Swallows and Amazons (2016 film) an old-fashioned relic. And the grey, blustery Lake District weather could hardly be more British". Swallows and Amazons (2016 film) Swallows and Amazons is a 2016 British family adventure film directed by Philippa Lowthorpe and written by Andrea Gibb, based on Arthur Ransome's children's novel of the same name, first published in 1930. The film stars Andrew Scott, Rafe Spall, Kelly Macdonald, Jessica Hynes, and Harry Enfield. Principal photography began on 21 June 2015 in the Lake District. The film, which was released on 19 August 2016, is the third audiovisual adaption of the novel; the first being a 6-part
Swallows and Amazons (2016 film) film's changes to the book's character Jim Turner, writing, "In the film he is engaged in espionage and pursued by Russian agents, which gives the story some grown-up oomph, and pays fitting tribute to the author's wildly adventurous early life. For Ransome was not merely a boaty old buffer with a walrus moustache who wrote children's books. As a young journalist he reported on the Russian Revolution, was on intimate terms with its leaders and was himself an active player, which led to his recruitment by MI6." For Alistair Harkness, writing in "The Scotsman", the film "serves as a gentle