Frances Hodgson Burnett's book 'A Little Princess' is a lovely read that warms the heart, and it is hard not to be touched. Or relate to Sara's trials and how she deals with them throughout the book.Of the three versions personally seen, the others being the 1939 film with Shirley Temple, and the 1995 film directed by Alfonso Cuaron, this 1987 version is by far the best. Both as an adaptation, of which it is by quite some way the most faithful of the three in detail and in spirit, and in spirit. Don't get me wrong, the 1939 and 1995 films from personal opinion are great (the latter being a personal favourite since childhood) but they are more to be judged as stand-alones. This 1987 version is the real thing, and sadly it is the most overlooked of the three, having been lost apparently for a while.While not as opulent visually as the other two versions, this 'A Little Princess' still looks very pleasing, being beautifully photographed and costumed and the setting of the school is as drab and austere as it should be, it's not meant to be a gorgeous-looking place. Rachel Portman does a wonderful job with the music, very understated and elegant as well as composed in Portman's unmistakable style.'A Little Princess' is lovingly and faithfully adapted dialogue-wise, flowing naturally and delivered with sincere passion. While a long adaptation, it is not overlong, instead it is a fitting and necessary length and paced in a way that makes the storytelling nuanced but always engaging. Throughout the storytelling is heart-warming, touching (the beggar girl scene), sometimes uplifting and at other times a little frightening in a subtle way, Sara's extraordinary imagination really comes alive and her trials and how she deals with them are immediately identifiable.Characters are all true to personality, with the truest interpretation of Sara for all the adaptations. Whether she was a little too old doesn't matter in the slightest, Amelia Shankley looked the part of Sara and acted her with dignified brilliance, not in the least bit bratty. Maureen Lipman is a suitably beastly Miss Minchen and Miriam Margoyles steals scenes as Miss Amelia.Natalie Abbott's Becky is affecting, and Nigel Havers portrays Carrisford with sincerity. Tariq Alibai's Ram Dass is a heart-warming presence and all the other children are very well acted.Overall, wonderful and the best 'A Little Princess' adaptation. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Staying closer to the book, I thought this verison was better than the other two, though the other two are good too. But this one touches the heart strings a little more as unlike the other two, the father does die in this one. While this one is a little darker than the other two it plays more with your emotions. You laugh, you cry. You smile, you frown. You could tell how much of a struggle it was for Sara and her father to be a part, and how joyful she was to finally find a home in the end, where she once again would be loved. This is the better of the three and a fine good adaptation of the book. I would high recommend it for all who have yet to see it.

Thank God I recorded this film when PBS broadcasted in 1987. I did this for my two girls, then 5 and 7, they absolutely loved this movie. They are now 27 and 25 and this VHS cassette tape is now my treasured possession...About 2 months ago, a cable station broadcasted a 1995 version of 'A Little Princess' which I have never seen before, I watched it and thought the content was a little different; therefore, I took out my recorded copy from PBS and wanted to compare the difference. It was 20 years ago that I watched this film. Twenty years of busy life will make anyone forget certain details about any movie, but one thing I remember vividly is that Sara's father was not alive at the end.Yesterday was a rainy day in California so I decided to watch this movie while my memory of the 1995 production is still fresh. I have to say this to the readers, if you haven't seen the 1986 version yet, you are missing a lot! I was in tears for at least 3 to 4 times. I have not read the book nor seen the Shirley Temple version. I do not intent to because I have already seen the best; but will read the book when I find time so to confirm what everyone have said.My comment to writer 'hhy203': I strongly recommend you watching this movie again (after 20 years). I am sure you will agree with what I wrote. I am, like everyone else, longing for the DVD to come out and will be disappointed if it does not. I sincerely hope that the comment 'Linda' wrote about the splicing of the scenes will not be repeated on the DVD production. I am glad to have at least a completely perfect version to watch because I dubbed it from the PBS broadcast, but VHS will not last forever and I would like to own a DVD copy for my grandchildren someday...

This is the best movie distributed by Wonderworks I have ever seen. The original version in 1939 was cute, and Shirley Temple is cute too, but cutely annoying! In the 1995 version,cool stuff happened, but it almost followed a totally different story! This follows the story with great anticipation, and I think that every actor or actress was picked perfectly for their part. Amelia Shankley did the best job of portraying Sara that I've ever seen. She acted marvelously, and sunk so deeply into the role that you almost forgot she was Amelia. I was never really into classics, until I got A Little Princess for a novel I had to read back in the eighth grade. This may not be very popular, but is definately a movie you gotta own. I would suggest deeply searching amazon.com (that's what I did) because otherwise it would be impossible to find since it went out of business a few years ago. Bottom line: WATCH THIS, YOU'LL LOVE IT!!!!!!!!