This was one of my favorite books as a child. I even had the book on tape, read by the same wonderful young actress that portrayed Jane in the film. I spent numerous blissful hours drawing and listening to the tapes, imagining that I was part of Jane's marvelous world. Then the movie came along and as a nine year old, I was thoroughly traumatized as to what they had done to my beloved book.
Years later, an interest in Sam Waterston's acting drew me back, and admittedly out of sheer bias toward his portrayal of Andrew, which may be the only good thing about the movie, I did not hate it as much. But that does not make it a good adaptation. "Jane of Lantern Hill" was never meant to be a ghost story. There was no strange, creepy, gray-haired old woman (witch?) trying to encourage Jane to draw her parents back together. There was no ghost haunting her, nor no sinister nightmares. Beyond that, the first half hour of the film is complete rubbish that only bears a passing resemblance to the book.
I'm not a prude when it comes to adaptations. I can enjoy them even with major changes made so long as the spirit remains true to the author's intention, and the characters are not severely altered in any way. I'm afraid this one doesn't quite hit the mark. I found it enjoyable, but in comparing it to the book, came up short every time. The best thing about the production are the performances by the leading girls and the depiction of a charming, eccentric father. That almost makes it worth it.
