This is just a lovely, lovely, movie, visually sumptuous and with a positive message. Sarah is a lovely character who keeps a good attitude regardless and is both charming and kind. The movie is full of beautiful moments.
My primary complaints about the film are probably due to its short running time. While I generally support keeping things short, there are times when things are simply unexplained. For example, the movie really needed to show us what the lawyer said to Miss Minchin, because without that explanation, it came across as a highly improbably turn in the narrative put there entirely to propel the story, as opposed to something that is likely to have happened (the book, from what I've read on wikipedia, makes more sense in this regard). Likewise Minchin's final moments are satisfying but highly unrealistic.
But I'm okay with that, because the movie has a magical, mythic quality that makes it thoroughly enjoyable.
My primary complaints about the film are probably due to its short running time. While I generally support keeping things short, there are times when things are simply unexplained. For example, the movie really needed to show us what the lawyer said to Miss Minchin, because without that explanation, it came across as a highly improbably turn in the narrative put there entirely to propel the story, as opposed to something that is likely to have happened (the book, from what I've read on wikipedia, makes more sense in this regard). Likewise Minchin's final moments are satisfying but highly unrealistic.
But I'm okay with that, because the movie has a magical, mythic quality that makes it thoroughly enjoyable.