Little Women
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Gillian Armstrong
Winona Ryder
Susan Sarandon
Claire Danes
Kirsten Dunst
Gabriel Byrne
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Louisa May Alcott's classic novel, derived from her own family life, tells the story of the March family, four daughters and their mother who are living in New England during the Civil War years. Their father is away in the Union Army as chaplain. We follow the adventures of spirited Jo, lovely Meg, gentle Beth, and romantic Amy. Four "little women" as they explore their talents, test their friendships, fall prey to selfish impulses and sometimes behave with great generosity as people do while achieving adulthood with all its attendant pleasures, frustrations, loves, losses, grief and joy.
Director
Gillian Armstrong
Cast
Winona Ryder
Susan Sarandon
Claire Danes
Kirsten Dunst
Gabriel Byrne
Trini Alvarado
Samantha Mathis
Christian Bale
Eric Stoltz
John Neville
Mary Wickes
Florence Paterson
Robin Collins
Corrie Clark
Rebecca Toolan
Curt Willington
Billie Pleffer
Louella Pleffer
Janne Mortil
Sarah Strange
Ahnee Boyce
Michele Goodger
Marco Roy
A J Unger
Janie Wood-morris
Patricia Leith
Christine Lippa
Kristina West
Nicole Babuick
Jenna Percy
Alan Robertson
Mar Andersons
Cameron Labine
Matthew Walker
Bethoe Shirkoff
Marilyn Norry
Andrea Libman
Tegan Moss
Janet Craig
Beverley Elliott
James Leard
Charles Baird
Jay Brazeau
Demetri Goritsas
Kate Robbins
Donal Logue
Scott Bellis
John C Shaw
Irene Miscisco
Peter Haworth
Natalie Friisdahl
Kristy Friisdahl
Bryan Finn
Sean Finn
John Shaw
Crew
Stuart Aikins
Louisa May Alcott
Janice Alexander
Michael Andreen
Colleen Atwood
Kara Baker
Kara Dillard Baker
Eric Batut
Nicholas Beauman
Bill Bernstein
Donna Bis
Jim Brebner
James Douglas Brown
John L Brown
Kevin Butler
Mandy Butler
Arthur Cambridge
Marilyn Carbone
Warren Carr
Warren Carr
Jimmy Chow
Mel Christensen
Sharal Churchill
Martin Connor
Sandra Couldwell
Roger Cowland
Gethin Creagh
Mark A Dixon
Naomi Donne
Rosemary Dority
Debbie Douglas
Paula Marie Duncan
Jim Erickson
Joseph E Foley
David Footman
Trudi Forrest
Carrie Frazier
Kathleen D Gilbert
Shani Ginsberg
Chris Glyn-jones
Derek Grieve
Jennifer Grossman
David Grusovin
William Haines
Richard St John Harrison
Tim Haughian
Craig Henderson
Phil Heywood
Tim Hogan
John-paul Holecka
Richard Hudolin
James Ilecic
James Illecic
Scott Irvine
Stephen Jackson
Ron James
Bruce Johnson
Tim Jordan
Don Knodel
Barry Kootchin
Burton Kuchera
Tony Lazarowich
Joseph Lederer
Catherine Leighton
Lars Lenander
Peter Levy
Peter Levy
Mark Lewis
Wendy Lewis
Tenzin Lhalungpa
Sherry Linder-gygli
Paul Lougheed
Paula Lourie
Simon Martin
Dawn Martin-wiener
Nancy Mcardle
Bridget Mcguire
Jane Mckernan
Neil Mcleod
Margaret A Mitchell
Shawn Murphy
Stein Myhrstad
Jan Newman
Thomas Newman
Gary O'grady
Bill Orr
Martin Oswin
Peter Owen
Rino Pace
Laila Palermo
Connie Parker
Jamie Payton
John Penders
Randal Platt
Karen Psaltis
Anne S Reilly
Lisa J Roberts
Lisa Roberts
Lisa Robison
Jan Roelfs
John D Scott
Anne Simonet
Geoffrey Simpson
Geoffrey Simpson
John Simpson
Michael Siver
Erin Smith
Lee Smith
Robin Swicord
Robin Swicord
Julie Tjaden
Peter Townsend
Mark Turnbull
Thomas Wells
Noelleen Westcombe
Karin Whittington
Peter Whyte
Christine Wilson
Kim Winther
Ken Woznow
Matthew C Young
Videos
Movie Clip
Hosted Intro
Film Details
Technical Specs
Award Nominations
Best Actress
Best Costume Design
Best Original Score
Articles
Little Women (1994)
All that said, Columbia Pictures only agreed to make it after young executive (and future studio chief) Amy Pascal smartly pitched it as a Christmas movie. The novel's existing Christmas sequences could be emphasized in the film, she proposed, and the project's advertising campaign could be built around holiday imagery, and the movie could be released at Christmastime. All of the above happened, yet the film does not stray from the feel of the novel. To the contrary, making Little Women a bona fide Christmas movie actually heightened the sense of family togetherness that is at the center of Alcott's work. The four March sisters grow from childhood to young adulthood in 19th century Massachusetts, laughing, supporting, fighting and loving one another--and their mother, Marmee--along the way. But the heart of the story comes through in the scenes where all are together as a family. All feels right with the world at those moments, with their Christmas celebrations a perfect fit since the season naturally conjures family togetherness.
