Photographing Fairies

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Photographing Fairies ★★ 1997 (R)

Haunting story that's not quite as compelling as it could be. After Anne-Marie (Shelley), the bride of photographer Charles Castle (Stephens), is killed on their honeymoon, Charles shuts down emotionally, and the horrors he photographs in WWI only numb him further. After the war, Charles sets up a studio in London and becomes an expert in unmasking doctored photos. When Beatrice (Barber) shows him photos of fairies taken by her young daughters, Charles travels to her country home to expose them as fakes. Instead, Charles comes to believe that the fairies represent the “Other Side” and if he can photograph their spirit world, he can enter it and be reunited with his lost love. Based on the novel by Steve Szilagyi. The premise involving the young girls and the faked fairy photos is also the basis of the film “Fairytale: A True Story.” 107m/C VHS . GB Toby Stephens, Frances Barber, Ben Kingsley, Emily Woof, Philip Davis, Rachel Shelley, Edward Hardwicke, Hannah Bould, Miriam Grant, Clive Merrison; D: Nick Willing; W: Nick Willing, Chris Harrald; C: John de Borman; M: Simon Boswell.