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Little Women
Little Women

Little Women,

directed by Greta Gerwig

(PG, 2 hours, 15 minutes)

Those who have read Louisa May Alcott's literary classic about four sisters growing up together during and after the Civil War may think there's nothing more to be said about it, especially after at least 12 TV adaptations and five feature films. So along comes this version, directed by Greta Gerwig. What's the attraction?

It's terrific, a lively, unsentimental illumination of not only women's lives but the turbulent times in which they come of age. The filmmakers and cast -- especially Saoirse Ronan as spunky, defiant, ambitious Jo -- certainly do something right, as the film was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture (the first film nominated that's written, directed and produced entirely by female filmmakers); it won for Best Costume Design.

With Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Eliza Scanlen, Timothée Chalamet, Laura Dern and Meryl Streep.

The Blu-ray, DVD and digital releases offer 45 minutes of bonus features about the cast, art direction, costumes, sets, and the inspiring Orchard House where Louisa May Alcott lived and wrote the novel.

Dolittle (PG, 1 hour, 41 minutes) Very young animal lovers may find this comedic fantasy watchable, but few others will embrace yet another retelling that offers nothing original in the worn-out story of a physician who realizes he can talk to animals. With an over-qualified cast that includes Robert Downey Jr., Emma Thompson, Antonio Banderas, Rami Malek, Craig Robinson, Octavia Spencer, Tom Holland, John Cena, Ralph Finnes; directed and co-written by Stephen Gaghan.

Cats (PG, 1 hour, 50 minutes) See it for the freaky imagery, not for the curious plot, which hardly exists in this film adaptation of the Broadway perennial musical in which singing and dancing cats called the Jellicles compete to decide which one of them will, to put it bluntly, die and be reincarnated. With Francesca Hayward, James Corden, Judi Dench, Idris Elba, Ian McKellen, Rebel Wilson, Taylor Swift, Jennifer Hudson; directed by co-written by Tom Hooper.

Camp Cold Brook (not rated, 1 hour, 26 minutes) The outcome is clear from the get-go, but there are still entertaining moments in this horror mystery in which a reality TV producer who's facing a financial disaster decides to take a chance on increasing his show's ratings by investigating a drowning disaster at a remote camp for kids that, decades later, has become the stuff of legends. What could go wrong? With Chad Michael Murray, Danielle Harris, Courtney Gains; directed by Andy Palmer.

Knives and Skin (not rated, 1 hour, 51 minutes) A surreal social satire enlivened with bold music and weird imagery that concerns a teenage girl's disappearance in the rural Midwest. With Marika Engelhardt, Grace Smith, Ireon Roach; written and directed by Jennifer Reeder.

Escape From Pretoria (PG-13, 1 hour, 46 minutes) A well-crafted jailbreak drama, fortified by a fine performance by Daniel Radcliffe and based on an incident that took place in South Africa during apartheid, describes how two white South African political workers are determined to escape from a notorious jail. With Ian Hart, Stephen Hunter; written and directed by Francis Annan.

The Woman Who Loves Giraffes (not rated, 2 hours, 3 minutes) A finely wrought profile of 23-year-old biologist Anne Innis Dagg, who in 1956 overcame prejudice against female scientists and plenty of other challenges to become the first researcher -- preceding Dian Fossey and Jane Goodall -- to observe and report on animal behavior. With Tatiana Maslany, Victor Garber, Lindsay Leese; written and directed by Alison Reid.

MovieStyle on 04/10/2020

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