The Legend of Longwood

Gr 6–8—Twelve-year-old Mickey (Lucy Morton) is angry when her mother relocates their small family from New York City to a rustic village in Ireland. How will her father, who has been missing for four years, find them? Lady Thyrza (Miriam Margolyes), her new eccentric neighbor, tells Mickey the legend of the Black Knight, whose reappearance after decades of absence signifies that something bad is going to happen to the village. After discovering that the local castle and a herd of white horses are in danger, Mickey sets out to find out who is behind these evil plans. A missing manuscript, drawings that come to life, spooky castle rooms, and villains add to the Gothic atmosphere. The movie was filmed on location in Ireland, and the scenery is spectacular, what with the boundless hills and storybook buildings. Composer Patrick Neil Doyle has created a gorgeous score that reflects the film's Irish sensibilities. The wardrobe choices are subtle, with effective indications of the characters' personalities. Some viewers might have trouble with Mickey as a heroine, though. She is haughty. She snoops. She breaks and enters at least twice, and she steals. Similarly, the villain, the manipulative Caitlin, is comical at first, but her malevolence teeters over the edge into absolute wickedness when she locks Mickey in the barn with the horses and sets the place on fire. Caitlin's only comeuppance is falling in the mud while wearing her wedding dress.