Customer Reviews

The Secret Garden (Hallmark Hall of Fame)

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(12)

 

 

I have now seen two other versions of The Secret Garden, and this one (the first I ever saw) Remains my favorite. The reason is I have a couple problems with the other versions
In the old 1949 Edition, Mary wasn't portrayed correctly. She's supposed to be (at the beginning) a girl with an attitude (for lack of a better way to put it.) She's supposed to be completely emotionally unnafected by her parent's death (according to the book)as they had never attempted to spend time with her. In the old 1949 version, Mary has an emotional outburst upon learning of her parent's death. That is out of charachter. In this version, she's more concerned about the doll she dropped when she was told. Her attitude in this 1987 version seems more in charachter.
In the 1993 version I do not like the way they took the concept of "magic" and twisted it into a seance in the garden. That is extremely out of charachter with the book. When the book speaks of "Magic" it almost hints at miricles/the hand of God. This 1987 movie kept in charachter with that.
Basically, I think this version is truer to the mysterious (in a good way) tone of the book. the manor is beautiful! and the whole scenery is in charachter with the book. The only thing they contradicted the book in was having Mary and Colin not related. In the book they're cousins. But in this version they're unrelated, which is obviously because they have Mary and Colin getting married. The only thing I would change is the actors that played the two boys, Colin and Dicken. They were pretty good actors, but both were too old. Dickon should have been someone more Mary's age, and the actor that played Colin (although he has a sufficient baby face) reveals his real age at the end when he can stand up and walk. Way too tall. Look at the scene with him and his father walking together in the garden. Colin's way to tall to be 10 (his supposed age). Other than that, this is a superb version of the movie, which any Secret Garden fan should own. Hallmark has quality! (insert gold crown here)

i've seen this movie at least 200 times since i was seven years old, and though i've had to purchase it more than once... i still love it! the beautifully romantic soundtrack gives you a soulful account of what's happening in the story, and the very talented director found some of the most talented actors that played their parts beautifully. it's a staple of my own film collection, and i hope everyone sees it at least once!

I really like this version of The Secret Garden, and it would rate more stars if the DVD had been better. The transfer appears to have been made from material a few generations removed from the negative. The result is a fairly grainy picture with quite a bit of dirt, dust, etc. and lacking in sharpness, clarity, contrast, and detail. The picture isn't horrible, but it just should've been better--and I expected better from Hallmark. I don't want to disuade anyone who loves this movie from buying a copy on DVD, I just wish companies would stop viewing their films as "product" to sell and start treating them as artistic efforts to be treated with care. To do any less shows a lack of respect for the artists who made the film and the viewers who expect that they will not be given a defective item when they plunk down their money. In conclusion, this is a good movie, but let the buyer beware.

This is one of my favorite movies ever. This version tells the classic story beautifully. It's great to watch the transition Mary goes through of being grouchy and snobbish to optimistic and strong-willed. You get to see a similar transition with a number of other characters as well. All the while Dicken remains ever friendly with a slight mysterious edge as a creature of nature. Additionally, the use of Chopan's Nocturne in the soundtrack makes the emotion in this movie all the more powerful.

A caution though: the beginning might be too much for younger children. In India, Mary finds her parents and servant dead or dying and then her doll is taken away and burned in the fire. This is, however, the only part with such distresses.

There are newer versions of the movie but my heart will always be with this one. I watched this version over and over, and over again. I suppose that I watched it at least 70-100 times! Of course I did not have a sheet where I tick marked every time I watched it. But, I at least watched it 2 or 3 times a week for a very long stretch. Now, this was not normal behavior for me. I did not like watching movies more than once or twice, but this one was so enchanting and uplifting that I always wanted to experience all of it again. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a classic to watch.

This has to be one of my all time favorite Hallmark movies. I have seen other movie versions of "The Secret Garden," all of which seem much darker. I have to say, Hallmark has made the most enjoyable version of "The Secret Garden" to date. the childeren in this movie are wonderful.

Child characters: "Mary Lennox," spoiled, lonley, sad child. Taken from her home to live with a guardian in England after her parents death. "Dickon", Mesterious boy who communes with nature. "Colin," son of Mary's guardian, is hidden from society.

In the movie Mray sets out to find and unlock the secrets to the mesterious garden, making friends along the way.

The scenery in this movie is breath taking at times. One of Hallmarks best! A must have for any Hallmark Hall of Fame fan. Good to have in any movie collection!

This is the only presentation of the Secret Garden that my wife will watch! We have watched all of the others and none are close to this one. The actress who plays the Mary Lenox is simply the best as she turns from vixen to princess.

