s resistant. It’s not long, however, before the two realize they have more in common in their pasts than Alice had assumed. Gemma Arterton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Tom Courtenay star in this intensely emotional story of love’s endurance in trying times.

For thoughts on Summerland, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic: 

[youtube https://youtu.be/geM1OV4bJ3I?t=828]

Video Quality

MPI Media Group brings Summerland to Blu-Ray with a really lovely 1080p video presentation. The period production design and clothing provide clear textural details that make the environment feel more lived-in. The presentation allows for a significant amount of depth on display, especially when the characters are out among the cliffs overlooking the ocean. The image is crisp and clean with the natural color palette saturating the screen for a wondrous appearance. Flesh tones are natural with a significant amount of detail present in close-ups. Black levels are deep with no discernible digital noise, and highlights hold firm without blooming. This is a top notch high definition presentation. 

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray comes with a formidable DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that brings this world to life perfectly. This is a gentle, dialogue-driven story with some bright environmental sounds to flesh out the world in the surround speakers. Whenever the characters are on the playground, the ambient sounds of their classmates playing are carefully placed in the rear channels. Exchanges of dialogue come through clearly without being overshadowed by any competing sounds. The score flows out of the speakers with wonderful fidelity. There is not too much that activates the low end in a substantial way, but it provides a base level of texture to the world. There are no hiccups with the audio here. There are optional English SDH and Spanish subtitles provided. 

Special Features

• Behind The Scenes: A 17-minute piece which functions as a fly-on-the-wall look at various moments throughout the production from location scouting to filming, makeup application and beyond. 

• Interviews: The amount of interviews on this disc is almost staggering as you get so many great insights into the production process from nearly every department you can imagine. 

• • Jessica Swale (Writer & Director) (8:43)

• • Gemma Arterton (Alice) (9:34)

• • Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Vera) (9:47)

• • Penelope Wilton (Alice) (4:11)

• • Tom Courtenay (Mr. Sullivan) (3:36)

• • Dixie Egerickx (Edie) (2:19)

• • Lucas Bond (Frank) (2:27)

• • Adrian Sturges (Producer) (11:19)

• • Guy Heeley (Producer) (10:53)

• • Claire Finlay (Costume Designer) (1:44)

• • Philippa Hart (Set Decorator) (6:37)

• • Christina Moore (Art Department Designer) (9:05)

• • Lisa Cavalli-Green (Hair & Makeup Designer) (2:29)

• • Nigel Albermaniche (Production Sound Mixer) (4:10)

• • Peter-Frank Dewulf (Location Manager) (2:47)

• • Michael Wharley (Unit Stills Photographer) (4:12)

• Trailer: The two-and-a-half minute trailer is provided here. 

Final Thoughts

Summerland is an emotionally rewarding period drama which showcases the value of opening yourself up and living your authentic life, even when you face great uncertainty. Gemma Arterton is allowed the chance to deliver one of the best performances of her career, and she executes it perfectly. There are many points where the narrative could have chosen to be emotionally manipulative, but such stumbling blocks are avoided thanks to the deft direction of Jessica Swale. MPI Media Group has released a Blu-Ray featuring a top notch A/V presentation and a terrific assemblage of supplemental features. This should be sought out by anyone who likes well made period dramas that avoid being too stuffy. Recommended 

Summerland is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: MPI Media Group has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.