This movie was incredible. It was everything I hoped it would be and let me tell you why.
I’ll admit, going into it, I was skeptical. I’m a big fan of the previous version of “Little Women,” starring Winona Ryder as Jo March. I didn’t think it would be able to live up to that movie or my own expectations of the movie. Thankfully, I was wrong. Directed by the wonderful Greta Gerwig, she takes this movie and makes you instantly fall in love with the March women. Told through flashbacks and the present day, we follow Jo March (played brilliantly by Saoirse Ronan) as she attempts to be a professional writer in a man’s world. I have loved this character ever since my mom introduced her to me. My sisters and I were my mother’s “little women,” as she would always refer to us. Even today, Jo’s morals and inner feelings about marriage and love still resonate with me, as I think they do for most women. However, it’s the talent of all four women who make the March sisters lovable. Emma Watson as Meg, Florence Pugh as Amy, and Eliza Scanlen as Beth are perfectly cast and bring the pages of this wonderful story to life. I would be remiss if I didn’t add how great Laura Dern was as Marmee March. She reminded me so much of my mom. The way she brings up her girls to love one another and hold true to the values of kindness and forgiveness is exactly how my mom raised us.
Without spoiling the entire film, this story follows the March sisters as they go through childhood to adulthood. As I mentioned in the beginning, this film goes back a forth between the present day and flashbacks. In the beginning, I really didn’t like that, as I found it hard to follow — but then I figured out Gerwig’s plan. The flashbacks are shot in a lighter tone, which makes sense because the flashbacks are all about the sisters as “little women.” The harshness of the world hasn’t really set upon them. The present-day has a darker, almost colder tone to it and when you see the film in its entirety, you’ll understand why. Within the first twenty minutes, the going back and forth aspect stopped bothering me. In fact, I found that it was what actually drove the story.
As a whole, this movie really holds its own. You can tell there was so much thought into how this story was going to be told and I really appreciate that. Now, in an ideal world, I would actually merge the Winona Ryder and Saoirse Ronan versions so that together you would have, in my personal opinion, the perfect Little Women movie. Gerwig took the four sisters and gave them a fresh take, especially in the way she handles Amy’s and Laurie’s storylines. I really loved what she did with that, compared to the Ryder version. Beth’s storyline is also very interesting as Gerwig allows this to showcase the different characteristics of the four sisters, just in the way they handle Beth’s predicament. Jo as the strong one, Meg as the empathetic one, and Amy as the tough one. If I haven’t said it enough, it was beautifully done and Gerwig deserves all the praise in the world for creating such a remarkable film. Brava.
Have you seen the film yet? What did you think? Let me know in the comments!
***I do not own these photos/gifs.
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