Pascal and screenwriter Robin Swicord first hatched the idea for a new Little Women 12 years earlier, and it took that long for both to attain the degree of power and status in the industry that would allow them to carry it through. They both loved the novel passionately, and when the green light finally came, Pascal (who was named after the character of Amy March) brought three more similarly passionate women on board: producer Denise Di Novi, director Gillian Armstrong and movie star Winona Ryder, who would play Jo March. Di Novi and Ryder had been talking for years amongst themselves about their desire to tackle this novel, and Australian-born Armstrong had established herself as a top director of women-centered stories with such films as My Brilliant Career (1979) and High Tide (1987).
The production was shot mostly in Vancouver--even the snowy scenes were shot there during the summer--but Armstrong also received special permission from the perfectly preserved town of Deerfield, Massachusetts to shoot establishing shots for the opening sequence. The production design of the March house was based on Alcott's own childhood house in Concord, and the attention to detail in every frame is apparent, helping the audience to feel immersed in the period.
Robin Swicord's script did not originally contain the voiceover heard through the film from Ryder, which memorably begins, "My sisters and I remember that winter as the coldest of our childhood." In fact, the script began with a scene of the sisters doing a theater performance. Armstrong and her editor changed this partly to emphasize the Christmas element but also because she thought the audience would otherwise have trouble immediately distinguishing the costume-clad girls from one another. Jo's sisters are played by Claire Danes (Beth), Trini Alvarado (Meg), Kirsten Dunst (younger Amy) and Samantha Mathis (older Amy). Susan Sarandon plays Marmee, a role first made famous by Katharine Hepburn, and Hepburn herself, then 86, was offered the showy part of Aunt March. She declined, saying she would never think of "competing" with Edna May Oliver, who had played the part so unforgettably in the 1933 version. The producers then offered the role to Mary Wickes, an inspired choice. Wickes, 83, was a veteran character actress who had appeared in two famous holiday favorites, The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942) and White Christmas (1954). She makes her appearance as Aunt March one of her most memorable, snapping the film's funniest lines with obvious delight. It was also her last film appearance as she died in 1995.
Also starring Christian Bale, Gabriel Byrne and John Neville, Little Women was a critical and commercial success. It was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Actress (Winona Ryder), Best Costume Design and Best Score. Over the years, it has stayed alive through annual holiday revivals and deservedly worked its way into the hearts of many fans as a family film of the purest sort--honest, buoyant and just sentimental enough to tap into anyone's nostalgia for the exuberances and even pangs of childhood.
By Jeremy Arnold
Little Women (1994)
Quotes
Trivia
Miscellaneous Notes
Kirsten Dunst was voted Best Supporting Actress of 1994 by the Boston Society of Film Critics for her performances in "Little Women" (USA/1994) and Neil Jordan's "Interview With the Vampire" (USA/1994).
Nominated for Excellence in Media's 1994 Golden Angel Award for best motion picture.
Nominated for the 1994 British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA) Award for Best Costume Design.
Robin Swicord was nominated for the 1994 award for Best Adapted Screenplay by the Writers Guild of America (WGA).
Released in United States Winter December 21, 1994
Wide Release in United States December 25, 1994
Released in United States on Video June 20, 1995
Hollywood has adapted Louisa May Alcott's classic novel on three previous occasions: directed by Harley Knoles in 1919; directed by George Cukor and starring Katharine Hepburn and Joan Bennett, among others, in 1933; and MGM's 1949 version starring June Allyson, Peter Lawford and Elizabeth Taylor, and directed by Mervyn LeRoy.
Began shooting April 25, 1994.
Completed shooting July 13, 1994.
Seventh feature for Gillian Armstrong, whose previous credits include "My Brilliant Career" (Australia/1978), "Starstruck" (Australia/1982), "Mrs. Soffel" (USA/1984), "High Tide" (Australia/1987), "Fires Within" (USA/1991), and "The Last Days of Chez Nous" (Australia/1992).
Released in United States Winter December 21, 1994
Wide Release in United States December 25, 1994
Released in United States on Video June 20, 1995