Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1864 in DVD
• Released on: 1999-06-28
• Rating: Universal, suitable for all
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 113 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The flaws are easily forgiven in this beautiful version of Louisa May Alcott's novel. A stirring look at life in New England during the Civil War, Little Women is a triumph for all involved. We follow one family as they split into the world, ending up with the most independent, the outspoken Jo (Winona Ryder). This time around, the dramatics and conclusions fall into place a little too well, instead of finding life's little accidents along the way. Everyone now looks a bit too cute and oh, so nice. As the matron, Marmee, Susan Sarandon kicks the film into a modern tone, creating a movie alive with a great feminine sprit. Kirsten Dunst (Interview with the Vampire) has another showy role. The young ensemble cast cannot be faulted, with Ryder beginning the movie in a role akin to light comedy and crescendos to a triumphant end worthy of an Oscar. --Doug Thomas

Special Features
1.85 Wide Screen
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
DVD 9
French\German\Italian\Spanish
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 5.1 English German Spanish
Dolby Digital Surround English French Italian
Dolby Digital 5.1
Dolby Digital Surround
Theatrical Trailer
Filmographies
Arabic\Czech\Danish\Dutch\English\Finnish\French\German\Greek\Hebrew\Hindi\Hungarian\Icelandic\Italian\Norwegian\Polish\Portuguese\Spanish\Swedish\Turkish

Synopsis
The fourth screen adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's classic 1869 novel, LITTLE WOMEN, is given a realistic and rounded treatment by screenwriter Jo Swicord and Australian director Gillian Armstrong, whose perspective emphasises a feminist tone. The story chronicles the lives of a mother and four daughters and their daily toils during the Civil War in the absence of their father, a Union army chaplain. Winona Ryder (in an Oscar-nominated performance) is vibrant as Jo, the least conventional of the sisters. Christian Bale captures the ebullience of their neighbour, Laurie, whose company Jo enjoys so much it seems inevitable that they will end up together. Kirsten Dunst (at age 12) gives a fiery performance as the younger Amy, proving even more willful than Jo; Claire Danes brings a mysterious otherworldliness to Beth. LITTLE WOMEN, touchingly rendered, has many subtle moments and an appropriately moving visual sense to accompany the narrative. Susan Sarandon and Gabriel Byrne also star in this well-crafted film.

Customer Reviews

This remake is Absolute perfection !
absolutely adored this remake of the classic story Little Women. I thought the whole movie was superb and perfectly cast and am really glad this remake was done. It was a great night at the movies.

Watching this movie made me enraptured with this time period and made me also want to know these people. The story wasn't changed and the movie's warmth and gentleness were still as luminous as ever. No flashiness at all just magnificent storytelling and it was really superb to see.

With so many movies oriented toward violence, anger, brutality etc Little Women is a breath of fresh air. I love all types of movies but where would we be without an occasional heartwarming, uplifting(at times) classic like this?

Everyone was flawless in this but I must single out Danes, Sarrandon and one of my favorites Ms Winona! (Who else but Winona could have played Jo?).

If you haven't seen this yet you certainly should. Little women is another classic that never gets old. This remake is Absolute perfection !

Superbly Acted Classic
Louisa May Alcott's book has come to life in vivid detail and beauty. The casting is superb. The four sisters are a pleasure to watch and view as they develop into young ladies who experience both the pleasures and pains of growing into adulthood. The film depicts the changes in each character from adolescence and the growing pains associated with making independent decisions based on their personalities and values. As young ladies with education who grew up in a household where their opinions were heard and mattered, they stand in direct contrast with the majority of girls growing up at that time ...

In the attic, the sisters enact all the parts of a play which Jo had written ... it was a great moment when they invited Theodore Lawrence into their circle of friends. The individuality of each sister is quite evident. The film does a fine job of presenting each character, Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy as unique individuals who blossom, each into her own personality, when they are forced to make choices and deal with building their own lives. The film shows the flow of everyday life around the time of the Civil War, when their father was serving as a soldier. The film does a wonderful job of showing the social structure and class differences of the era. The language, speech and manners of the times are well acted ...

The close bonds of sisterhood are threatened by Beth's illness, and eventual death. The film presents Jo, Meg and Amy as they develop into responsible adults with independent lives and interests apart from the cocoon of the family. Meg's courtship and eventual marriage to a school teacher/tutor is done well, especially the birth of their twins. Amy's ambitions of marrying into wealth and becoming a lady, and the value conflicts associated with this desire when she meets Theodore Lawrence in Paris is superbly done. Jo's move to live in New York at a boarding house, broadens her life experiences as she is challenged by Frederick, a German professor she bumps into by chance. Her wings are spread as she learns to fly solo within this new and challenging environment. Despite their differences, the sisters are forever connected by the bonds of family and love which makes the book and film an enduring classic. Erika Borsos [pepper flower]

One of my absolute favourite films
This movie is a truly heartwarming, emotional and touching story about the lives and loves of 4 sisters, who have been left poor while their father has gone off to fight in the American Civil War. There is no limit to the number of the times I can watch this film, and I can be sure that every time I do I'll be moved to tears! One of the things I like most about this film is the score - the music is what will make you cry, and really gives it a great sense of atmosphere. The acting is brilliant, my heart breaks every time I watch Laurie's proposal scene! If you like romance, period drama, or just a really good story, this is for you, buy it today!
PS. Gabriel Byrne is hot in this. (!!!)