Bookworm (2024)

The new film from Ant Timpson, director of 2019's COME TO DADDY and producer of THE ABCS OF DEATH movies, gets a digital release from Signature Entertainment.

The bookworm of the title is precious, fiercely intelligent and extremely well-read 11 year old Mildred. When her mother suffers an electric shock from a malfunctioning toaster and ends up in a coma, Mildred's long-absent father Strawn (Elijah Wood) turns up. Disappointed that Mildred appears unimpressed with her father's career as a second rate TV magician, Strawn agrees to accompany her into the wilds of New Zealand on a hunt for the legendary Canterbury Panther. It's not long before the two of them are enjoying adventures and undergoing hardships neither of them could have predicted.

COME TO DADDY was a deserved hit on 2019's horror festival circuit and while BOOKWORM might not sound like an obvious follow-up, we're not long into the running time before this very much feels like another Timpson picture, filled with quirky charm and clever wit, engaging performances from all concerned and, this time around, some stunning location photography. Nell Fisher is excellent and likeable as Mildred, and the always reliable Elijah Wood adds yet another eccentrically appealing character to his CV in this highly entertaining piece. Great stuff. Here's a trailer:

Ant Timpson's BOOKWORM is out on digital from Signature Entertainment on Monday 11th November 2024