Customer Reviews

Little Men [VHS]

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Completely different story than the book by Louisa May Alcott.

It is not a great movie, but I enjoyed it. The school is quaint, on a farm. The story is really about a boy's father, a struggling and charming swindler, in the likes of Long John Silver, searching for new schemes to swindle money. His son, who goes off to school, is a bit embarrassed by his father's career. Nothing exceptional, but pleasant, and keeps your interest.

The father advertises in the newspaper: "Send $3 and receive a fine quality portrait of President Washington, by a professional artist, with exquisite detail".

I first read Louisa May Alcott's Little Men when I was twelve years old. I loved it immediately, despite its prissiness and what you might call its outdated morals, if such extremes were ever in date. None of this is relevant to this film however, as it effectively just takes its name and the names of the characters within it and then proceeds with a story that bears no relationship whatsoever to the book. From that point of view its a disappointment, but fear not, once you accept that it is not the book or any portion thereof what you have is an enjoyable film. This is due primarily, mainly, perhaps solely, to the performances of Jack Oakie and George Bancroft. Jack Oakie is sublime as an utterly unreformed thief,con artist and city dweller who on seeing a donkey believes it to be a fox. While George Bancroft, his one time occasional partner in crime although uncomfortably reformed, does in the end find a way to make crime pay, if in an unusual way.

Technically, although I am utterly unqualified to comment on technicalities. It would have been nice to have the tape mastered from a cleaner,crisper and undamaged original print. Although it isn't so poor as to mar the enjoyment of the story.

I thought this movie was an absolute failure in almost all aspects! The actors were horrible (except Kay Francis as Jo Bhaer). Fritz was displayed as a naive, Swiss professor--almost completly stupid--now why would you marry someone like that? And Dan was a horrible crybaby! I was very disappointed in this movie and I would not recommend it to anyone.