Superb adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's novel. Wonderful, moving, bitter-sweet, often funny story, beautifully told. The sense of family and sweet innocence is palpable. Makes you long for simpler times.Solid direction by Mervyn LeRoy. The film moves along at a brisk pace and is constantly engaging.Great performances all round. June Allyson is superb as Jo. Elizabeth Taylor, only 16/17 years old at the time, shows the talent that would make her one of the greatest actresses of all time. Janet Leigh, in one of her earliest roles, is great as Meg. 12-year old Margaret O'Brien almost steals the show as the sweet and precocious Beth. Solid support from Peter Lawford, Mary Astor and Rossano Brazzi.0A classic.

The book "Little Women" is one of my favourite books of all time, it is funny, moving and just makes me warm inside while reading it. This 1949 film is very delightful and charming with some good performances, lush cinematography and visual detail and lovely music. However, as I am sure people have pointed out, it is very loosely based on the book. Beth is now the youngest, Laurie goes off to war here and there are bits cut out. The latter is understandable though because the book is quite long. Putting all that aside, this is still a delightful film. It looks lovely, with lush cinematography and colourful costumes and scenery. The music is also gorgeous, I particularly loved hearing "None But the Lonely Heart", that is one of my favourite songs and never fails to bring tears to my eyes. The acting in general is very good, Janet Leigh isn't given that much to do but she is very rosy-looking as Meg. You may argue that June Allyson was too old for Jo, in some ways that is true. However Allyson still manages to give a warm and tomboyish performance. Elizabeth Taylor is wonderful as spoilt, selfish Amy, Taylor is not the lovely woman she is in "Ivanhoe" or the seductive "sex on wheels" character she is in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", she is Amy and plays her very convincingly, making the most of some of the film's best lines. That leaves Margaret O'Brien, a very cute and appealing child actress, and she was very convincing as Beth, Beth's vulnerability in the latter half of the film is genuinely affecting. Out of the supporting actors, Mary Astor comes off best, sticking to the benevolent and sincere Marmee of the book, and C.Aubrey Smith is splendid as Old Mr Laurence, his scenes with Beth are quite heart-warming. Peter Lawford is charming as Laurie, and Lucille Watson is quite detestable as Aunt March. Rossano Brazzi as Professor Bhaer looks handsome, but I wasn't entirely convinced by him. He started off wooden, and I also felt he was too Italian for the role, Professor Bhaer is supposed to be German. Still, "Little Women" despite its flaws is still a delightful and charming film. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888) was an extremely controversial woman, the product of parents associated with the transcendentalist movement, a rabid abolitionist, an early feminist, and possibly lesbian as well. Even so, between 1868 and her death she generated a series of novels for juvenile readers which were extremely popular and which continue to be read today. Easily the most famous of these is LITTLE WOMEN, first published in 1868; it has been adapted to the dramatic stage, to the musical and opera stages; and was filmed no fewer than twelve times during the 20th Century alone.Three of these films have been particularly famous: the 1933 film with Katherine Hepburn; the 1994 film with Winona Ryder; and sandwiched in between them the 1949 version. Released by MGM and produced and directed by Mervyn LeRoy, like many films of its era it was driven almost exclusively by star power--regardless of whether the actor in question was right for the role or not--and given every bright and colorful visual possible--whether it was appropriate or not.The story, of course, focuses on the March girls, four daughters growing up during the Civil War under their mother's care while their father, a Union Chaplin, is away at the front. Meg (Janet Leigh) is the oldest and perhaps most sensible; Jo (June Allyson) is headstrong, boyish, and very determined to be a writer; Amy (Elizabeth Taylor) is beautiful but vain and affected; and Beth (Margaret O'Brien), the youngest, is of a noble but extremely shy disposition. Mother "Marmee" is played by the always memorable Mary Astor; father Mr. March is played by Leon Ames; and the supporting cast includes Lucille Watson, Peter Lawford, and Rossano Brazzi.The 1949 LITTLE WOMEN isn't in the least plausible: the actresses are much too different in coloring and build to be believable as mother and daughters, and although Mary Astor, Leon Ames, and Lucille Watson score extremely well in their performances, the rest of the cast tends to overplay wildly. Of the sisters, Janet Leigh is easily the most believable. June Allyson is seen here at her most brash, Elizabeth Taylor is truly jaw-dropping in a blonde wig, and Margaret O'Brien too often veers into a sticky-sweetness. And yet, curiously, the whole really does work and is tremendously entertaining, the sort of thing we mean when we talk about "a good old-fashioned fun film." Although the script leaves a lot to be desired, the story presented here is really closer to the book than the 1933 and 1994 films, and it has considerable power and authority; in watching it, you get the feeling that of all the many film versions, this is the one that Louisa May Alcott herself would have liked best. The Technicolor images are typically over the top, seeming overdone in the austere Marsh home but very on target elsewhere, and the production values are MGM at its most glossy. Mervyn Le Roy is hardly in the same league with George Cukor (neither is Gillian Armstrong for that matter), but he keeps the show moving at fast clip, and in the end it is extremely enjoyable if somewhat shallow fun. The DVD is "good" rather than fine--but whatever the case, it's a lot of fun.GFT, Amazon Reviewer

I saw this on TV the other evening and liked it so much, I bought the DVD. I never saw any other version of Little Women, but after seeing this adaptation, I don't need or have to. Granted, this is a rather old fashioned story about a lovely and very close northern family during the time of the Civil War. Dated...yes, but, then again, maybe not so much if you think about it. Don't we all know people like the March sisters? I was glued to the screen and throughly enjoyed this movie. Very pleasant and watching it makes you forget your own troubles and self as you are transported to another period of history so long ago. Do see it.