I'm going to save you the story synopsis, because you should already know it. I don't say that to shame you if you don't. Rather, it's a warning. The harshest criticism I can give this movie is that it plays more to the fans than the unacquainted. There are a few story beats that just don't play as strongly if you can't attach prior meaning to them. The big one I'm thinking of is the fate of Jo's (Saoirse Ronan) first novel. It's one of the key moments I remember from past versions and the most often cited that I hear from others, yet this movie doesn't really sell it. Perhaps that's intentional though. Gerwig, who wrote and directed the film, adds a fresh perspective on the story. The most obvious change is that tells both parts of the story concurrently rather than in order. The main focus is on the sisters as adults, looking back on their childhood in flashbacks. It does a great job showing how both parts inform each other. The screenplay isn't the miracle of efficiency that Lady Bird was, but it's a great reminder that Greta Gerwig might actually be better behind the camera than in front of it. Given that she's one of my favorite screen presences, that's saying a lot.
To be honest, I'm not seeing this movie for the story that it's adapted from. I'm seeing it for Gerwig and the other seven names on the poster. This cast is stacked. Saoirse Ronan. Florence Pugh. Emma Watson. Eliza Scanlan. Timothee Chalamet. Laura Dern. Meryl Streep...Wow. Ronan is only 25 years old, already has three Oscar nominations, and that doesn't feel like overkill. In other words, there's no need to worry about how well she does with the Jo March role. She's great as everyone's favorite tomboy. Gerwig makes one huge choice with the character at the end of the movie which is my favorite thing about it. Florence Pugh is the breakout actress of the year and does a great job of owning Amy's faults without making her the villain of the story. However, I will say that some of the attempts to age her down for the flashbacks are rough. You need some cognitive dissonance for that. Emma Watson just isn't at the level of the other two actresses. She is a perfectly good Meg, and she happily fades into the background for Ronan and Pugh. Beth is an incredibly passive role, so I won't hold that against Eliza Scanlan who, to her credit, acts sick well. While Christian Bale will forever be my Laurie, I am starting to see why people like this Timothee Chalamet kid. He has the opposite problem as Pugh though. It's tough to see him as sufficiently old enough for Laurie in the later timeline. Meryl Streep: enough said. I actually prefer Laura Dern's performance in this to in Marriage Story this fall. It's harder to play decency. This is a nice change of pace after a year of Dern in Big Little Lies and Marriage Story.
I just liked this movie.
Verdict: Strongly Recommend
After the Credits
Two book adaptations this year cleverly worked within the guidelines of the text to give the stories new meaning. The first was HBO's Watchmen, which revealed the character Hooded Justice, the first masked hero, to be a black man. The second was Little Women, which pitches Jo getting married at the end as a compromise with the book's publisher. The Watchmen twist was more impressive for how it entirely changed the perspective of a core character. I found the Little Women twist more satisfying. It finally matched Jo as a character. Either way, I'm loving this trend. If we're going to live in a state of perpetual nostalgia, repeatedly referencing the same set of sources, let's keep finding new things to do with them.
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