Film where a boy from the present goes back in time to the Victorian era and sees a library on fire

Question

I can't remember the name, only a few details.

I believe it was a Christmas film (I could be wrong) where a boy went to visit his grandparents in a big house, in like the English countryside. One night -- I'm unsure if this was a dream -- but he ends up back in time in the Victorian era. There he meets an older boy, and a boy he then finds out is his granddad.

This is where it gets weird. All I remember is the older boy gets his leg trapped in a rabbit or bear trap, and I think he then dies.

Another thing I remember is the library in the house being on fire and a girl.

I watched this film about 9 or 10 years ago, but I'd say it's from the early 2000s, or possibly the 2010s. It was a modern film set present day; the main character wore clothing which reflected that.

I know it's not a lot, but I remember it so vividly and it has been bugging me for YEARS.

Answer 1

This has to be The Amazing Mr. Blunden, which was released in December 1972. Despite the grim events in the film, it is indeed a time-traveling Christmas story. The children are sent to a country house, where their mother will be the caretaker. The children encounter ghosts of two children who lived in the house a hundred years ago, and there was indeed a fire, deliberately set in the library in the past. I don't recall a trap, though. Check out the link for more details.

Answer 2

Could this be The Time Game (1992)?

Boy stays with grandparents after a fire at his school. Time travels to the victorian era.

Answer 3

This sounds very much like “The Ghost of Greville Lodge” from 2000.

Its about a boy who goes to stay with his uncle at a country mansion, subsequently meeting a mysterious boy and girl in the grounds who he makes friends with, and discovers the west wing is sealed off and no one will talk about it.

The boy ends up going back in time, discovering that there was a fire in the west wing which caused a family tragedy, and indeed experiencing that fire in one time slip. There is a link between the boy, girl and the modern characters.

Answer 4

A bit of a long-shot, but could this be Oskar & Josefine (2005)?

The titular coprotagonists go back in time while staying with the boy's grandparents, not to Victorian times but something approaching medieval Norway.

Answer 5

Could this be From Time to Time (2009)...?

From Time to Time is a 2009 British fantasy drama film directed by Julian Fellowes starring Maggie Smith, Timothy Spall, Carice van Houten, Alex Etel, Eliza Bennett, Elisabeth Dermot-Walsh, Dominic West, Hugh Bonneville, and Pauline Collins. It was adapted from Lucy M. Boston's children's novel The Chimneys of Green Knowe (1958). The film was shot in Athelhampton Hall, Dorset.

Set in England, this ghostly, haunting story spans two worlds, over a century apart. Near the end of World War II, teen-aged Tolly (Alex Etel) goes to spend Christmas at his grandmother's large country estate, Green Knowe. Tolly's soldier father has been reported missing in action while his mother remains in London awaiting more information. His grandmother, Mrs. Oldknow (Maggie Smith), disapproved of her son's marriage, considering his wife a commoner. Mrs. Oldknow is financially strapped and faced with selling Green Knowe.

On Tolly's first night at Green Knowe, he sees and hears a ghostly young girl and adolescent boy. Soon after, he discovers that he magically time travels between the present and the early 19th century in the old manor house. Certain people in that time period can see and communicate with him, while he remains invisible to others. Susan, the blind daughter of Lord Thomas Oldknow, is the ghostly figure that Tolly first saw. She can speak to Tolly both in her time and his. He learns that his grandmother also sees the ancestral ghosts. Susan leads him on an adventure that unlocks family secrets laid buried for generations. Exciting events include a terrible fire, a tale of stolen jewels, and threats of a servant being sold into a press gang.

Although the lost treasure is found and Green Knowe is saved, Tolly's father is a casualty of the war. Mrs. Oldknow finally welcomes Tolly's mother into the family. Tolly is comforted when his father's ghost appears, assuring him everything will be all right.

Answer 6

The Seeker: The Dark Is Rising

Enjoy . It was hard to find it :D

Answer 7

This never got answered properly as I was looking for the same film! There were ice skates hidden in a wardrobe! By the girl in the victorian time if that helps anyone, and the boy only went back in time when he stepped out the front door of the big house.

It was Tom's Midnight Garden

A young boy journeys across the boundaries of reality to a secret, haunted place, half-a-century back in time, in this tale of enchantment, shadows and lost memories.

Trailer