A Little Princess (1995)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Alfonso Cuarón

Writers (WGA):

Frances Hodgson Burnett (novel)
Richard LaGravenese (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

10 May 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

Every girl everwhere is a princess.

Plot:

A young girl is relegated to servitude at a boarding school when her father goes missing and is presumed dead.

Plot Keywords:

Boarding School | British | Presumed Dead | Princess | WWI

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Liesel Matthews	...	Sara Crewe
Eleanor Bron	...	Miss Minchin
Liam Cunningham	...	Capt. Crewe / Prince Rama
Rusty Schwimmer	...	Amelia Minchin
Arthur Malet	...	Charles Randolph
Vanessa Lee Chester	...	Becky
Errol Sitahal	...	Ram Dass
Heather DeLoach	...	Ermengarde
Taylor Fry	...	Lavinia
Darcie Bradford	...	Jesse
Rachael Bella	...	Betsy
Alexandra Rea-Baum	...	Gertrude
Camilla Belle	...	Jane
Lauren Blumenfeld	...	Rosemary
Kelsey Mulrooney	...	Lottie

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:G (certificate #33528) | South Korea:All | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Canada:F (Ontario) | Canada:G (Nova Scotia) | Chile:TE | Italy:T | Singapore:PG | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Family Entertainment

Trivia:

The characters of Sara's story, Prince Rama, his wife Sita, and the evil Ravana, all come from the ancient/epic Indian poem "Ramayana".

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: When Sara is explaining to the little girl having a temper tantrum about the angels, the microphone is clearly visible above them.

Quotes:

[Randolph and his servant are at a military hospital, where Randolph has discovered that the amnesiac soldier there is not his son John]
Charles Randolph: All the hoping... you must think me a fool.
Ram Dass: Is it your wish to be wise, sahib?
Charles Randolph: I don't know. I suppose a wise man wouldn't have come here at all.
Ram Dass: But if he had, he would have looked more closely upon the soldier's face.
Charles Randolph: And what would he have seen?
Ram Dass: Pain, sahib. He needs to be cared for.
Charles Randolph: He's not my responsibility.
Ram Dass: A wise man would remember that this soldier was in John's regiment. If his memory returns... he might tell sahib what happened to his son. Perhaps sahib would learn that John is in British hospital now wishing a kind man would take him home... away from his pain.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Tough Love (#5.19)" (2001)

A sweet confection of a film-one of the overlooked gems of the '90s

This movie is on my short list of great live action family films. If you believe that every girl is a princess, this is the movie for you. Beautifully staged and shot, well-acted, superbly directed. This movie works from start to finish.

Some reviewers here on IMDb have slammed the film as overly sentimental. If you don't like movies with a sweet disposition, this isn't your film. Let's put it this way: if you think Frank Capra was the bane of American film-making, you're gonna hate this movie. If you judge films on a "the darker, the better" scale-why are you even watching this? Another caveat: I haven't read the book. The movie apparently takes great liberties with the book. If this kind of thing bothers you, stay away.

Alfonso Cuaron shows a deft handling of the sense of wonder here. When he was announced as the director of Harry Potter 3, his work on Little Princess made me confident he'd deliver the goods. One reviewer tried to declare that "Princess" was a calculated attempt by Cuaron to to get a gig on the Potter series. Impossible. "Princess" was released in 1995, and "Sorceror's/Philosopher's Stone" was PUBLISHED in 1998.

This is a small, quiet, sweet little film the entire family can enjoy, without insulting Mom & Dad's intelligence. It is the next step for all little girls who are starting to outgrow Belle/Ariel/Jasmine and the rest of the animated princesses. This Little Princess is real, and her story is worth watching.

Side note-little boys might not find the film engaging. It is kind of chick-flick for the tween set. That doesn't mean it's totally male-unfriendly. Fathers of daughters will be hard-pressed to avoid shedding a tear or two.

If you have a tween daughter, save some rental money and just buy it! She's going to watch it over and over.