Brian Finch

We're in an English village shortly before Dunkirk. "Mr. Tom" Oakley still broods over the death of his wife and small son while he was away in the navy during WWI, and grief has made him a surly hermit. Now children evacuated from London are overwhelming volunteers to house them. Practically under protest, Mr. Tom takes in a painfully quiet 10-year-old, who gradually reveals big problems... (imdb)

Swiss girl Adelheid 'Heidi' is orphaned young. Aunt Detie brings her to grandpa Alp, who lives isolated in the Alps since his murder charge. Heidi soon takes to the wild country, especially accompanying young goatherd Peter. Grandpa refuses to send her to school in the city, but aunt Detie returns and forces him to give in. She's sent to a posh lady in Frankfurt, where she'll be a companion for crippled daughter Clara after school hours.

Shifting in time, the film tells the story of Penelope, the daughter of unconventional parents, examining her past and her relationships with her adult children. Penelope in her 60s is discharged from the hospital after what was seemingly a heart attack. Penelope's life from young womanhood to the present is revealed, from her own point-of-view and those of her children. Much of the forward impetus of the film involves a painting called "The Shell Seekers," given to Penelope at her wedding.