Anne of Green Gables

As a big fan of the books before I even saw the 80's versions of the movie, I think that the 1934 movie is a fairly good depiction. There is one deviation that they made which bugged me throughout the whole movie. Diana Barry's mother was Miss Rachel in the movie instead of them being 2 separate people. Also Diana had blonde hair, but that I could get past. I'm amused that the actress who played Anne Shirley (with an "e") just so happened to be named Anne Shirley, and she does an excellent job playing the character...it's almost as if the character Anne was modeled after the actress Anne. This movie sticks to the storyline very well, so as to quote many lines from the book. Also, Gilbert is still fairly handsome :)

B-picture-level adaptation from RKO, modestly budgeted, with OK performances. Anne Shirley (who took her screen name from this role) looks rather older here than in some of her contemporary appearances. Film is much too rushed (the ending posits and wraps a major medical and romantic crisis in about 5 minutes), and the all-indoor shooting is no plus. No match whatever for the lovely Canadian miniseries version of 1985, whose leisurely pacing allowed better character development.

Anne of Green Gables is directed by George Nichols Jr. and adapted to screenplay by Sam Mintz from the book of the same name written by Lucy Maud Montgomery. It stars Anne Shirley, Tom Brown, O.P. Heggie, Helen Westley & Sara Haden. Story sees Anne Shirley as an orphan girl who is adopted by farmer Matthew Cuthbert and his sister Marilla. That they were expecting a boy means it's quite a surprise, but in spite of Marilla's initial reservations, they accept her into the family home and a good family unit is formed. But can Anne ingratiate herself into school and the village way of life?

Having not read the book I personally have no frame of reference in which to judge this film adaptation. What is there for its modest running time is a charming little picture capturing a time period long since past. The acting and English language is very correct, while the innocence of the story, including that of young love blossoming, has a simplicity that's hard to dislike. There's some nice country shots to sample as well, while O.P. Heggie's performance is worthy of investment on its own. Old time film making with old time values, it's a film easily digestible for the undemanding film fan. 7/10

In "Anne of Green Gables" (1934), Marilla Cuthbert (Helen Westley) and Matthew Cuthbert (O.P. Heggie), middle-aged siblings who live together at Green Gables, a farm in Avonlea, on Prince Edward Island, decide to adopt a boy from distant orphanage to help on their farm. But the orphan sent to them is a precocious girl of 14 named Anne Shirley (Dawn Evelyn Paris-a veteran of Disney's series of "Alice" shorts who later would adopt her character's name).

Anne was only 11 in Lucy Maude Montgomery's source novel but the same actress could not credibly go from 11 to college age during the course of the story. The movie suffers somewhat from this concession, as many of Anne's reactions and much of what she says would be far more entertaining coming from an eleven-year-old than from a teenager. As in the book, Anne is bright and quick, eager to please but dissatisfied with her name, her build, her freckles, and her long red hair. Being a child of imagination, however, Anne takes much joy in life, and adapts quickly to her new family and the environment of Prince Edward Island.

In fact Anne is the original "Teenage Drama Queen" and the film's screenwriter elected to focus on this aspect of her character. Which transformed the basic genre from mildly amusing family drama to comedy. A change that delighted audiences and that continues to frustrate reader purists.

Since the comedy is very much in the spirit of Montgomery's story I can see no reason to take issue with the changes, but let this serve as fair warning to anyone expecting a totally faithful adaptation. The comedy element is the strength of the film as it is one of the earliest self-reflexive parodies of Hollywood conventions. The actress Anne Shirley was one of Hollywood's all- time beauties and the film is in black and white. So much of the amusement is in seeing the title character's endless laments about her appearance and hair color contradicted by what is appearing on the screen. Anne regularly regales her no nonsense rural companions with melodramatic lines like: "If you refuse it will be a lifelong sorrow to me". Perhaps the funniest moment is when she corrects the spelling of her name on the classroom blackboard.

Tom Brown does a nice job as Anne's love interest Gilbert Blythe and Sara Haden steals all the scenes in which she appears as the Cuthbert's pompous neighbor.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

Precocious orphan Anne Shirley comes to live with an old spinster and her brother in rural Canada. I grew up with the wonderful '80s TV miniseries Anne of Green Gables with Megan Follows. It's more faithful to the book and no doubt purists will prefer that. Still, this is an entertaining film with a charming performance from Anne Shirley, who took her stage name from this character. It's amusing that young Anne's being homely is referenced several times when the actress Anne Shirley is one of the prettiest to ever grace the screen. She's also one of classic Hollywood's most underrated talents. I've never seen a bad performance from her. She ended her career at the age of 27. Her last film was the classic Murder, My Sweet. Not a bad movie to go out on. As for this one, the last 15 minutes or so squeezes a lot in and it's not as strong as the start but it's still a very enjoyable film.