LITTLE WOMEN (1949) *** It's a tribute to the immense theatrical skills of Elizabeth Taylor (and a horrible shade of blonde) that she leaves us fastidiously credulous that Peter Lawford is bummed to get stuck with her instead of June Allyson. Or all of them, I guess, but glorious as June is... Little Margaret O'Brien probably takes even more scenes than any of them-strong female characters have always been fashionable, if only when women are writing them. Speaking of which, Louisa May Alcott also has a way of idealizing men. I mean, I may be running with a bad crowd (well, no debating that--but the other crowds are even worse) but I haven't seen too many guys as willfully and consistently altruistic as any of these main characters. Not just that Louisa has them speaking poetry-plenty of us can pull that one off-but C. Aubrey Smith is a representation of purist gallantry that male writers can't think hard enough to even take a shot at. And c'mon, surely if we can write about space aliens and half-goat guys an honest old, witty rich guy shouldn't seem that much more unrealistic. Shouldn't. Our problem is probably that we'd feel the necessity of explaining his politics.
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