The Summer Book

Glenn Close stars in Charlie McDowell’s beautiful adaptation of Moomins creator Tove Jansson’s classic novel about loss, nature and growing up.

Recently bereaved Sophia (impressive newcomer Emily Matthews), her grandmother (Glenn Close) and father (Anders Danielsen Lie) spend a summer in their cottage on a tiny Finnish island. Weathered by a lifetime of windswept, sea-sprayed summers, Grandmother keeps a watchful eye on Sophia, doling out advice and wisdom, puffing on hand-rolled cigarettes and encouraging mischief from time to time.

McDowell’s stunningly shot film vividly brings to life Jansson’s simple, timeless novel, which was inspired by her own family. Glenn Close plays the grandmother we’d all like to have – or be – and spending time on the family's island is the large glass of cool water that we all need after last summer. Watching the film brings back memories of those warm, languid childhood summers, where not a huge amount happens, but the opportunity to explore and daydream under dappled sunlight is stretched out across weeks. Premiered at the 2024 BFI London Film Festival.