Oscar History
Film Bitch History
Welcome

The Film Experience™ was created by Nathaniel R. All material herein is written by our team. (This site is not for profit but for an expression of love for cinema & adjacent artforms.)

Follow TFE on Substackd

Powered by Squarespace
Keep TFE Strong

We're looking for 500... no 390 SubscribersIf you read us daily, please be one.  

I ♥ The Film Experience

THANKS IN ADVANCE

What'cha Looking For?
Subscribe
« Funny Girl at 50 | Main | Showbiz History: The Love Boat, The Social Network, Nevermind »
Monday
Sep242018

Beauty vs Beast: Sugar & Spice & Everything March

Hello and happy Monday everyone, Jason from MNPP here with another edition of our "Beauty vs Beast" series - Louisa May Alcott's book Little Women just turned 150 this year and it's hotter than it's ever been. There was a BBC version with Maya Hawke and Emily Watson and Angela Lansbury that aired here in the US in the spring. Then this very weekend there's a modernized retelling hitting theaters. And then of course the one sucking all the air out of the room - Greta Gerwig's all-star edition set for next year, whose cast is so stacked we'd be here all day if I try listing off everybody - just look at the IMDb page.

Anyway a lot of us (even if we're excited to see all of those actors in one place and under her direction) aren't entirely sure why Greta's making this new version - not when there's Gillian Armstrong's perfectly lovely 1994 adaptation already, anyway. Winona Ryder as Jo, Christian Bale as Laurie, Susan Sarandon as Marmee, Kirsten Dunst as Amy, Claire Danes as Beth (cough cough)... these are the people I picture when I picture Little Women. And then one second later I immediately remember Amy burning Jo's manuscript and I see red...

PREVIOUSLY I'm not sure if it was mostly Riz Ahmed Lust or if it was just that Jake's character is so (deliciously) despicable, but y'all surprised me and went and gave Riz/Rick your prize on last week's Nightcrawler contest with nearly 60% of the vote. Lou's a loser!

Anyway maybe it's just simply what Nick T said:

 

"Rick's just a nice cute guy who doesn't even know he's in over his head and Jake's a mean ol' lizard. Easy call."

PrintView Printer Friendly Version

EmailEmail Article to Friend

Reader Comments (16)

Amy is the fucking worst!

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterJohn

What kind of monster is Team Amy?

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMike in Canada

I do somehow like Amy in the Anime, even though the novel burning was simply mean…. And my artist heart is always with Jo anyway.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterSonja

Evil finds a human form in Amy March. Only Kiki stans are voting for her.

But wow I love everything about this movie. I watch it multiple times a year. Winona is perfection and the score is one of my faves.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterchasm301

When did you become a crazy obsessive just for liking someone,the word "Stans" should not be used ever when discussing actresses.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered Commentermarkgordonuk

Amy is shallow and petulant whereas Jo's flaw is stubbornness. The book burning alone is almost unforgivable.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterRaul

Well, the right answer is clearly Jo. But Kirsten Dunst is the best Amy ever committed to celluloid, no contest.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterCash

As I've said before (on this site), does anyone really like Amy? And as someone else pointed out, gotta give girl credit for being the most practical of the bunch. She does end up being rich AND happy, after all! And less bitchy as she gets older...

But agree with Cash that Kirsten Dunst is definitely the best Amy, or at least the one least likely to make you want to wring little Amy's neck.

Curious about the sudden proliferation of Little Women movie adaptations. I'm as curious as the next person about Greta Gerwig's, but it has a high standard to live up to in the 1994 Winona Ryder adaptation (still the best to date, IMO).

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterlylee

Any see the Little Women version that came out just last year? Anyone gonna see the one that comes out this week? What an enormously uninspired follow up to Lady Bird. Like... why.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterRoger

I vote Jo because what Amy does is really awful but it was easier to forgive her when she was played by Elizabeth Taylor in the 40's version.

I agree that this is the best version of the book (and Mary Wickes as Aunt March is super and not mentioned nearly enough) but I do have a soft spot for that 40's version....the Kate Hepburn 30's one not so much.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterjoel6

Florence Pugh is going to give Kiki (who I agree 100% is the definitive Amy) a run for her money in Gerwig's adaptation, believe that. She does wicked petulance better anyone I've seen in a very long time.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterJes V.

Amy is a monster, plain and simple. To beat a dead horse, Kiki is wonderful in the film and brings out some shades that I feel aren't evident in the book, but still, Amy is the fucking worst.

This film version was SO well cast and produced it's insane. The costumes, production values, score, actors, directing...it was without a doubt one of my favorites. I love Gerwig, but she has a tough act to follow and the actors taking part have tough shoes to fill, especially Ryder, Dunst, and Danes. Looking forward to it though.

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterZach

Jo is gonna win hands-down.

Jason, u shld've done one w K Hepburn's beloved Jo vs Winona's Oscar nom turn, n see how it turns out 😁

September 24, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterClaran

Jes V.: My guess is Florence Pugh will be playing the older version of Amy, so she won't really be competing with Kirsten Dunst (who played her as a child), but rather Samantha Mathis (who I never really liked all that much in that role, though it's probably because Dunst is such a tough act to follow). I wonder who will be the child version of Amy in Greta's film...

September 25, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterRichter Scale

The best story about the 1994 version of the Little Women is Winona Ryder recalling the Gabriel Byrne spent on set. (He played the professor Jo eventually marries.) Winona said that Gabriel was just the most wonderful-est person you could ever hope to meet. She's already worked with some of the industry's most impressive actors, but it was ONLY with Gabriel — who only spent a few days on set — that every female on the set of the movie actually lined up to get a hug goodbye from him.

September 25, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterPancake Bacon

I'm Team Jo but I do love Amy. She's hilarious and knows what she wants and she's very pragmatic about how to get it. She wants to be beautiful, go to Europe, marry rich and accomplishes all of these things. She also gets some of the best lines in the movie. Samantha Mathis is a bit of a drip as adult Amy, tho.

September 30, 2018 | Unregistered Commentersam
Member Account Required
You must have a member account to comment. It's free so register here.. IF YOU ARE ALREADY REGISTERED, JUST LOGIN.