This is by far my favorite version of this classic story and the most authentic and true to the spirit of the book. The cast and direction are excellent and the setting is gorgeous. This film will delight both children and adults with it's adventure, suspense, and innocent romance. It's a little spooky in some scenes, but of the fun rather than truly scary kind. This story has a very positive underlying message but doesn't preach, rather it expresses it in subtly beautiful ways as the characters unlock the mysteries of the Secret Garden and of themselves. No matter what age you are, this is a thoroughly enjoyable, uplifting, perhaps even transformative film - don't miss it!

I have been a fan of the book _The Secret Garden_ since the first time I read it in grade school. I read the book a minimum of once a year - probably for 12 years. I was really disappointed in several versions of the movie I have seen. They either added weird scenes that were not true to the book or left out too many details for my liking. I know that I can't expect movies to stay entirely true to books - particularly when modern Hollywood makes a movie out of a children's literature classic... but this is absolutely the best version of the story I have ever seen as a movie.

I only gave it 4 out of 5 stars because they made a strange frame around the story - with Mary coming back to the Manor after the war and flashing back to the whole story. That in itself is fine -- but for some reason at the beginning a cat jumps out at her (and then instantly the flashback begins), why??? And at the end Colin comes and meets her in her garden and proposes... aren't they COUSINS?

Below I compare and contrast the three color adaptations.


1. The 1975 adaptation BBC

This adaptation is very low budgeted, and it shows in the picture quality, which is painful even if you are used to BBC 4.3 aspect ratio films. This said, the film is quite good in every other way if loyalty in plot is important to you. For example, Mr. Archibald Craven is given a larger role in this adaptation than in the 1987 and 1993 adaptations. Furthermore, a considerably amount of the dialogue is taken directly from the novel. Therefore, this adaptation is much less 'sound bites' and allows for the development of Mary, Dickon, and Collin's characters.

The acting is also considerably better than the 1987 and 1993 adaptations. Unfortunately, with child actors of probably 10 or 11 years of age who have memorize a large amount of script, errors will be evident.

Yet, the 1975 adaptation is the best adaptation. It is neither too mystical (1993) nor too gothic (1987).


2. The 1987 adaptation Hallmark

Although I know many individuals despise this adaptation, I enjoyed it for a change. Yes, the acting is not perfect and the accents are horrible. Yes, the ending is pathetic and quite changed from the novel. Yes, Dickon (as an adult) dies in World War I. Yet, when one considers what the film was trying to achieve (i.e. change the theme from a children's story to a social critique of problems in society), it does an effective job. The film is a little too gothic (in the Victorian literature definition -i.e. 'ghosts' and long, dark corridors), yet I did not think the gothic harmed the story but rather created a sense of anticipation.

Again, if you want a loyal adaptation, I would urge the the 1975 adaptation. However, if you are tired of watching the 1975 adaptation and want to see a change, in my opinion, this 1987 adaptation is a better choice than the 1993 adaptation.

(However, I am not certain I would pay more than $15.00 for the 1987 adaptation. Therefore, I do not own it on DVD - just VHS taped off the television when it aired sometime in the 1990s.)


3. The 1993 adaptation Time Warner

I really hated this adaptation - saw it once years ago and really have no desire to see it again, except maybe to improve my review at some later date. My first problem was that Mary's parents were killed in an earthquake rather than a plague. (I am not certain what this proved?). Secondly, the mystical music was annoying as were the inappropriate accents - although of the two, I could tolerate the poor accents much more than the poor music.

Additionally, other scenes were also altered. For example, Mary finds the key to the garden in her deceased aunt's bedroom in the shut up wing of the Manor. In the 1975 adaptation (and I think the 1987 adaptation also), Mary finds the key buried with some help from a robin. However, the robin does show Mary where the door to the garden is located.

Unfortunately, the other problem I have with this film is that it is centered almost exclusively on Mary's character. Where the 1975 adaptation provides other characters (ex: Martha, Dr. Craven, Sir Archibald Craven, and Martha's mother have with numerous scenes in which Mary does not appear.) In the Warner adaptation, Mary is the focus of nearly every scene.

Also, Collin's character was considerably altered into less dictatorial that in the novel the other film adaptations. In fact, at times, Collin appears very childish and timid - terrified of dying and of Mrs. Medlock (rather than bossing Mrs. Medlock, his nurse, and everyone else around).

Of course, I could add other details. I will not because I do not remember everything about the 1993 adaptation. Sufficient to say, I do not recommend it.