How anyone can rate this version as the best is beyond me. It is inferior in every particular to the 1949 June Allyson version. Role by role, the acting is better in 1949; the cinematography is better; the script is better and more faithful to the original, etc. In this early version in black and white, Katherine Hepburn is about the only reason to watch, even though she's nowhere near June Allyson's perfect tomboy. I found especially wanting the dreadful casting of Henry Stephenson as Laurie -- what a wimp! Edna May Oliver is memorable as the Aunt, but Spring Byington as Marmee pales next to Mary Astor or even Susan Serandon in the 1994 remake. I know this version is directed by the legendary George Cukor, but I found his gay sensibility a distraction rather than an asset. Also Rossano Brazzi offers a satisfying option for Jo March, rather than the pathetic professor of Paul Lukas. The all-star cast of 1949 completely outshines this 1933 version, especially in the casting of the four sisters -- Janet Leigh, Elizabeth Taylor and Margaret O'Brien, in addition to June Allyson. To get an authentic rendering of the great novel, see the 1949 version.
Review of Little Women
