During WWII, reclusive spinster writer Alice Lamb (Gemma Arterton) is looked upon as a witch by the rest of the seaside community. She writes about the theory of fantasies and mythological lore. Her latest obsession is sightings of islands in the sky. Out of the blue, the authorities leave her a boy. Frank is a child evacuee from London. She is desperate to get rid of him. He befriends fellow black sheep classmate Edie. In flashbacks, Alice has a lesbian romance with Vera (Gugu Mbatha-Raw).
I really like the kids' relationship and Alice with the boy. There are two problems. The easiest to solve is the ending. I want Frank to end up with Edie. Why can't they show up at the cottage with happy cute little kids? I hate that their last scene is that scene. The bigger problem is Frank ending up with Alice in the first place. One must assume that Vera had written a letter to Alice to tell her about Frank. The easiest solution to that would be to have the first letter in the movie be that letter. Alice would be so frustrated that she wouldn't even open it. She could stuff it back into the mail box and when she finds the photos, she could scramble to finally open that first letter. That is a better sequencing of events.
I really like the kids' relationship and Alice with the boy. There are two problems. The easiest to solve is the ending. I want Frank to end up with Edie. Why can't they show up at the cottage with happy cute little kids? I hate that their last scene is that scene. The bigger problem is Frank ending up with Alice in the first place. One must assume that Vera had written a letter to Alice to tell her about Frank. The easiest solution to that would be to have the first letter in the movie be that letter. Alice would be so frustrated that she wouldn't even open it. She could stuff it back into the mail box and when she finds the photos, she could scramble to finally open that first letter. That is a better sequencing of events.