Movie adaptations of classic novels have always been popular.
But the era of classic novel writing may also be inconsistent with the present. Therefore, there are different ways to engage in filmmaking.
There are era dramas that are completely in line with the original era, such as Xiao Lizi's "The Great Gatsby".
There are also adaptations of stories according to the current situation. For example, the Netflix version of "Fahrenheit 451" has made a modern adaptation of some of the sci-fi settings of the original book compared to the Truffaut version.
This kind of modernization of famous novels generally makes changes that are more in line with modern viewing habits. But it would be rare for a film adaptation to appear in people's plight with the storytelling of the time.
This all-star cast of "Little Women" is one example.
This article contains minor spoilers.
1
Little Women is a semi-autobiographical novel by American writer Louisa May Alcott, first published in 1868.
One hundred and fifty years have passed since this book, but when we look at it again, it does not feel like history.
The situation faced by the female characters in the film, the issues of emotion and growth, are also present. The story is real enough to read today.
The background of "Little Women" is during the American Civil War, the ordinary March family, the father was not at home during the war, so only Mrs. March and four daughters were left at home.
Among the four sisters, there is Joe who likes to read and write books and is maverick, Meg who believes in freedom and wants to fall in love, Beth who likes music and has a quiet personality, and Amy who likes painting and carefree.
Although they are a family, they have different personalities and hobbies, different life trajectories, and disputes, but they always love each other.
The story of "Little Women" revolves around the lives of the four sisters in this family, telling all the trivial things about their growing up experience.
As a classic literature, "Little Women" has of course experienced several film and television adaptations, from the 1933 version to the 1994 version, and even Japan and South Korea have drama adaptations.
1994 version of "Little Women"
However, the presentation of the adaptation is often in line with the era of adaptation, so the latest version is the one that is most in line with the present.
This time, Greta Gerwig directed "Little Women". The difference is that it breaks the sequence. The narrative is not as straightforward as in the past, but mixed with past and present time and space.
At the same time as the past and present are mixed, there are also four clues about the sisters. This way of presentation is equivalent to putting a modern shell on the classic story.
In the transition between the past and the present in different time and space, a lot of skills are used in the movie, and various similar behaviors, objects, and scene transitions are used, which is very smooth.
The color of the past and present time and space is also different. The tones of the current time and space are cooler, while the past time and space are warmer, and the more obvious it is in the latter part of the film.
The timeline is dismantled and narrated in this way, and the assembling of paragraphs has a powerful emotional impact. It was the joyous reunion of the past time and space, followed by the separation of life and death in the present time and space.
2
Greta Gerwig, the director of "Little Women", has another identity. She is a good actress and has acted in films such as "Frances Ha" and "Love in Rome".
It was not until she directed "Miss Bird" that her identity as a director was truly known to the public.
"Miss Bird"
As a female director, she focuses on giving voice to women. There are certain similarities in the core and style of the two popular films, which are related to women's self-growth.
In addition, the starring teams of the two films also overlap. The female lead Saoirse Ronan and the male lead "Sweet Tea" Timothy Chalamet are old partners.
Saoirse Ronan is quite prominent among the new generation of actresses. She is very accurate and has high acting skills.
At a young age, "Atonement", "Brooklyn", "Miss Bird" and "Little Women" were nominated for four Oscars. In this film, she also played the core role of Joe, the classic masterpiece.
Timothy Chalamet is also eye-catching enough, his temperament and the character image of the classical son in the film really fit, and the role of Lawrence is superb.
Among the four sisters of the March family, there is also Emma Watson, who was the first to play the role of Hermione in "Harry Potter", and then Emma Watson, who played the role of the eldest sister Meg in "The Wallflower" and "Beauty and the Beast". .
As well as the next "Black Widow" Florence Pugh, who played "A Midsummer Nightmare" and succeeded Scarlett Johansson, and Eliza Scanlon, who played "Sharp Tools". Several people are considered to be the hottest new generation of actors at the moment.
"Aunt May" Meryl Streep also has a role in the film, playing a bitter old lady who lives alone, Aunt March. Not many scenes, but enough scenes.
3
The story of the four sisters like "Little Women" is not the only one. It is similar to "The Sea Street Diary" by Hirokazu Koreeda.
"Sea Street Diary"
However, "Haijie Diary" is more inclined to family, and "Little Women" is more inclined to marriage.
Marriage, in the context of that era, seemed to be the only and most important life choice for women.
When Joe went to the publishing house, the publisher suggested to Joe that if the protagonist of the novel was the heroine, the ending would either get married or die. Otherwise no one cares, no one loves to watch. This is also a portrait of women at that time.
Of course, there are exceptions, they are there, Aunt March has never been married. what is the reason? Simple and rich.
But for a woman at the time, there were too few ways to make money, either performing on stage or opening a store.
This is why, after Amy gave up her painting dream, in order to ensure living expenses, she was once ready to marry a wealthy person who had no emotional foundation to solve her livelihood by marriage.
The interesting thing about the movie is that there are also parts that are different from the original. Like the ending Joe and the publisher haggle over the novel's ending, cross-cut Joe's reunion climax in pursuit of the professor.
At this time, the two lines are running side by side, which is obviously joking, and it is more clear that Joe's hasty love reunion in the end may not be due to the limitation of the times.
As a story from a completely female perspective, the theme and core of "Little Women", discussions about emotions, marriage, and women's self-improvement and self-love, are not out of date today.
Joe's maverick, Amy knows exactly what she wants, Beth's kindness, Meg's marriage wish. The four sisters of the March family are actually four angles, different life styles and free choices.
The movie also has shortcomings. The four clues of the original book sisters have a clear contrast, and the use of brushwork is a group portrait.
The film splits the time line and tells it in a modern narrative way, and the length of the film is limited, which seems sloppy, and the audience may have difficulty understanding.
But the valuable thing about "Little Women" is that not only is the story outdated today, but the positive, optimistic, and kind-hearted attitude towards life is even more valuable now.
Moreover, even if you only look at the prosperous beauty of the protagonist, the oil painting-like lens, and the clothes with a sense of age, it is enough to be pleasing to the eye. Don't say anything, just go and see.
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