The Secret Garden

"The timeless tale of a special place where magic, hope and love grow."

1993 1h 41m EN

👍

7.4

SOLID

★7.4TMDB · 1,017

DramaFamilyFantasy

Synopsis

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A young British girl born and reared in India loses her neglectful parents in an earthquake. She is returned to England to live at her uncle's castle. Her uncle is very distant due to the loss of his wife ten years before. Neglected once again, she begins exploring the estate and discovers a garden that has been locked and forgotten. Aided by one of the servants' boys, she begins restoring the garden, and eventually discovers some other secrets of the manor.

“The timeless tale of a special place where magic, hope and love grow.”

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Cast

Kate Maberly
Mary Lennox
Heydon Prowse
Colin Craven
Andrew Knott
Dickon
Maggie Smith
Mrs. Medlock
Irène Jacob
Mary's Mother / Lilias Craven
Laura Crossley
Martha
John Lynch
Lord Archibald Craven
Walter Sparrow
Ben Weatherstaff

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Agnieszka Holland
Writers: Caroline Thompson
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America, United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

33 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

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International production across 2 countries: United States of America, United Kingdom.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Agnieszka Holland, shot by Roger Deakins. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Zbigniew Preisner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Isabelle Lorente shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Kate Maberly and Heydon Prowse and Andrew Knott carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The timeless tale of a special place where magic, hope and love grow.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0108071 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Agnieszka Holland directs. Roger Deakins behind the camera. Zbigniew Preisner scores. Isabelle Lorente cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America, United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

133 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2International production across 2 countries: United States of America, United Kingdom.
3Directed by Agnieszka Holland, shot by Roger Deakins. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Zbigniew Preisner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Isabelle Lorente shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Kate Maberly and Heydon Prowse and Andrew Knott carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The timeless tale of a special place where magic, hope and love grow.".
8IMDB entry: tt0108071 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 10 themes, including "based on novel or book", "servant", "garden", "uncle".

The technical file

Cinematography: Roger Deakins
Original score: Zbigniew Preisner
Editing: Isabelle Lorente
Production design: Stuart Craig
Costume design: Marit Allen
Makeup / hair: Robert McCann
Sound: Lora Hirschberg
Runtime: 101 min · 1h 41m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $18,000,000
Box office: $40,000,000
Return: 222% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): G
IMDB: The Secret Garden (1993)

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Agnieszka Holland

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What people are saying

Wuchak2021-06-06
★ 9/10
Beautiful, reverent, awe-inspiring To be honest, I remember seeing previews of this movie way back when it came out (in 1993) and thinking to myself, "WHY would anyone want to see such a film and why would anyone make it?" Well, about five years later it appeared on TV one night and I started watching, fully expecting to turn it off within 20 minutes or so. WOW -- was I ever wrong! What I saw was beautiful and captivating, artistic and entrancing -- filmmaking of the highest order. "The Secret Garden" is a movie of such artistic quality that it ranks up there with the hallowed original "Apocalypse Now" (although they're totally different genres). It's no surprise that Francis Ford Coppola had his hand in both pics -- he was, of course, the director of "Apocalypse Now" and he's the executive producer of "The Secret Garden." In any event, the cinematography is breathtaking and the score is awe-inspiring, ranking with the best in cinematic history. PLOT SPOILER The story's about a spoiled 10-year old English girl, orphaned in India, who comes home to live on her uncle's vast estate in the early 1900s. The girl, Mary, finds herself trapped in a mysterious, colossal manor -- almost a castle -- tyrannically managed by a life-stifling witch, Mrs. Medlock, in the frequent absence of her uncle, Lord Cravin. Because Mary is intelligent, independent and sly she is able to reconnoiter the manor and learn its forbidding secrets. The biggest secret is that her aunt died ten years earlier and her son, Colin, still lives there, albeit confined to a bed, sickly and unable to walk. Her uncle never healed from this heartbreak. Mary discovers another secret in her explorations, a hidden garden, closed off and neglected since her aunt's death. After meeting the sickly and sad Colin, Mary inevitably finds a way to sneak him into the garden along with her pal Dickon. She senses that Colin isn't as sick as everyone is convinced; she knows the best thing would be to get him out of the dreary castle and the oppressive clutches of Mrs. Medlock. Mary and her secret garden are the keys to restoring health, life and freedom to Colin, Lord Cravin and the gloomy manor. END SPOILER "The Secret Garden" is sort of a 1990's version of the outstanding "Pollyanna" with Hayley Mills (1960). Both pics involve a young girl restoring a spirit of joy and liberty to a lifeless community. The difference is that Mary is not even remotely the "glad girl" Pollyanna. In fact, look for the hilarious line from the old gardener who responds to Mary's puzzlement concerning her lack of friends. "The Secret Garden" is no doubt labeled a "children's film," which is a shame because it transcends such a limiting category. The ending's too quaint for my tastes but, nevertheless, this is a beautiful work of wonder and deep mystery, which can be enjoyed by people of all ages -- children and adults. The film was shot in England and runs 101 minutes. GRADE: A

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