Comparing the Book and Movie Version of The Secret Garden Essay

The Secret Garden: Book vs. Movie The Secret Garden is a film based on Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic children's book bearing the same title. This movie is about a young girl who is literally shipped off to her uncle's English castle after her parents are killed in an earthquake. The main character, Mary, is played by Kate Maberly. She is tossed into a world where sunlight and cheerful discourse seem as rare as the attention she receives from the sour-pussed housekeeper Medlock, played by Maggie Smith. She helps her crippled cousin to see past his hypochondria and into the wonders of a long forgotten garden hidden beyond the confines of Misselthwaite Manor. While one critic dislikes the slight deviations from the book, another is content to relish in the imagery and scenery of The Secret Garden. Megan Rosenfeld, a Washington Post staff writer, is obviously distressed at the modifications made by director Agnieszka Holland to the original story. Ms. Rosenfeld asserts, "If it ain't broke, don't rewrite it." She refers to some specific changes, including the use of an earth...