A Little Princess/Secret Garden (1993)

Two of Frances Hodgson Burnett's most treasured children's novels come to the screen in wondrous adaptations. Alfonso Cuaron (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) directs A Little Princess, the magical story of a girl who uses her powers of imagination and zest for life to overcome hardships at a stern boarding school. And three lonely children are forever changed as they learn to trust each other while restoring and taking refuge in The Secret Garden. Agnieszka Holland (Europa Europa) directs and Francis Ford Coppola executive produces a luminous film in which magic and hope bloom.

the BEST Secret Garden

I had a unique FORTUNATE experience to have Kate Maberly all to myself several times... it's not that way folks ! The one and only theater in my town (Fairborn, Ohio) was shutting down in about 1995 or so and the last show(s) I remember playing were "The Secret Garden". I know I snuck away from (Computer Science) classes to see Kate because she was SOOO! cute and she had that British accent nailed down!

Kate's is the VERY BEST that you will see for the "Secret Garden", but Amelia Shankley's is the VERY, VERY BEST that you will ever see for "A Little Princess"... you will cry and cry and thank God that Amelia has more guts than you do. Amelia endures tortures that we can only thank the Lord we don't need to go through.

February 10, 2006

a bargain?

This DVD looks like a bargain: two movies for the price of one. Is it? Like most apparent bargains, there is a catch.

The Secret Garden. Whether you've read the book or not, the BBC version (3 and a half hours long) is by far the best movie version of all four versions. The characters, scenery, accents, music--all are priceless. And it also follows the book. Every child deserves to see this movie. This version has just been released on DVD.

A Little Princess. If you've read the book A Little Princess, you're going to be disappointed in this movie. The movie throws the book away. If you haven't read the book, it's not a bad children's movie. But there is a better movie of A Little Princess which also throws the book away: the 1939 Shirley Temple version (which is available on DVD for only $4.99).

If you HAVE read the book, A Little Princess, you have only one choice: the Wonderworks version from the late 1970s. This version is excellent in every way (except for the casting of the main character), an English ambience, excellent casting of all the other characters, superb acting, good music, etc. It is over two and a half hours long and follows the book very closely. (Oddly enough, this version has just been re-released--on VHS!!! Hasn't Wonderworks ever heard of DVD?)

Bottom line: this DVD is not a bargain. Get the 1975 version of The Secret Garden and wait for the Wonderworks version to come out on DVD.
Warning: If you go for this deal and ever see one of the good movie versions someday, you're going to be very, very angry that you fell for this "bargain."
October 12, 2005

Double dose of Francis Hodgeson Burnett

A Little Princess, a classic story of a little girls hope, that has been remade several times, is presented in this two disc set.

The secret garden is another classic tale, that has been retold many times.

These movies are presented on 2 double sided DVD's, each one featuring a wide screen and a full screen version.
There are not many special features on the DVD's, but if you just want the movies, then this is the set for you. September 1, 2005

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