Because I Can’t Read Whole Novels in 90 Minutes

Just got home from watching the 1994 Little Women.  I must say I’ve been looking forward to it all day.  There’s nothing quite like a good adaptation of one of your favorite novels to be a quick fix at the end of a long day.  Perhaps that’s what inspires folks to adapt books into film because most people can’t exactly sit down and plow through a novel in 90 min or so.  I know my life as an English major would be much easier if that were the case.  But I digress.

I must say, without reservation, that in loving the 94 version of the film I come almost as close to my love of the novel.  Obviously there will always be things that get lost in the transference from medium to medium (case and point is the lack of boat scene with Amy and Laurie) but this film is definitely pretty darn close to perfect.   We may not have a better word yet, but the “feeling” I get when reading Little Women is the same as when I watch Winona Ryder and Gabriel Byrne (or perhaps he’s just yummy and I’m biased, so sue me).  But beyond my obvious admiration of Professor Bhaer, I must say that I absolutely love Susan Sarandon’s portrayal of Marmee.  Sarandon makes Marmee come alive as not just a loving mother but also a strong woman who sacrafices for her family and wishes she could give her girls “a more just world.”  That is by far one of my favorite lines.  I feel like this version of the film is the most true to Alcott’s world of Little Women.  All four girls get a chance to grow and become full characters.  More importantly, however, is the way they interact with each other.  I think this version of the film really shows the March family as a cohesive unit with all sorts of delightful inner workings.