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The early life of a delightful heroine Mark Twain said of Anne to her creator, that she had created a credible child and indeed Anne compels my affections, respect, acknowledging that she is all that is claimed for her. This adaptation is something of a disappointment, but part of this disappointment arises from an error on my part . I realise the source of my mistake and acknowledge that I should have recognised my mistake in anticipation and despite all the signs to the contrary. Unlike most of the winning girls that win affection in children's classic literature the narrative of the first book in a series takes us by a series of incidents from the little waif of ten erroneously sent to Green Gables at ten years of age until she is on the cusp of womanhood, and so a film, unless it taken exceptional time in the making, has to portray this development and the same little girl cannot serve as she passes through adolescence, as a pupil and potentially a student. Thus the narrative time span presents an almost un-negotiable obstacle to a faithful adaptation. The makers have attempted to solve the problem by making a package of Anne and some of the sequels to encapsulate the further narrative of Anne, But the genius of Anne which prompted Twain's compliment is the first book which has a freshness and a vitality which owes not a little to being set on Prince Edward Island off Nova Scotia rather than late Victorian or Edwardian England. This island was of Presbyterian society and my prejudices would have mislead to expect a rather dour and joyless experience but Anne's infectious romanticism and her infectious enthusiasm survive her childhood and adolescence and in essentials she remains the same girl although matured. Quite early on in the book there comes a decisive moment when Morilla changes her mind and decides she cannot sent the child back to the orphanage and this is the moment when she is asked if she had been kindly treated and she answers that she was sure they meant to be kind. It is an answer of such limpid integrity and honesty which explains Anne's subsequent success as an incipient scholar. To communicate this and sustain it in an adaptation of this film, which is concerned only her early years at Green Gables, remains is no small achievement of this film and with a reservations beyond the one earlier entered. Morilla is well cast and I do not subscribe to some critical comments but I feel that a star casting lead to a solecism in effectively borrowing an idea direct from 'Little Women' by distorting the accident she sustained on the Barry's roof but the adaptation missed out some of the subtle gestures and episodes which showed the growth in there relationship between Anne ad Morilla. The school scenes were well done but again there were lost opportunities because the young people were well cast especially Diana Barry. These are cavilling criticisms to which one is liable when having read the boo before seeing the film. All in all I would say that the adaptation captures a lot of the spirit of the book in the early stages, but the time span of the original makes adaptation difficult.. Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
My step-daughter, who has Down Syndrome, enjoys movies, but the characters have to be engaging and relevant to her own experience. Like many children, she identifies with orphans in many children's stories. We watched every episode of Netflix's "Anne with an E", which was brilliant. Then the search began for a DVD that stuck fairly closely to the original book, which she has also read (in a shortened form). I bought this DVD for her birthday and she was absolutely delighted. All the family enjoyed it - the script is good, the acting excellent and the re-creation of Anne's world is beautifully done.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
A classic story, still good to watch and good to see it on DVD
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned