Review of Little Women (2019) by Jordanlayton — 27 Apr 2020

WOW. Greta Gerwig has done it again. And this cast is overwhelming. Loved it.

I was not familiar with this story and I've been told it's quite close to the book but I'm definitely intrigued enough to go back to the original work now, even knowing of the 700+ page count. It is such a great ensemble piece about the art and lives of these 4 sisters (although only 3 have real arcs imo). Regardless, I loved it and surprisingly saw myself in it quite a bit as well. Great casting has a lot to do with it, but it was an absolute joy seeing these 5 (including Timothee Chalamete) young talented actors in so many gripping scenes together. It was difficult at first to not see Lady Bird, the girl from Midsommar, the girl from Sharp Objects, the guy from Call Me By Your Name, and Hermione, but after about 10 minutes these young talents all fully fell into their roles for me and I was immersed. I did not like the casting of Bob Odenkirk for their father. He had so little to do in the story that I would have rather seen an unknown in that role to avoid Saul Goodman from Breaking Bad jarringly jumping into the movie at the 40 minute mark.

I also particularly loved the wide shots in this film. Cinematographers right now shy away from shooting in more fuzzy or painterly styles but doing so was perfectly on theme for this film about 4 young artists and it made the landscapes pop in a way I haven't seen before. The dancing in the film was shot with appropriate excitement as well.

The pacing dragged for me a little bit after a pivotal point in the film but otherwise I was fully invested throughout.