The Chalk Garden
BBBB
(out of 5)
Hayley Mills plays a precocious teenager with a hyperactive brain who gets her governesses into trouble to alleviate her boredom. She does this much to the chagrin of her exasperated grandmother (Edith Evans) and short-tempered butler (Mills’ real life father John Mills). In order to soften her granddaughter out, Evans hires her a tutor (Deborah Kerr) who is responsible for teaching her the finer things in life, but from the moment the woman arrives Hayley is intent on finding out all her deepest secrets. When she stumbles on the possibility that her tutor might be a suspected murderer who was acquitted many years before, she risks ruining the first truly good relationship she’s ever had in her life. When her own mother tries to get her back after having dumped her on her grandmother years before, the audience comes to better understand the tumultuous emotional life that has led this young girl to the behaviour she is constantly exhibiting. The acting is impeccable in this sudsy little drama, an enjoyable effort featuring Kerr at her best (the woman was pretty much ALWAYS at her best) and Evans keeping up right along with her.
Quota Rentals Limited, Ross Hunter Productions, Universal Pictures
United Kingdom/USA, 1964
Directed by Ronald Neame
Screenplay by John Michael Hayes, based on the play by Enid Bagnold
Cinematography by Arthur Ibbetson
Produced by Ross Hunter
Music by Malcolm Arnold
Production Design by Carmen Dillon
Costume Design by Julie Harris
Film Editing by Jack Harris
