X
- 1993
- G
- Warner Bros.
- 1 h 41 m
- 1993
- G
- Warner Bros.
- 1 h 41 m
Summary A young, recently-orphaned girl is sent to England after living in India all her life. Once there, she begins to explore her new, seemingly-isolated surroundings -- and its secrets.
Directed By: Agnieszka Holland
Written By: Frances Hodgson Burnett, Caroline Thompson
- 1993
- G
- Warner Bros.
- 1 h 41 m
- 1993
- G
- Warner Bros.
- 1 h 41 m
The Secret Garden
74
7.8
Where to Watch
Summary A young, recently-orphaned girl is sent to England after living in India all her life. Once there, she begins to explore her new, seemingly-isolated surroundings -- and its secrets.
Directed By: Agnieszka Holland
Written By: Frances Hodgson Burnett, Caroline Thompson
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 26 Critic Reviews
74
69% Positive
18 Reviews
18 Reviews
31% Mixed
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 26 Critic Reviews
74
69% Positive
18 Reviews
18 Reviews
31% Mixed
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
The Secret Garden unfolds like a richly illustrated storybook. It's an enchanting film, full of visual surprises and a story so simple and wise that it makes most ''children's'' entertainment seem gaudy and facile and overly explicit. [13 Aug 1993, p.C1]
Simple in outline, liberating and exquisite, The Secret Garden is loaded with meaning. [13 Aug 1993, p.43]
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 User Ratings
7.8
85% Positive
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
15% Mixed
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 User Ratings
7.8
85% Positive
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
15% Mixed
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
Frances Hodgson Burnett's much-loved children's novel could all too easily come across on screen as the last word in period fustian, but the unforced approach of Holland and scriptwriter Caroline Thompson pierces to the emotional core of a still potent tale.
Holland, working with a largely English cast, brings a different - European, perhaps - sensibility to the film, and I think it works. [13 Aug 1993, p.3F]
The garden, an Edenic metaphor that gives the story its fertile power, should be as much of a living character as Maggie Smith's wonderfully brusque housekeeper - but isn't. As a result, everything that follows feels anti-climatic. Even if the plot plods a bit, there are pleasures to be plucked, especially in the performances of the children. [13 Aug 1993, p.4D]
The movie is earnest, heartfelt, and, for all its lavishness, rather plodding.
Rather than a fresh breeze, it's the stale air of gilded calculation, the uncomfortable feeling that things are excessively just so, that overhangs much that is genuinely appealing about this film.
Awards
Young Artist Awards
• 4 Nominations
London Critics Circle Film Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
