THE LAND GIRLS Movie Review

1998 David Leland

“1941. Britain is at war with Germany. As farm workers leave the land to join the armed forces, women from all walks of life volunteer to take their place. They call themselves ‘The Women's Land Army.’” That foreword sets the stage for three young women, played by beautiful actresses, who go to work on a farm that's even more beautiful. The episodic adventures that they encounter during their stay in the country are mostly of the romantic stripe. The style and substance of the film are so thoroughly British that only the most dedicated Anglophiles will understand all of the dialogue or realize the importance of some details.

Mr. Lawrence (Tom Georgeson), a crusty old farmer, makes it clear from the outset that he's none too happy about his new staff. Stella (Catherine McCormack) is engaged to Philip (Paul Bettany), a pilot. At 26 the oldest of the trio, Ag (Rachel Weisz) is something of an intellectual airhead, and Prue (Anna Friel) says that she's hoping to find “total fornication” in the country. The immediate object of her urges is Joe Lawrence (Steven Mackintosh), the farmer's son who is going to volunteer for Army duty any day now. Despite a weak heart, Mrs. Lawrence (Maureen O'Brien) tries to keep some order within the crowded household.

Initially, it is difficult to accept three glamour girls on one small farm, but the actresses manage to acquit themselves fairly well with manure spreaders and various other farm implements. For a time, at least, director David Leland is just as interested in the beautiful landscape. Several scenes are cinematic postcards to the Devon, Somerset, and Hertfordshire locations. He and co-writer Keith Dewhurst seem less certain in their adaptation of Angela Huth's novel. After they set up a seemingly important conflict between Lawrence and a bureaucrat over the plowing of a meadow, it is dropped inconclusively. The most important of the divergent plotlines concerns the relationship that each of the three girls forms with Joe, but he is an improbable stud muffin. Or perhaps that's the idea—that during those years any reasonably functional young man lucky enough to find himself in the right place could rise to the occasion, as it were, whenever called upon to do so.

The muddy accents are a more serious problem. Most frustratingly when characters are angry, their words tumble together so completely that repeated rewindings and careful listening are useless. Then there is the matter of Mr. Lawrence's brief obsession with mangoes. He has a long, pointless monologue about the proper handling of the fruit, and demonstrates his concerns with an example. It seems to have something to do with his being a bit pixilated by drink at the holidays, but that's not clear, either. It is funny, though, and perhaps that's all the viewer needs to know.

Still, despite the flaws, this snapshot of a little-known side of England's war is worth watching. As women's history, The Land Girls' outlook is much more 1990s than 1940s but it is a legitimate interpretation of life on the rural homefront.

Cast: Catherine McCormack (Stella), Rachel Weisz (Ag), Anna Friel (Prue), Steven Mackintosh (Joe Lawrence), Tom Georgeson (Mr. Lawrence), Maureen O'Brien (Mrs. Lawrence), Paul Bettany (Philip), Lucy Akhurst (Janet), Ann Bell (Philip's mother); Written by: David Leland, Keith Dewhurst; Cinematography by: Henry Braham; Music by: Brian Lock. Producer: Simon Relph, Ruth Jackson, Greenpoint Films, Intermedia Films; released by Gramercy Pictures. British. MPAA Rating: R. Running Time: 110 minutes. Format: VHS.