The Shell Seekers (2006 film)

{{about|the miniseries|the Hallmark Hall of Fame adaptation|The Shell Seekers (1989 film)}}

{{Infobox television

| image =

| caption =

| director = Piers Haggard

| producer = David Cunliffe
Alexander Ollig
Rikolt von Gagern
Verena von Heeremann

| based_on = {{Based on|The Shell Seekers|Rosamunde Pilcher}}

| writer = Brian Finch

| starring = Vanessa Redgrave
Maximilian Schell
Sebastian Koch
Victoria Hamilton

| music = Richard Blackford

| cinematography = Tony Imi

| editor = David Martin

| network = ZDF

| first_aired = {{Start date|2006|12|25|df=y}}

| last_aired = {{End date|2006|12|26|df=y}}

| runtime = 183 min

| country = Germany
United Kingdom

| language = German
English

| budget =

}}

The Shell Seekers ({{langx|de|Die Muschelsucher}}) is a 2006 mini-series starring Academy Award-winners, Vanessa Redgrave and Maximilian Schell. The British-German co-production was directed by Piers Haggard. It is an adaptation of Rosamunde Pilcher's 1987 novel of the same name and premiered on Germany's ZDF on 25 December 2006. It was screened in the United States on the Hallmark Channel on 3 May 2008.[http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20080326hallmark02 Hallmark Channel Announces Production Slate of Original Movies for 2008] Futon Critic. 26 March 2008

Plot

Set in the 1980s, Penelope (Redgrave) is seen to be recovering from a heart attack. Through a series of flashbacks, we learn she is the daughter of Lawrence (Schell), an acclaimed painter. Her children attempt to convince her to sell her father's paintings and ease their financial burdens. As Penelope continues to recover she reflects on her life, as a disillusioned wife and briefly enthralled lover. She embarks on a trip to the Mediterranean where she encounters Antonia (Stumph), whom she meets up with later on in the book, who becomes a woman in the grip of a passionate romance, something Penelope realises she briefly enjoyed.[https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117936950.html?categoryid=32&cs=1 The Shell Seekers Review] Variety. 29 April 2008[http://www.tvprogramm.sf.tv/details/af21b484-8a8b-4ed9-a5ad-5fb92cfbd3b3 Rosamunde Pilcher: Die Muschelsucher, Teil 1] SF TV-Programm. 13 April 2009. German[http://www.tvprogramm.sf.tv/details/68532270-10ee-47cf-af8b-1f64d6c6ba98 Rosamunde Pilcher: Die Muschelsucher, Teil 2] SF TV-Programm. 13 April 2009. German

Cast

Vanessa Redgrave as Penelope Keeling
Maximilian Schell as Lawrence Sterne
Sebastian Koch as Cosmo König
Victoria Hamilton as Nancy Chamberlaine
Stephanie Stumph as Antonia König
Victoria Smurfit as Olivia Keeling
Charles Edwards as Noel Keeling
Alastair Mackenzie as Richard
Prunella Scales as Dolly Keeling
Richard Hope as George Chamberlaine
Toby Fisher as Ambrose Keeling
Cherith Mellor as Mrs. Plackett
Hugh Sachs as Roy Brookner

Production

The mini-series was shot in 2005 in a range of locations such as Cornwall, London and Wales.[http://www.cornwall-devon.com/public/308_The+Shell+Seekers.html The Shell Seekers] Cornwall & Devon. Retrieved on 3 September 2010[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758720/locations Filming locations for The Shell Seekers] IMDB. Retrieved on 3 September 2010

Reception

Variety made comparisons between the series and Redgrave's 2007 film, Atonement. The magazine praised her casting, as Redgrave "delivers a fine, flinty performance". It concluded that "the melancholy ending caps it with a satisfying exclamation point."

Redgrave was awarded Best Actress in a Television Film at the Shanghai International TV Festival.[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758720/awards Awards for The Shell Seekers] IMDB. Retrieved on 3 September 2010