''Foster'' (also known as ''Angel in the House'') is a 2011 British
comedy-drama
Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
film written and directed by
Jonathan Newman
Jonathan Newman is a British filmmaker and writer. Newman made his first feature film at the age of 25. ''Being Considered'' starred James Dreyfus and David Tennant.
His recent movies include the action adventure film ''Mariah Mundi and the Mi ...
, based on his 2005
short film
A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
. Part of it was shot at
Legoland Windsor
Legoland Windsor Resort (), styled and also known as Legoland Windsor, is a theme park and resort in Windsor, Berkshire in England, themed around the Lego brand. The park opened on 17 March 1996 and is currently operated by Merlin Entertainment ...
in April 2010. The film stars
Golden Globe
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...
winner
Toni Collette
Toni Collette Galafassi (born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, producer, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades throughout her career, includ ...
,
Ioan Gruffudd
Ioan Gruffudd (; (born 6 October 1973) is a Welsh actor. He first came to public attention as Fifth Officer Harold Lowe in ''Titanic'' (1997), and then for his portrayal of Horatio Hornblower in the '' Hornblower'' series of television films ...
,
Richard E. Grant,
BAFTA Award
The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cere ...
winner
Hayley Mills
Hayley Catherine Rose Vivien Mills (born 18 April 1946) is an English actress. The daughter of Sir John Mills and Mary Hayley Bell, and younger sister of actress Juliet Mills, she began her acting career as a child and was hailed as a promising ...
and Maurice Cole.
Plot
Some years after their son is killed in an accident, a married couple (Collette and Gruffudd) decide to adopt a child. One day a 7-year-old boy, Eli (Cole), unexpectedly arrives on their doorstep claiming to be from the adoption agency. Eli wears a suit every day and is very well-spoken for a child. He helps the adults to process their loss, which had stifled both their marriage and their toy business, and lets them embrace life again.
Cast
*
Toni Collette
Toni Collette Galafassi (born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, producer, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades throughout her career, includ ...
as Zooey
*
Ioan Gruffudd
Ioan Gruffudd (; (born 6 October 1973) is a Welsh actor. He first came to public attention as Fifth Officer Harold Lowe in ''Titanic'' (1997), and then for his portrayal of Horatio Hornblower in the '' Hornblower'' series of television films ...
as Alec
* Maurice Cole as Eli
*
Hayley Mills
Hayley Catherine Rose Vivien Mills (born 18 April 1946) is an English actress. The daughter of Sir John Mills and Mary Hayley Bell, and younger sister of actress Juliet Mills, she began her acting career as a child and was hailed as a promising ...
as Mrs. Lange
*
Richard E. Grant as Mr. Potts
*
Anne Reid
Anne Reid, MBE (born 28 May 1935) is a British stage, film and television actress, known for her roles as Valerie Barlow in the soap opera '' Coronation Street'' (1961–1971); Jean in the sitcom '' dinnerladies'' (1998–2000); and her role ...
as Diane
*
Daisy Beaumont
Daisy Beaumont (born 5 May 1974) is an English actress.
Career
Beaumont's television work includes a variety of shows, among others '' The Border'', ''EastEnders'', '' Hotel Babylon'', ''A Touch of Cloth'', ''Agatha Christie's Poirot'', ''Mu ...
as Sarah
* Bobby Smalldridge as Samuel
* Tim Beckman as Jim
*
Jo Wyatt
Jo Wyatt is an English actress. She is known for her voice as Tweak in ''The Octonauts'', Little Miss Helpful, Little Miss Naughty, Little Miss Scary and Little Miss Sunshine in ''The Mr. Men Show''. She also voiced Daisy Kribotnik in ''Love ...
as Jane
*
Haruka Kuroda
is a Japanese actress and presenter. She provided the voice of Noodle from Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett's alternative rock virtual band Gorillaz from 2000 to 2017.
She performed on all the Phase One tour dates as Noodle: She performed Noodl ...
as Translator
Production
''Foster'', the short film, premiered on
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
and
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
in 2007. It won Best Film, Best Actor (for Preston Nyman), Special Jury Prize and Best Screenplay at the Braga International Film Festival in
. The film garnered Newman a nomination for
's New Filmmaker Award. It was also nominated for Best Film at the
became interested in the development of a feature-length film though the film was ultimately produced by ''Bend it Like Beckham'' producer Deepak Nayar. Shooting subsequently began in the spring of 2010 for six weeks on location in
.
and was released in 2012.
film review site ''Persinsala'' calling it a "sweet and very moving comedy with a happy ending" and praising Cole's performance, "caught in the shoes of a child – incredibly mature for his age".