Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Hayden Kane There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

phoenix 2 As I haven't read the book-comic book, I can't say if it's a good adaption or not. But the animation as it is is good enough. The story is very truthful and you can easily be moved by it. The characters are simple, ordinary people, who try to deal with the hardships that life throws at them. The couple's dynamics were great and the family drama was moving. I loved that the movie kept it real and didn't try to idolised the situation or soften it. The drawings were really good, with soft colours that reminded of a winter tale rather than a fantasy fairy tale. So, my rating is 4 out of 10.

Jackson Booth-Millard I saw this cartoon film advertised in the paper, and I searched for an image of the graphic novel it is based on, I sort of recognised it, I loved the films The Snowman and Father Christmas, so I was looking forward to another Raymond Briggs adaptation. Basically it tells the story of Briggs parents, Ethel (Brenda Blethyn) and Ernest (Jim Broadbent), from their meeting in 1928 until their deaths in 1971. London milkman Ernest courts and marries housemaid Ethel, they have son Raymond in 1934, during the breakout of the Second World War. Raymond must be evacuated to the countryside, Ethel tearfully allows him to leave to live with his aunts in Dorset, while Ernest joins the fire service to tackle to shocking carnage from various bombings and attacks on the city. Eventually hostility ends ans Raymond returns home, Ethel and Ernest are concerned of his choice to enter a grammar school to study art, he goes on to from National Service to art college and a teaching post. Ethel and Ernest meanwhile continue to live their lives together mostly at home, Ernest is easygoing and has an interest modern progress and technology, while Ethel does her duties and concerns, this includes her worrying for adult Raymond (Luke Treadaway) when he marries schizophrenic Jean (Karyn Claydon). Ethel and Ernest listen to the radio and watch television to overhear and watch the most momentous social and political developments of the 20th century. The Briggs family is struck by tragedy when Ethel slips away, developing Alzheimer's, she dies and leaves Ernest to grieve, but then he passes away later the same year, Raymond mourns, but goes on to have a successful career as an author and illustrator. Also starring Pam Ferris as Mrs. Bennett / Aunty Betty, Roger Allam as Middle Aged Doctor, Peter Wight as Detective Sergeant Burnley, Virginia McKenna as Lady of the House, June Brown as Ernest's Step Mother and Simon Day as Alf. Broadbent and Blethyn are well chosen to voice the real- life characters of the story, they are very pleasant people with nice normal lives, it is mostly just them talking about the recent events of the time, and doing household things, there is no real story as such, it just works well as a great look at social interaction and how the world around you can affect you, and it has splendid animation, it is a wonderfully simple and enjoyable animated drama. Very good!

TheLittleSongbird Having grown up, and loving to bits (still do), the stories and animations of 'Father Christmas', 'The Bear' and particularly 'The Snowman' and similarly being blown away by 'When the Wind Blows' (another seemingly personal work and I couldn't help being reminded by that when viewing 'Ethel & Ernest'), 'Ethel & Ernest' is yet another Raymond Briggs masterwork.This 2016 animated adaptation couldn't have been more perfectly adapted and is simply sublime also on its own. Its story structure may be somewhat episodic, but actually in no way does that matter at all in this instance. This is due to how brilliantly made 'Ethel & Ernest' was and my vast emotional connection with it. Easily a highlight of my festive-period film/television watching.Like with 'Father Christmas', 'The Bear', 'The Snowman' and 'When the Wind Blows', the animation from start to finish is stunning, from the level of detail to the meticulousness of the drawing. Not to mention the quaint and atmospheric colours and the gut-wrenching scenes depicting World War II and how people lived during it. The music is never intrusive yet always has a presence when needed. The use of music and songs from each stage of both characters' lives giving a sense of authenticity and effectively taking one back.Furthermore, the script has a perfect balance of gentle yet hilarious humour (the funniest lines often coming from Ethel), genuine pathos such as the genuinely heart-rending ending beautifully done and fascinating history that is either educational, takes one back or both (it is somewhat fun to spot the historical figures and events). It also has darker moments (such as the carnage and terror WWII brought) that are quite harrowing and never trivialised and a beautifully pitched, never heavy-handed but admittedly at some time painful honestly. As can be seen, the range of emotions is very wide.The story is easily the most personal of all Briggs stories and essentially a very affectionate yet compellingly real auto-biographical tribute to his real-life parents. It is a story and tribute that is throughout immensely charming, deeply touching, funny and very honest. It is gripping from start to finish, and with a lot going on but with a gentle pace that allows the events to breathe the hour and a half length feels justified and doesn't feel too long or the content over-stretched. Structurally it may seem episodic and slight, but the content is very much eventful.Ethel and especially Ernest themselves are very likable protagonists in all their life stages, while their chemistry and love for one another is very affectionate but sometimes imperfect, a realistic depiction of marriage. Raymond is also charmingly portrayed. While all the vocal cast do a sterling job, Brenda Blethyn and Jim Broadbent are truly outstanding and give Ethel and Ernest remarkably vivid life, making them compellingly real characters and relatable rather than stock or caricatures.All in all, nothing to fault here, another masterful Raymond Briggs adaptation. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Prismark10 Ethel & Ernest is a tribute by author Raymond Briggs to his working class parents. Both meet in 1928, Ethel who is older, is a maid to a wealthy family. Ernest, a milkman who is 5 years her junior waves at her every day and then one day brings her flowers and asks her out.Ernest is a Labour supporter, Ethel believe that the toffs are born to rule and is a Conservative. They get married and Ernest saves enough money to put down a deposit for a house and get a mortgage. Eventually little Raymond arrives but they could not have anymore children. When war breaks out Raymond is sent to the country where he would be away from the bombing raids.After the war, Ernest cheers on the creation of the welfare state but ongoing rationing places a strain. As Raymond gets older, he does his bit in National Service and later goes to art school and insists on having long hair.The film becomes more episodic as we go through the swinging sixties and eventually to their old age. Ernest, ever the optimist, although it dawns on him that as a manual worker, he was always relatively low paid (he finds out that Raymond could earn just as much as him by working one day in art school) but he did manage to buy a house in London and eventually purchased a car.A charming animated film of two people in love and coping with events but also a social history of the twentieth century. Lovely voice work from Brenda Blethyn and Jim Broadbent.