It’s the story of a young orphan, a sick boy, and a secret garden that unlocks something special within them, branching out into the lives of everyone else. The first trailer for the latest adaptation of The Secret Garden, from the folks behind Paddington, is here to bring a little more magic into the world.
The Secret Garden stars Dixie Egerickx as Mary Lennox, a young girl living in then-occupied India (although the movie has now bumped up the time frame of the story to be set on the eve of the Partition, the separation of formerly British-controlled territory that formed India and Pakistan as we know them today) with her wealthy parents.
After her parents die, she’s sent to Britain to live with her uncle (Paddington’s own Colin Firth) and his son, Colin (Edan Hayhurst), who’s been hidden away in an isolated wing of Misselthwaite Manor because of his illness.
Everything changes when Mary comes across a key to a secret garden on the remote country estate, one that’s enormous, lavish, and seemingly magical. Flowers spring to life around her, branches rise to pluck her out of the trees, and the whole garden seems like a never-ending maze of wonder.
It’s unclear in the trailer how much of the garden is magical realism or stemming from Mary’s imagination ” based on the book I’m guessing it’s the latter.
The Secret Garden is based on the classic 1911 novel from Frances Hodgson Burnett, and was turned into a movie (that I loved to death) in the early 90s. There were also reports in 2013 of Guillermo del Toro working on his own version, though we haven’t heard anything since.
I’m sure there are those who still love the 1993 version just as much as I do, but I will say: This version is catching my eye. Nothing wrong with more secret gardens. Fill the earth with them! Then maybe we can finally combat climate change.
The film arrives in theatres in spring 2020.