The Movie Was Wack: The Little Princess

I love this movie. It's really entertaining and fun... but it's not A Little Princess. Literally - notice the The? It's a Shirley Temple film first, and A Little Princess adaptation second. Or maybe even third or fourth. It doesn't have a helluva lot in common with the original text - sure, character names are the same, and the bare bones of the plot are there, but all the muscle has a decidedly different shape. If there wasn't another great adaptation, that might annoy me more, but as it is I was pretty happy to go along for the Templetastic ride.

She is her adorable self in this film - complete with all the singing, dancing, pouting, dimply smiles and a good dose of by-golly-goshness. But she's not Sara Crewe. Oh, that's her character's name, and there's talk about how she'd rather read books and imagine things than do anything else, but her actions speak loudly in contradiction to this. I guess I can't complain too much, because I still found her more likable than Sara in the book. It was the movie characters that didn't exist in the book at all that tended to bug me; I felt they detracted from the story more than they added to it, in particular replacing some of the whimsical and magical aspects that are so great in the book. So, while as a Shirley Temple film this is awesome, as an adaptation it's not so much.

Rating: 3/5

Changes That Worked

• As in the more recent adaptation, the fate of Sara's father is changed for the better.
• Shirley gives Sara much more sparkle and spunk than she has in the book - one of my favourite moments is when she dumps a bucket of coal dust onto Lavinia's head. I also enjoyed her song and dance numbers, even if the second one is oddly timed (in the middle of her search for her father), and the dream sequence is totally random and trippy.
• Becky was also given better treatment in this version, even receiving gifts at the same time as Sara. I really enjoyed her character, even though she didn't get a lot of screen time.

Changes That Didn't

• The addition of more adults for Sara to befriend at Miss Minchin's essentially replaced her friendships with the girls (except for Becky) which was a shame.
• The war storyline overshadowed Sara's experiences at the school.
• I also found Rose's romance totally unnecessary - sure, it was a sweet story, and would have been nice in another movie, but it had no place in this one.
• I don't understand why Queen Victoria had to be there - or why the movie ended with Sara and Captain Crewe meeting her, with no real resolution, especially for important characters like Becky and Miss Minchin. WTF?!

The Movie Was Better: A Little Princess

The 1995 version of A Little Princess was one of my favourite movies growing up, and I'm happy to say it's stood the test of time and is still lovely to watch now. I got an instant hit of nostalgia as soon as the opening chords of the theme played, and was drawn once again into Sara's story. Yep, I actually liked Sara in the movie (unlike in the book) - she's got a bit of spunk to her in this incarnation, and benefits from the removal of the endless praise she receives in the book.

One of my favourite parts of the movie is the score - I haven't heard it in so long but, as I already mentioned, it's instantly recognisable, effectively creating a magical, whimsical mood. The gorgeous cinematography is another highlight; there are some things that don't make a lot of sense in the story (like Sara happily dancing in the snow wearing nothing but a nightgown), but they sure are pretty. The acting is pretty good all round, and the script itself is remarkably faithful to the book, despite one or two rather drastic changes (spoilers ahead)...

Changes That Worked

• By placing the story at the outbreak of WWI, it gives Sara's father a stronger reason for sending her to school. The separation that hurts them both so much is not by choice.
• As I already said, Sara is a much more likable character. She's definitely not too perfect - she's downright "wicked" at times ("cursing" Lavinia and pranking Miss Minchin) - but these are some of her most triumphant moments, where her strong spirit shone through.
• The other girls at the school were also more likable. I love the way they put themselves at risk to get Sara's locket back for her - their friendship was touching.
• Sara treats Becky as an equal, they BOTH receive gifts from Ram Dass and in the end it even seems as though Sara's father adopts Becky.
• Which brings me to the biggest change - and the one that made me happiest: Sara's dad lives! I love happy endings.

Changes That Didn't

• I don't get why the action was moved from England to America. It's not a big deal overall, I just thought it was pointless -  and it weakened the story somewhat with regards to the neighbour/benefactor. The transformation of Captain Crewe's friend into an old man who loses his son at war wouldn't bother me in itself, except that as an American, it makes no sense for the boy to have gone to war at that stage. The US didn't enter WWI until 1917.
• I could have done without Miss Amelia's romance - I just thought it was a bit silly.
• Miss Minchin is almost too much of a biatch to start with - she doesn't quite suck up to Sara as much as she does in the books. Plus her reasons for hating her are much less apparent, making her character more two-dimensional.
• I missed the shopping scene with Captain Crewe and Sara, when they find Emily. I didn't like how it was the Captain who bought Emily himself, and named her, and even told Sara about how dolls come alive when we're not looking. In the book, she picks Emily, names her, and imagines that she's real - and it was one of the few things I liked about the little brat.

