Hello all! Lisa from Boondock Ramblings and I love to buddy watch movies together – even though I am in Michigan and she is in Pennsylvania! We don’t literally watch together in a watch party, although that might be fun one time! We wanted our fall list to feel fall cozy, move into some more chilling movies, than turn cozy again for November.

I needed cozy this week. It is so cold here all of a sudden! It even snowed on Halloween! So I definitely needed my comfy blanket, my warm mug of tea, and a good heartwarming movie.

This week’s feature: Little Women (2019)

So. Lisa and I actually disagreed on this version, which is quite alright! You may disagree with me as well, that’s ok too. But I 100% love this rendition of Little Women – with the exception of Timothee Chalamet as Laurie. For some reason I couldn’t warm to him in the role.

When I compare this version to the book, it does obviously have some differences, and I am not usually a person who cares for movies to be different than the book. (I mean, A Prayer for Owen Meany vs. Simon Birch was a big big no) However, I feel like the book really champions Jo so much, while the rest of the sisters are just sort of relegated into different slots. The good one, Beth. The artistic greedy one, Amy. And then Meg, ever practical yet wanting badly to fit in. Jo is brave, fierce, strong, ambitious, creative, driven. But we don’t know too much about the others besides their little roles and are one dimensional while Jo is so dynamic.

And they do still stick to this in this film as well. However, I feel like we know them better this time around. I feel like they have more depth, and no scene conveys this more than the Amy and Laurie scene that takes place in France. Amy is about to head out on a date with Fred and Laurie is giving her a hard time about it, because he knows she doesn’t love Fred. Then Amy lays him out with the truth. She tells him:

“Well, I’m not a poet. I’m just a woman. And as a woman, there’s no way for me to make my own money. Not enough to earn a living or to support my family. And if I had my own money, which I don’t, that money would belong to my husband the moment we got married. And if we had children, they would be his, not mine. They would be his property. So don’t sit there and tell me that marriage isn’t an economic proposition because it is. It may not be for you, but it most certainly is for me.”

I know that this scene rubbed people the wrong way, that it was deemed too feminist. I think though that it shows that Amy more than any of them, understands her position in that world. She is not saying anything that isn’t true. That is exactly the world that her character lived in. She was being practical. She had her preferences for sure, and even if she did not love Fred, she would marry him so that she would be secure. However, I think was also a bit of a push from her to Laurie. Like a wise woman once said, “if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it”. And he did.

My whole life I spent angry that Amy and Laurie got married like that, behind Jo’s back. I felt like they belonged together, and it was so wrong that they didn’t end up together. However, after this version, I was like you know, they would have been terrible together!! Amy and Laurie were perfect for each other, and Jo ended up with the right man too.

I also really ended up liking Meg a bit more too. She always bothered me in the book. However, Emma Watson’s portrayal of her just gave her a bit more soul. The fabric scene broke my heart. Plus, James Norton as John…. (swoon)

Of course, I also love this movie because of the brilliant cinematography and luscious costumes. I mean, it can not get any more visually appealing than this, and I love a film that is just gorgeous.

I guess I should talk some about Jo. I think Saoirse Ronan embodied the spirit of Jo completely. I believed every moment that she portrayed, no matter the mood or scene. She was absolutely fantastic. But, I think I am over Jo’s story and was ready to move on to the other sisters by this movie.

And that is it from me today! If you watched the movie and did a write up drop your link below!

https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=c0efdbe6b4add43dd7ef

Next up: Tea with Dames

Don’t forget to pop over to Lisa’s post, I am sure hers is absolutely amazing!