- Casting misses happened! I think I found Laura Dern to be the biggest miss. She acted more like a silly sister than the wise, loving Marmee that we all know and love. She wasn't at all like a mother figure. And she was almost snarky at times and her compassion seemed superficial to me.
- Emma Watson, can't act people, and her accent slipped a few times and she was just painful to watch the majority of the time. You saw Meg's weaknesses but never her strength that I can recall.
- I think Timothee Chalamet did the best he could with how Laurie was written and yet Laurie missed several times for me. He was to young at times and the fact that they didn't make him "look the part" of a dandy at any point when he's just pining after Jo while in Europe was a missed opportunity because you couldn't tell that he was supposed to be as lazy and useless as he was and he still looked so young! So Laurie was just ok to me. He wasn't bad, but he wasn't my favorite either.
- I liked that there was added attention on Amy in this version if only because other versions have so entirely missed on portraying her. I think Florence Pugh did well with having to play both the adolescent and the adult Amy even though sometimes you can tell that she isn't even close to the age she is pretending to be. But otherwise, I did like Amy.
- Okay, the relationship between Jo and the publisher was rather fun. Their exchanges were very amusing. I liked it very much.
- Jo and the Professor, rather, and almost entirely, overlooked. We had brief exchanges that might have hinted at more than just a friendship between the two but I think if you were just watching this version and you had no reference for the Little Women story you'd be totally confused about how their relationship turned out. You wouldn't have felt invested in the "ship" at all. ;)
- That being said, I did like the umbrella scene, proposal scene, whatever you'd like to call it, at the end.
- Oh my friends! There is realistic hair in this movie!! I can't tell you how satisfying that is!!! I am huge into realistic hair and the girls hair was never truly perfect. (Except maybe Meg at the ball which is totally understandable.) What a marvelous thing!
- We finally get more Beth and Jo!! I know that most of the time people want more romance in the movies but really I've missed Beth and Jo's relationship. And in this one we see Jo taking her to the beach to try and cure Beth and how Jo is a very attentive nurse for all her rough tomboy ways, Beth brings out the gentle, more thoughtful side to Jo. So I loved their scenes. They were a lovely addition.
- Jumping back and forth between the past and the present was hard to get used to, and will be especially difficult for those that you are trying to introduce Little Women to. (Just as a warning.) I know why this had to happen in a way because of the time restraint of a theatre released version, it was just one of the downsides of it. Basically, the movie felt rushed at times.
- The sets, I loved them. I found them to be authentically detailed and only really caught my attention because of that detail. Normally, sets don't naturally catch my eye unless previously pointed out to me.
- I touched on Amy already but I just had to mention her little speech she makes on marriage being an economical proposition. I thought it was very well done. I was nervous when I saw some hints at such a scene because those scenes normal delve too heavily into a side of feminism that isn't so much pro-female, but rather anti-male and I can't really get on board with such things, if you understand me. But thankfully, I thought this scene was accurate, for the time, and very well carried out. It made a very good point and wasn't to in your face.
- For the little bit of Beth that we get, I think Eliza Scanlen did a very good job. Her role was a small one in this film and yet I think she still did a fine job of portraying Beth's homemaker, shy traits.
- The costumes were excellent in my mind. This time period isn't one that I have ever been jealous of the costumes. As in, for a would you rather situation I would be hard pressed to be drawn to the style at all much less a favorite. But this movie had a few outfits that I wouldn't mind swiping and I found them quite lovely without being inaccurate.
- Alright, Saoirse Ronan. While June Allyson has been my favorite Jo because she captured the jovial side of Jo March, Saoirse might have just become my favorite overall Jo. She was superb, my friends! I loved her Jo immensely! There is one scene in particular, when she's up in her garret after Beth's death and is trying to sort all her feelings. For those of you who haven't seen this version, I would have you watch this one just for that scene. It's excellent!
So all this to say, I rather liked this version of Little Women. It isn't without it's flaws but it's a good version nonetheless. I hope you can forgive what typos and errors I have in this post, along with all the randomness of my thoughts, I don't have time to proofread today. I'd love to know your thought of Little Women, so please let me know. Have a wonderful day! :D
Yours truly,
Cordy
I don't know if your blog background is new or note but I love it, it looks like Rifle Paper company art, very much my style.
ReplyDeleteI'm already opinionated about Little Women. And this film, ugh. I could write reams. I'll keep myself short (so still long).
For Marmee my intial reaction was ugh, I so dislike her, but I couldn't place her. Basically, I disliked her from somewhere. It was only later, oh, purple-haired waste of space in the last jedi. She's a terrible actress as is Emma Watson. But Emma Watson gets so many roles simply because she's Emma Watson (Beauty and the Beast would've been 100x better simply with a better actress, well an a better iconic Belle dress!). John Brooke was barely in the film, but enough to cause second hand embarrassment at his acting.
Meg is NEVER given enough screen time compared to the time she gets in the book. I love her and John's stories in the book, especially the proposal.
As a history person who follows historical costumers I have to disagree about the costuming.
I hated the hair, it isn't period accurate AT all, like so, so bad. Except maybe Jo as Amy at Bluestocking Dressmaker points out in her excellent critique of the historicity of the costuming. Actually, not really accurate in any time period. Most of the costumes weren't either (see Amy's post). But it wasn't just that, the colors were in often terrible taste and no clothes (except Jo's, at least sometimes) really fit the personality of the character as Mikayla points out in her youtube review. And here's the thing, clothes and taste in clothes were mentioned a LOT in books. Even Jo was interested in fashion to a certain level.
There were two things I liked, Jo's writing costume, highly book accurate. And Jo's pink outfit at the end. Didn't look at all period accurate or Jo accurate, but I'd wear it, it was lovely.
I liked that the professor was younger (and handsome!), that part always made me gag in the book. He should've gotten more time, more developement, made the ending (no Jo and Laurie) more satisfying; they sort of made him a I don't know, consolation prize (which is what it feels like in the book and which I don't think was a good plot or satisfying ending). And that brings me to the flipping back and forth. As much as inaccuracy bothers me, this bothered me most, it made it hard to watch. And it was confusing even for someone familiar with the story. Also, this film is about 20" longer than the 94 version, yet it felt SO much shallower and rushed. There was a lot of filler scenes. The whole film was a "not all the glitters is gold" moment.
Laurie isn't accurate but if he was I'd be more mad that he and Amy get together. I felt similarly in the cute little modern remake of Little Women, definitely low budget indie, but very cute and light I thought, and the best Marmee. Have you seen that one?
It's new-ish, so thank you. :D
DeleteI loathe the purple haired general as well!! Thank goodness someone understands my pain!!! However I rather liked John Brooke. We don't ever get enough of him though, I agree with you there. Especially their proposal which is rather comical but sweet. *moment of silence for Beauty and the Beast* Again, I agree with you. That movie could have been so much better.
I didn't appreciate the style of the hair so much as the fact that it isn't always in place all the time. I mean hair doesn't keep it's place in reality. Even now with all the junk we put in it so it certainly didn't then. That's what I meant by realistic hair, not necessarily authentic to the period. And with the clothes I mean that they weren't overly grand. In other versions I feel like we seem to make the March's appear more grand than they really were in reference to their attire and these costumes (with the exception of European Amy) were on the simpler side in my mind.
This version certainly neglected and in some ways misrepresented Jo's relationship with the professor. We barely get any interaction and then we're supposed to be happy they get together at the end. That would have been so confusing if I was just watching the movie and had no reference to the story. Which is such a shame.
I have not seen that version, I have my own little beef with it and I have just steered clear of it. But I am glad that you liked it, in some ways at least. :)