Little Women is a heart-warming romance novel was written by Louisa May Alcott.. Greta Gerwig’s latest film is based on this American novel, which seems to have been subjected to a few updates throughout the years. Fortunately, it was adapted for the modern age, which looks like a strong enough reason to watch it. Before diving into my review, I just would like to state that I did not have any knowledge of this classic material before viewing the movie; as a matter of fact, I read part of the book far long ago -scarcely any memories in there. However, it looks pretty fresh. For this reason, you might take my view with a pinch of salt, though here is my forthcoming explanation about why I do think the 2019 version of Little Women is worth seeing.
As you might know, the plot turns around the March four sisters in Massachusetts in XIX. The film focuses on their passage from childhood to womanhood coming back and forth between present and past, where the focal point of this film is Jo March (Saoirse Ronan). I loved the way she acts, probably because she is a courageous, forthright woman who speaks her mind. Also, the film starts and concludes with her story, but the rest of the movie turns around Meg (Emma Watson), Amy (Florence Pugh), and Beth (Eliza Scanlen).
The events are played out against the background of the Civil War, magnifying the March sisters’ joys and tragedies. Although some of the sisters must face not being rich enough to have that glamorous lifestyle that some of them would love to, none of the four sisters nor their parents have ever been impoverished. Despite the March sisters´ differences, their relationship survived throughout time. They managed to weather the storm. As a result, the closer they were the better their achievements were.
The film reached a dramatic climax, not only with Beth´s terrible death but also, whenever the March sisters raise people’s awareness about the lack of women´s rights. For instance, Meg´s aim was getting rich through her marriage as though it was the only way out for many women of the time, because of the mind-set of the period. However, Jo March is always questing for her own path in life. It is so obvious that to get a wealthy life, she tries many paths but nothing better than fighting for equal rights for women. She desperately intends to fight against social stereotypes. Furthermore, throughout the film, we can smell the biased society´s vision of women in that time, including social customs, discrimination in employment and teaching among many others.
It is a rather well-acted film where the shining star here is her director Greta Gerwig that just blew me away. The way she was able to bring such raw and realistic performance out of these actresses was amazing. Besides, the special effects, as well as the sceneries, were breath-taking. The pace of the film, however, left something to be desired. I would say that I found it rather a slow pace, especially by the end. Anyway, in the forthcoming days, we will find out whether the film has been awarded with the Oscar for the best film. I can only wish them the best.
I should admit that I have first had my doubts about the last adaptation of Little Women. In fact, I thought it would be rather more of the same. However, this one really thrilled me. Had I known it earlier, I would have gone to watch it without hesitation. Definitely, my detachment melted into raw emotion. Then, the plot is splendidly scripted, as I mentioned previously, it experienced that fresh adaptation. On the other hand, I had a hard time understanding the dialogue without subtitles. Despite the completely implausible twist at the end of the plot and the slow pace, I would thoroughly recommend the film, as I found it very touchy after all. If you feel attracted by familiar values and the fight for equality between women and men, I reckon that this is your kind of film.
EOI Valdemoro La bitácora 
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