Little Women (2019) is the seventh film adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 novel of the same name. This coming-of-age story follows the four March sisters, Jo, Meg, Amy, and Beth, as they navigate their lives during the civil war in Massachusetts. As young teenagers, their father is gone to serve in the civil war which stretches the sisters and their mother monetarily thin, despite this, they find joy with each other and their neighbour, Laurie. As they grow older, they no longer live together as Meg gets married, Jo moves to New York to be a writer, Amy resides in Paris to become a painter, and Beth stays home with worsening health. The film goes back and forth between the lives of all the sisters as young teens and young adults with Jo as the protagonist.
Writing and directing a classic as iconic as Little women can be a daunting challenge because if the result disregards the original, the audience will most definitely scorn the film. However, Gerwig did a great job of replicating the overtone of the original novel with a few inconsistencies. Some scenes were not as serious as they were in the book such as the scene in which Jo, Laurie, and Amy go ice skating and Amy falls into the ice. There were also many criticisms of the historical accuracies of the wardrobe, hair, and makeup as it was deemed too modern with a lack of bonnets and too much long open hair. However, that criticism did not take me out of the movie too much as I suppose I don’t have the eye to detect issues in 19th-century American costume.
The greatest asset of this movie is the casting with standout performances by Saoirse Ronan as Jo, Florence Pugh as Amy, and Timothee Chalamet as Laurie. Because the story of Little Women is so focused on character development rather than plot, quality casting is important, and the casting director found actors who really embodied their roles. The chemistry between the March sisters and Laurie felt real and was extremely well-acted. This movie is a must-watch if you enjoy period pieces, especially pieces that take place in the 19th century.