An American Girl Holiday (2004)

Set in 1904, "American Girls" revolves around Samantha as she moves in with her grandmother and learns how to become a proper Victorian young lady.

Director:

Nadia Tass

Writer:

Valerie Tripp ("Samantha" stories from the "The American Girl Collection")

Stars:

Mia Farrow, AnnaSophia Robb, Kenner Ames

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Mia Farrow	...	Grandmary Edwards
AnnaSophia Robb	...	Samantha Parkington
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Kenner Ames	...	Mr. O'Malley
Stewart Arnott	...	The Doctor
Olivia Ballantyne	...	Jenny O'Malley
Jordan Bridges	...	Uncle Gard
Jackie Brown	...	Factory Lady
Stan Coles
Hannah Endicott-Douglas	...	Bridget O'Malley
Karen Eyo	...	School Principal
Michele Ferney
Angela Fusco
Keir Gilchrist	...	Factory Boy
Alanna Glass
Bruce Gooch	...	The Admiral

Storyline

Kindhearted Samantha Parkington's world starts to change the day Nellie O'Malley walks into her life. Nellie, her father, and her two little sisters have moved in next door to be servants for the Ryland family. Though they come from completely different backgrounds, Samantha and Nellie become fast friends. The girls turn to each other in happiness and sorrow, adventure and danger, and grow to be as close as even two sisters could be. But nothing could prepare them for the life-altering surprises that lie ahead!

---

Plot Keywords:

sister | girl | servant | friend | courtship | 

---

Genres:

Family | Drama

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 November 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

An American Girl Holiday

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$200,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Red Om Films, Revolution Studios, Sam Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Kelsey Lewis is a brunette, but dyed her hair red for her role of Nellie.

---

Goofs

When Samantha first meets Nellie and her sisters, as she is leaving to go home she she says, "Goodbye Nellie, goodbye Bridget, goodbye Jenny." Nellie replies, "Goodbye," then the other two say, "Goodbye," simultaneously however in the story Jenny doesn't speak.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Samantha: [Narrating as she and Eddie were running around] It all began one day last April. I was living with my Grandmary in Mount Bedford, New York. And she was determined to teach me to become a proper young lady.
[climbs up on a tree]
Samantha: But that day, in particular, I was more interested in getting away from my next-door nuisance Eddie Ryland.
Eddie Ryland: Samantha!
[finds Samantha up on a tree]
Eddie Ryland: You're so dumb, you probably think three times four is twelve.
Samantha: Three times four is twelve, Eddie. Now if you ...
[...]

---

Connections

Followed by An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009)

---

Soundtracks

Abide with Me
(uncredited)
Music by William H. Monk
Lyrics by Henry F. Lyte
[Hymn during church]

User Reviews

A Solid Film for a Family Audience!

The story about Samantha Parkington, a privileged girl, who lives with her grandmother played by the wonderful Mia Farrow in Mount Bedford, New York along the Hudson River in the Hudson River Valley about a couple of hours north of New York City. In the beginning, Samantha is playing with Eddie Ryland, her neighbor and nemesis who enjoys bullying people into giving him money. Samantha befriends Eddie's new maids, young sisters--Nellie, Bridget, and Jenny whose mother died. Their father moved them to the country. Instead of working in terrible factories, they work in the Ryland estate in the Hudson River Valley. While Nellie is working there, Samantha and her become close friends despite their obvious differences. When Samantha's Uncle Gardner comes home, he announces his engagement to Cornelia Pitt, a woman's right to vote activist, and he plans to bring Samantha to live with them in New York City. Wherever Samantha goes, adventure follows. I don't know how similar this is to the books but it's an okay film. The acting is okay. The child actors are wonderful in their roles. The film reminds of an old Shirley Temple movie. It's for a family audience!