ChanBot i must have seen a different film!!

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

WillSushyMedia This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

littlestar89 My parents recorded this version of The Little Princess off of PBS in the late 80's, and my family has made it into a tradition by watching it every year around Christmas time. This, however, meant hauling out the VCR. And hooking it up. Every single year. (It really says something about the time-enduring quality of the 1986 version that we literally kept the VCR around just so we could watch a lone VCR tape.)I was excited to find out about a year ago that it was finally released on DVD in 2009. I thought that I would post about it here to let those of you who love this version know that you can finally buy it. I got my copy off of Amazon, and it is the full 163 minutes. Enjoy!

doslobos I first encountered this version of A Little Princess, by far the best, on a PBS station in the Pacific Northwest. It must have been new then. It was shown during a holiday season station fund-raiser and promoted by ghastly comments by an attractive — physically — woman who made the sorts of comments I would expect a rather silly grandmother to make to someone else's grandchild.I was somewhat insulted, but when the film began settled for enchantment which was sufficiently strong to keep me around when the second installment (I think there were only two, but this was 20-odd years ago) came along next night, when I also learned that the picture would be replayed throughout the promo which allowed me to make a tape of it.Although the script does not slavishly repeat every bit of the Burnett novel, it completely mirrors it, changing some situations and condensing in some areas. Most of the minor deviations from the plot I assumed — still do — were because Sara had to be shown growing up and the story had to fit within length restrictions. Amelia Shankley was superb as was her nemesis, played by Maureen Lippman. Seldom mentioned is her companion, scullery maid Becky, or many other fine characterizations.Parts of the film are sad and, because we (viewers) have become fond of Sara, a little frightening at times. We wish, sometimes, that Sara in her times of trial would be more defiant but realize, too, that she must submit to survive and also to protect her friends.As intended, Sara comes across — this mood is set even before the situations are defined — as a true heroine, when adversity befalls her. She remains compassionate toward and grateful to those who are her friends, including Melchizedek (you have to know the story) toward whom she is also a benefactor.Shankley, the costumers and makeup artists, surmount the challenges of a growing and changing girl who eventually displays some signs of illness (scurvy perhaps?).Sara and her story remain compelling and attractive after a lapse of more than 100 years and this filmed version remains so after 20 years, but can we not find so compelling a version of what is perhaps Francs Hodgson Burnett's finest tale childhood?

the-hunings It was nice that this version followed so close to the actual book; Warner Brother's version didn't. I love this book and it was through the reading of this book that I realized "reading is fun". If you are going to adapt a classic I think you should be true to it and not mess with a good thing. This film does that and captures the heart of what the author wrote. I introduced my daughters to the movie first and later I read them the book; they didn't notice many differences except possibly the age of Sarah in the beginning. I would love to see this adaptation redone again on film instead of video so as to make it more lifelike (able to lose yourself in it without remembering you are watching a movie)and allow a new generation of children to try their hand at making Sarah Crew's story come alive. Also I look forward to the day it is released on DVD so that I can add it to my collection.

lindarling This move was extraordinarily faithful to the book. The characters were for the most part convincing (Amelia Shankley and Nigel Hawthorne especially) and the music and direction were great.I do have a few problems with the film. The main one is that the second tape (it's on three separate cassettes) contains the last 10 minutes of the first tape, which is really horrible editing. Other complaints are that the commercials before each tape are too long, and some of the background noise could be better edited (the group of kids murmur too early or giggle too much, making it appear more low- budget).I was particularly impressed with the loyalty the movie had to the book, and the sympathy you feel for the main character. The scenery was done well and the acting, even in the little parts (the cook's boyfriend, Captain Crew's Indian servant), was excellent.Overall a wonderful film to "curl up" with on a rainy day.