Little Women

Mid-year Film Update 2020

Last year was the first time I did a mid-year check in on my film-related goals and I thought I’d do the same again this year – mainly because I like to see how much my most watched actors change over the course of a year.

My film-related goals are pretty chill. They are:

And I have to say, I’m on the right track with both of those so far. I have watched 28 films directed women so over half way there and I’ve watched 40 films written by women which is over three quarters of the way to 52. I’ll definitely hit 52 films for both directors and screenwriters by the end of the year, the question is what will my final total be. My favourite films made by women I’ve seen so far this year are Miss Americana, Little Women and Misbehaviour. I also rewatched Mamma Mia! which was a delight as always.

Thanks to COVID-19 and lockdown, naturally I haven’t been to the cinema since March (and I’m not sure when I’ll be going back even though they being to open here in a couple of weeks), and a lot of the big films directed by women – Black Widow, Mulan, Wonder Woman 1984 – have been pushed back. So, if it hadn’t have been for COVID, I’ll have probably seen more films directed by women by now but there we go.

Thanks to the A-Z in April Challenge this year, I have knocked 20 films off my unwatched DVD/Blu-rays list so now I have 64 left to watch. I do hope to watch more of them over the next six months, especially the Hitchcock and Clint Eastwood films.

I love my Letterboxd stats. Here’s my most watched actors of 2020 so far:

I have done a lot of rewatching of some of my favourite franchises so far this year which pretty much explains everyone here. So far in 2020 I have rewatched; the entirety of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the original Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, the Ocean’s Eleven trilogy, The Lord of the Rings (normally a Christmas rewatch for me but I needed the extra comfort that those films bring me), and The Chronicles of Narnia films. Last month I decided to watch all of Anton Yelchin’s films that I hadn’t seen before that were available on Netflix/Prime so that’s how he made it on the list. I’m interested to see how many of the MCU actors especially manage to stay in my most watched actors list by the end of the year.

My most watched directors of 2020 so far:

Again, my director list isn’t that surprising based on the franchises I’ve rewatched so far this year. The Russo’s, James Gunn, Peyton Reed, Joss Whedon, Jon Watts and Jon Favreau all directed multiple films in the MCU, while Steven Soderbergh, Gore Verbinski and Peter Jackson directed the Ocean’s trilogy, Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, and Lord of the Rings trilogy respectively. It’d be nice if I could have a more diverse range of filmmakers in this list by the end of the year (at least Bong Joon-ho is there!) but we’ll see how that goes. While I often at least watch 52 films directed by women each year for example, they are often from 52 different women so female directors don’t often make this list.

In the first half of 2020 I have seen 144 different films with 13 being at the cinema, and as I said while I miss spending a Saturday watching three films in the cinema back to back, I’m not sure when I’ll be doing that again.

What are some of your favourite films you’ve watched so far in 2020? Are you missing the cinema at all? Besides the ones I’ve already mentioned, some of my favourite films have been Dark Waters, Da 5 Bloods and Love, Antosha. Each month on Twitter I share my Top 5 First Views if you ever want to see my monthly film highlights.

REVIEW: Little Women (2019)

The four March sisters come of age in America in the aftermath of the Civil War.

I read Little Women by Louisa May Alcott for the first time a couple of years ago. It was a book I thought was just alright, and I didn’t really see how it had become such a classic and my lasting impression of it was how much I hated Amy March. So it was with some trepidation I went to see this latest adaptation, but I was very surprised by how much I ended up enjoying this film and how it made me connect with all of the March sisters and it even made me tolerate Amy.

This feat was accomplished by the actor’s performances and writer and director Greta Gerwig’s brilliant screenplay. There are two timelines happening in Little Women. The present has Jo (Saoirse Ronan) is living in New York and trying to earn a living writing stories until she’s called home as her sister Beth (Eliza Scanlen) is sick where she reconnects with her mother (Laura Dern) and her older sister Meg (Emma Watson), while Amy (Florence Pugh) is travelling Europe with their Aunt March (Meryl Streep). Then there’s the other timeline that starts 7 years earlier where you can see how the sisters would put on plays, had dreams and aspirations that are so different from one another’s and how they are all determined to make their lives their own.

These timelines are easy to follow due to the characters costumes and how in the flashback scenes, the colours and costumes seem so much brighter, while the colour palette of the present scenes is a lot more muted, mirroring how the sisters have grown up and apart. It’s also fascinating to see the sisters grow into the people we see in the present, and how their relationships may change but continue to be so strong.

Also central to the story of Little Women is the March sisters’ friend and neighbour Laurie (Timothée Chalamet). He finds friendship and love and family with the March’s and his relationship with Jo is so important to the two of the but for different reasons.

Little Women has a beautiful score, wonderful costumes that add layers to the already complex characters and is shot so well. Gerwig’s Little Women is funny, touching and it makes you feel so happy and content by the end of it, even if some tears are shed along the way. It’s a delightful story told so well because the actors don’t just play their characters brilliantly, they embody the March sisters’ heart and soul. Ronan and Pugh particularly standout but while Beth and Meg have more understated roles, Scanlen and Watson bring out all of the layers to their characters just as well as Ronan and Pugh.

Little Women was a wonderful surprise in how much I loved it and while it is quite the feminist story, it’s also a universal story about love, family and find your place in the world. 5/5.