Little Women

Little Women is a 1949 adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's novel about the four March sisters growing up in Massachusetts during the American Civil War. With their father away fighting, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy live with their mother, making do on modest means while their wealthier neighbour Mr Laurence and his grandson Laurie become part of their lives. Each sister has a distinct temperament: Meg is gentle, Jo is headstrong and determined to write, Beth is quiet and Amy is willful. As they move toward adulthood, the sisters face questions of love, work and independence, with Jo in particular pursuing her ambition to become an author.

The film was directed and produced by Mervyn LeRoy, the ninth of the fourteen features he directed in chronological order, following Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo and preceding Quo Vadis. Victor Heerman, Sarah Y. Mason and Andrew Solt wrote the screenplay. June Allyson plays Jo, with Peter Lawford as Laurie, Margaret O'Brien as Beth, Elizabeth Taylor as Amy, Janet Leigh as Meg and Rossano Brazzi as Professor Bhaer, among a credited cast of 39. Made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on a budget of about 3 million dollars, it took roughly 6 million dollars worldwide.

On IMDb it holds 7.2 out of 10 from around 8,900 votes, and on TMDB 7.4 out of 10 from 233 votes. A critics' rating of 6 out of 10 from 8 reviews places it slightly below the audience scores.