Rating: 4/5

Review: A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

I hate to say it, but I was disappointed with this book.

I should note before I go any further that my opinion was probably doomed from the outset by high expectations, and it was pretty much impossible for me to be fair. Because, you see, while I never read this book as a child, I watched the 1995 movie adaptation obsessively and also enjoyed the 1939 version, PLUS have a special place in my heart for Burnett's The Secret Garden - both the book and movie versions. So, like I said, my expectations were pretty damn high - and it was hard for me not to compare this book to all those other things.

While it told the story I was expecting - of a kind little girl named Sara being sent to a boarding school by her loving father, who then finds herself suddenly friendless and penniless, having to use her inner strength and imagination to overcome her lot - I was surprised at how different it was from the movies. There was one glaring plot point that I'd assumed was an intrinsic part of the story, because it appears in both film versions (despite them being very different in other ways), and I was shocked and disappointed that it was actually absent from the book. But I tried to be fair and get over that (after all, it's not the book's fault the movie versions changed its story) and instead focus on the magical and whimsical aspects of the plot that I love. Occasionally I succeeded, but unfortunately more often than not my attention was dragged back to things that really annoyed me.

For instance, the way the book dealt with race and servants. I know I shouldn't judge it by modern standards, but it was hard not to get irritated at the way poor Becky was treated - even by those who were supposedly kind to her. Similarly, it was difficult not to be disgusted by the descriptions of India and its inhabitants, and Sara's reflection that they were once her slaves - this, coming from a supposedly noble girl!

Which brings me to Sara herself. The little princess drove me nuts. Which in itself annoyed me - I wanted to like her SO badly (She reads! She loves stories and imagining things! She's smart! She's brave!) - but the more time I spent with her, the more I disliked her. She was just so perfect that she didn't seem real; on the rare occasions she showed "wickedness" (the few times I started to like her again), she quickly reined herself in. I know she's supposed to be an admirable character, with traits to aspire to, and I did like the message that positive thinking and kindness can be their own rewards, but it was just rammed down my throat so hard that I almost sympathised with the awful Miss Minchin. Who could blame her for wanting to bring Little Miss Perfect down a peg or two?!

I feel terrible saying all this because, like I said, I loved the story growing up and I'm surprised at how little I loved it after finally reading it. Of course, it wasn't awful - there's still the magic and whimsy there, and the story itself is enchanting. But with such an archetypal heroine, what should have been just my cup of tea was way too sweet for my tastes.

Rating: 3/5

Spoilery Talking Points

• I've already touched on this, but I felt so bad for Becky. I hated the way that, even when she was receiving kindness, it was only as a result of being in Sara's orbit, and then all she got was basically Sara's crappy castoffs. Literally - Sara gets a fluffy new mattress because her old, hard one is looked at as too cruel for her - and yet this is the mattress that Becky gets as a gift?! Likewise, when Sara gets new clothes from her mysterious benefactor, and the package is specifically addressed to "The little girl in the attic on the right", I couldn't help thinking, "what about the little girl in the attic on the left?!"
• I was gutted by what happened to Captain Crewe. I'd much rather focus on the happily-ever-after presented by the movies.
• I thought it was interesting to note the differences between Sara and Mary from The Secret Garden. They both have similar backgrounds - raised in India, spoiled rotten and waited on hand and foot before being thrust into cold, harsh England - and yet were such different characters. I wondered if this was down to the one significant difference in their upbringings - Sara was extremely loved, while Mary was basically ignored. It's interesting that Sara is thus a kind, imaginative, too-perfect girl from the beginning, while Mary is pretty darn horrid to start with, and it's only once she starts to feel love (both given and received) that her kindness, gentleness and imagination come to life.

Eye Candy/Who I "Cast"
With the movie cast scorched into my mind from repeated viewings growing up, I basically couldn't picture anyone else. I did, however, manage to slip James McAvoy in as Captain Crewe and Michael Fassbender in as the Indian gentleman. (Can you tell I watched X-Men: First Class recently? I loved their bromantic chemistry).

Challenges

Classic Bribe

Books to Movies (Movie reviews to come!)