Review of A Little Princess (1995) by Éric I — 19 Dec 2015

I suppose when trying to make another "The Secret Garden" (an earlier Hodgson Burnett adaptation), the writers simply could not avoid condescending to children's film clichés. Not only is the setting altered from London to New York, but the book's satisfyingly bittersweet ending is replaced with an altogether just-sweet ending, India is romanticized as some sort of ideal fantasy land, the question of child labor as it existed in Europe is reduced to a mere issue of racism in turn-of-the-century United States, and certain characters (e.

G. Amelia Minchin) are reduced to supply little but comic relief. Still, when all is said and done, the film is overall satisfying, provides good entertainment value, and in this day and age, any romanticized impression of any reality seems scarce elsewhere.