A Feast at Midnight

Why oh why is this delightful movie not available on Region 1 DVD or video? WHY??????? I long to own it. This movie is so wonderful! It was directed by Justin Hardy, son of *the* Robert Hardy, beloved by all Jane Austen fans for his roles as General Tilney and Sir John Middleton. Robert Hardy has a role in this masterpiece as well. This is a film about boys in an English boarding school. The outcasts of the school band together and create a secret cooking club, where they bake the most delicious, forbidden treats imaginable. The main character has a correspondence with his father, who has been in ill health, that is touching, humorous, and beautiful. This correspondence heartens and inspires the boy and helps lead to and support the creation of his secret cooking club. Oh, I just want to take a moment to BEG!! BEG, I tell you!! BEG the powers that be to release this film on REGION 1 DVD!! Please!!!!!!!! If you can watch this movie (it's available on PAL video) you should -- you must -- it will add such joy to your life!!

I went to this kind of school and only wish we had had the opportunity to have this much fun. Of course the head was very strict in the movie as he was in my school and we would not have dared to break rules in that way. The sensual part was deftly handled and gave no cause for concern. This was in every way a family movie.

I enjoyed it immensely because I guess I am still a kid at heart and I love to cook. What a great relationship this kid had with his Dad and with the other boys in the school. Edward Fox was very believable as the English gentleman gourmet father of our hero, Magnus.

Kudos to the writer, the director and the boys who did all that fine acting especially Freddy Findlay. Definitely a film that can be watched more than once.

I have such fond memories of this film (if you can have fond memories before you're 40), it was like the realisation of a childhood fantasy, which, let's face it, is everything a movie should be. Identifying with the characters was no stretch at all, and neither was the situation which I can give testament to from several similar pantry-raids with friends in the boarding house. Christopher Lee is the perfect villain cum headmaster, and I will never forget that little boy at the mixing bowl, enthusiastically covering himself in flour. This movie is pleasantly nostalgic (at any age!) way to spend an hour and a half (I would recommend with a nice helping of some of your favourite comfort food). After all who doesn't love food and children besting the grown- ups? Just insert your old headmaster/mistress's face here and enjoy the show...

This is a "hidden gem" of a movie. It has all the elements of a fun and wonderful movie experience for idealists and cynics alike! The movie has good pacing and wonderful minor twists and turns on the plot that actually have you saying to yourself "hurray!"

Christopher Lee gives a splendid performance in one of the most charming films made in Great Britain in recent memory. A Feast at Midnight is one of those warm family entertainments that manages to delight both children and parents alike.

Young Magnus Gove (Freddie Findlay) is sent away to an austere boarding school that manages to serve the most unpalatable of meals. Even the Headmaster (Robert Hardy) can barely stomach the overly healthy menu. Magnus' father (Edward Fox in a short cameo) sends him a number of enticing recipes, which spur Magnus and his oddball group of friends to venture, in the dead of night, into that forbidden no-boys land of "The Kitchen". There they discover the true meaning of friendship as they concoct the most unlikely of meals. The interaction between the boys that make up "The Scoffers" club is priceless. All handled with just the right tone by director Justin Hardy (son of The Wicker Man's Robin Hardy), to avoid falling into the bottomless well of gushing sentimentality.

Christopher Lee handles the key role of Latin Master, V. E. Longfellow aka Raptor, with great aplomb. His stern features belie a warm and fun-filled heart as is evidenced by the exchange of low-key double entendre with Miss Plunder (Carol Macready) the housekeeper over her home-cooked meals. One of the most memorable moments is of course, the kitchen scene homage to Jurassic Park. I can't even begin to explain just how pleasing this scene is. There is no question that Mr. Lee's character lives up to and deserves the Raptor moniker! To check out a clip of the Raptor sequence, visit the Multimedia page here at the site. There is also a very gentle homage to Hammer, as Raptor wakes in the night upon hearing a noise, his eyes pop open in a darkened room, in a way that is very reminiscent of a Transylvanian Count. Truly one of Mr. Lee's best and warmest performances. An excellent demonstration of why Christopher Lee is far more than simply a horror icon, but a multi-talented actor capable of a wide range of characterization! Enjoy...