First part of a twin bill I watched featuring Ian McKellen (X-Men, Lord of the Rings). He played a fire and brimstone country preacher that reminded me of the 17th Century Puritan Minister Cotton Mather.<br /><br />The movie starred Eileen Atkins (Cold Mountain) and Kate Beckinsale (Underworld). Beckansale played a girl in 1930s England who went to the rural farm property after the death of her father. In a period comedy she proceeds to change the lives of her extended family in a way that gives each of them what they want and free them from their bondage to the seemingly crazy matriarch (Sheila Burrell).<br /><br />It was a very cute piece and to see Ian McKellen preach his sermon was an experience not to be forgotten.