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Oranges and Sunshine

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Oranges and Sunshine
Theatrical film poster
Directed byJim Loach
Screenplay byRona Munro
Based onEmpty Cradles by
Margaret Humphreys
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyDenson Baker
Edited byDany Cooper
Music byLisa Gerrard
Production
companies
Distributed byIcon Film Distribution
Release dates
  • 8 October 2010 (2010-10-08) (PIFF)
  • 1 April 2011 (2011-04-01) (United Kingdom)
  • 9 June 2011 (2011-06-09) (Australia)
Running time
105 minutes
Countries
  • Australia
  • United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office$6.3 million[1]

Oranges and Sunshine is a 2010 biographical drama film directed by Jim Loach, in his directorial debut, with a screenplay by Rona Munro, based on the 1994 book Empty Cradles by Margaret Humphreys.[2] The film stars Emily Watson, Hugo Weaving and David Wenham.

Plot

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The film is based on the true story of Margaret Humphreys, a social worker from Nottingham who uncovered the scandal of "home children",[3] a scheme of forcibly relocating poor children from the United Kingdom to Australia and Canada.[4]

Deported children were promised "oranges and sunshine" but they instead got hard labour and life in institutions such as Keaney College in Bindoon, Western Australia. Many suffered physical and sexual abuse at the hands of the Congregation of Christian Brothers.[5][6]

Despite the numerous death threats from those who try to stop her, Margaret is successful in reuniting estranged families, who are situated in Australia and the UK, and brings worldwide attention to the cause.

Cast

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Production

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Filming

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Filming took place in Adelaide, South Australia, in Nottingham, and at Wirksworth in Derbyshire. Some interior scenes were filmed at the University of Leicester, Leicestershire, in Nottingham County Hall and in the porte-cochère of Nottingham railway station. Other locations that appear are a train on the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway; Australia House in London and an overview of Nottingham Council House and the Old Market Square.

A casting session was held in Nottingham to find one boy and one girl for the roles of Margaret's children.[7]

Reception

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Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 71% based on reviews from 73 critics, indicating generally positive reception. The website's critics consensus reads, "Grounded in a heartwrenching fact-based story, steered by Loach's sensitive direction, and led by a powerful performance from Watson, Oranges and Sunshine sidesteps its pacing problems and occasionally clichéd screenplay."[8] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 60 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[9]

Acclaimed film critic Roger Ebert awarded the film 3 out of 4 stars and quote, "a quietly stubborn force of nature, who persists."[10]

Accolades

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Award Category Subject Result
AACTA Award
(1st)[11]		 AFI Members' Choice Award Camilla Bray, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman Nominated
Best Film Nominated
Best Actor David Wenham Nominated
Best Actress Emily Watson Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Hugo Weaving Won
Best Editing Dany Cooper Nominated
Best Costume Design Cappi Ireland Nominated
AFCA Awards Best Australian Film Nominated
Best Actor David Wenham Nominated
Hugo Weaving Nominated
Best Actress Emily Watson Won
ASE Award Best Editing in a Feature Film Dany Cooper Won
ASSG Award Best Achievement in Mixing in a Feature Film Gethin Creagh Won
Sam Hayward Won
FCCA Awards[12] Best Film Camilla Bray, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman Nominated
Best Actor David Wenham Nominated
Best Actress Emily Watson Won
Best Supporting Actor Hugo Weaving Won
Inside Film Awards Best Feature Film Camilla Bray, Iain Canning, Jim Loach, Emile Sherman Nominated
Best Script Rona Munro Nominated
Best Actor David Wenham Nominated
Best Actress Emily Watson Won
Best Editing Dany Cooper Nominated
Best Music Lisa Gerrard Nominated
Best Sound Gethin Creagh Nominated
James Currie Nominated
John Hughes Nominated
Andrew Plain Nominated
Best Production Design Melinda Doring Won
Rome Film Festival[13] Golden Marc'Aurelio Award Jim Loach Nominated
Satellite Award[14] Best Actress Emily Watson Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Hugo Weaving Nominated

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "Oranges and Sunshine (2011) - International Box Office Results - Box Office Mojo". boxofficemojo.com.
  2. ↑ Smith, Ian Hayden (2012). International Film Guide 2012. p. 63. ISBN 978-1908215017.
  3. ↑ Edemariam, Aida (20 February 2010). "People should sort this mess". The Guardian. London.
  4. ↑ "Hollywood flick to tell story of Notts social worker". thisisNottingham. 30 September 2009. Archived from the original on 17 April 2010. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
  5. ↑ "College History". Catholic Agricultural College Bindoon. 2002. Archived from the original on 24 November 2011. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  6. ↑ Barkham, Patrick (7 April 2011). "Child migrants: 'I didn't belong to anybody'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
  7. ↑ "Notts youngsters hope to land part in new film". thisisNottingham. 12 October 2009. Retrieved 18 July 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  8. ↑ "Oranges And Sunshine". Rotten Tomatoes. 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  9. ↑ "Oranges and Sunshine Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
  10. ↑ Ebert, Roger (26 October 2011). "The thieves of lives movie review". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 6 July 2026 – via RogerEbert.com.
  11. ↑ "Winners & Nominees". AACTA. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
  12. ↑ "Film Critics Circle of Australia 2011 Awards Results". AtTheCinema. 15 March 2011. Archived from the original on 22 March 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
  13. ↑ Jennings, Sheri (7 October 2010). "Rome unveils line-up fuelled by young talents". Screen Daily. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
  14. ↑ "Oranges and Sunshine | Projects". International Press Academy. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
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