A Little Princess (1995)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Alfonso Cuarón

Writers (WGA):

Frances Hodgson Burnett (novel)
Richard LaGravenese (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

10 May 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

Every girl everwhere is a princess.

Plot:

A young girl is relegated to servitude at a boarding school when her father goes missing and is presumed dead.

Plot Keywords:

Boarding School | British | Presumed Dead | Princess | WWI

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Liesel Matthews	...	Sara Crewe
Eleanor Bron	...	Miss Minchin
Liam Cunningham	...	Capt. Crewe / Prince Rama
Rusty Schwimmer	...	Amelia Minchin
Arthur Malet	...	Charles Randolph
Vanessa Lee Chester	...	Becky
Errol Sitahal	...	Ram Dass
Heather DeLoach	...	Ermengarde
Taylor Fry	...	Lavinia
Darcie Bradford	...	Jesse
Rachael Bella	...	Betsy
Alexandra Rea-Baum	...	Gertrude
Camilla Belle	...	Jane
Lauren Blumenfeld	...	Rosemary
Kelsey Mulrooney	...	Lottie

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:G (certificate #33528) | South Korea:All | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Canada:F (Ontario) | Canada:G (Nova Scotia) | Chile:TE | Italy:T | Singapore:PG | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Family Entertainment

Trivia:

The stores on the film's main street are named after various crew members.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: When the little girls are running through the forest in 1914 one of them gives the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan yell.

Quotes:

[the amnesiac Capt Crewe comes across Sara crying in a corner of a darkened room]
Capt. Crewe: What is it? Why are you crying? Please tell me. I won't hurt you. Won't you tell me your name?
Sara Crewe: [sobbing] Sara.
Capt. Crewe: 'Sara'... that's such a pretty name.
Sara Crewe: [there is a flash of lightening, and the lights suddenly come back on] Papa...?
Capt. Crewe: What did you say?
[she runs to him, and he tries to hold her away]
Capt. Crewe: I'm sorry...
Sara Crewe: Papa, it's me! It's Sara!
Capt. Crewe: Do you know me?
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Tough Love (#5.19)" (2001)

A sweet confection of a film-one of the overlooked gems of the '90s

This movie is on my short list of great live action family films. If you believe that every girl is a princess, this is the movie for you. Beautifully staged and shot, well-acted, superbly directed. This movie works from start to finish.

Some reviewers here on IMDb have slammed the film as overly sentimental. If you don't like movies with a sweet disposition, this isn't your film. Let's put it this way: if you think Frank Capra was the bane of American film-making, you're gonna hate this movie. If you judge films on a "the darker, the better" scale-why are you even watching this? Another caveat: I haven't read the book. The movie apparently takes great liberties with the book. If this kind of thing bothers you, stay away.

Alfonso Cuaron shows a deft handling of the sense of wonder here. When he was announced as the director of Harry Potter 3, his work on Little Princess made me confident he'd deliver the goods. One reviewer tried to declare that "Princess" was a calculated attempt by Cuaron to to get a gig on the Potter series. Impossible. "Princess" was released in 1995, and "Sorceror's/Philosopher's Stone" was PUBLISHED in 1998.

This is a small, quiet, sweet little film the entire family can enjoy, without insulting Mom & Dad's intelligence. It is the next step for all little girls who are starting to outgrow Belle/Ariel/Jasmine and the rest of the animated princesses. This Little Princess is real, and her story is worth watching.

Side note-little boys might not find the film engaging. It is kind of chick-flick for the tween set. That doesn't mean it's totally male-unfriendly. Fathers of daughters will be hard-pressed to avoid shedding a tear or two.

If you have a tween daughter, save some rental money and just buy it! She's going to watch it over and over.