Jo March (Sarah Davenport) is one of four sisters, living in the Boston area. The others are Meg, Beth, and youngest one, Amy. Having aspirations to become a writer, Jo directs her sisters in home-grown productions of her works. Mother Marmee (Lea Thompson) encourages all the girls by giving them model "air castles" in the attic of the old, crumbling house, so they can decorate them with their aspirations. Meg, who is the oldest and home-schooled like the rest, wants to make friends with the popular crowd outside the family. By contrast, Beth loves home-life and playing the piano while Amy is a budding artist. Father is away fighting in the Middle East and the girls love skyping with him. Soon, a new young man, Laurie Lawrence, moves next door with his Grandpa. They, unlike the Marches, are wealthy. But, when Meg and Jo attend a party, Jo meets Laurie as they both seek refuge in small room. Friendship thrives. All the girls soon love Laurie as a brother. Laurie's tutor, John, develops an eye for pretty Meg, rescuing her from a party of temptations. Beth makes friends with Laurie's gruff Grandpa when she plays his piano on a visit while Amy constantly nags Jo to take her along with outings between her older sister and Laurie. But, as the four girls grow older, changes are inevitable. Jo, especially, has a hard time reaching her dreams, struggling on re-writes of her stories with a Columbia professor, Freddy Baer. Also, tragedy arrives. Will the girls make their parents are proud, as Papa always refers to them as "little women"? When I heard of this modern adaptation of a beloved classic, I was skeptical. Yet, this production is mostly faithful to the original, inspiring novel of Louisa May Alcott. The girls retain their unique personalities and the story is true to original plot. Sometimes the chronological ORDER of the events has been changed but it doesn't alter the impact. But, Meg still burns her hair with a curling iron and Amy still burns up Jo's writing notebook in a fit of revenge! As the principal character, Sarah Davenport is especially effective. Also, the settings around Boston, the costumes, and the careful direction make for a lovely movie to behold. Ladies, don't miss this chance to bring your daughters to a movie that is powerful in its "girls can be anything" message!
