Thursday, June 14, 2012

Anne for all ages


There is a new Anne Shirley. Long live the old Anne Shirley. To be honest, the news of a new “Anne of Green Gables” series fills me with mixed emotions. On the one hand, it’s great that a whole new generation of little girls and boys can experience the adventures and mishaps of a red-headed orphan on Prince Edward Island. On the other hand, wasn’t the beloved 1980s “Anne of Green Gables” series starring the even more beloved Megan Follows enough? Can’t we just play it on a continuous loop for future generations as a reminder that imagination, spunk and a bosom friend are all you really need to make it in this world?

Alas, everything must be constantly reinvented for the screen. This new 13-episode Canadian production is helmed by original Anne author L.M. Montgomery’s heir. Which seems good, but when you dig a little deeper it’s really all about money. Which is, well, a bummer. But, still, one hopes the Anne story of perseverance and independence is one that will translate beautifully for any time. So this new “contemporary” and “modern-day” Anne is supposed to “present her in a more global perspective.” I don’t know entirely what that means, but the extreme optimist in me hopes it will present her love for one Diana Barry in a more “contemporary” and “modern-day” light. Because today if you tell a girl you love her and give a girl a lock of thy jet black tresses to cherish forever, you’re going to follow that up later with a ring.

12 comments:

Lil' ol' me said...

Bosom friend? Definitely sounds gay.

egghead said...

Dorothy, I find I must commisserate with you on this latest sudden attempt to put a chink in the Anne Continuum. I must admit I too am torn. Megan Fallows and her dark tressed lockless love runs in the meadows of my mind and lives forever in my heart. <3

P.S.

I love it when you talk Anne of Green Gables talk. Bosoms and locks of thy hair and declarations and other sentimentalities from yesteryear . . . :D

(Have you ever read Daniel Handler's books? I love prosody-prose too.)

Carmen SanDiego said...

Hmmmm I don't know... I am conflicted... Too many conflicted feelings

Amanda said...

Wow...well that's gay. Ha!

Amanda

Kristan said...

"On the other hand, wasn’t the beloved 1980s “Anne of Green Gables” series starring the even more beloved Megan Follows enough? Can’t we just play it on a continuous loop for future generations as a reminder that imagination, spunk and a bosom friend are all you really need to make it in this world?"

Yes and yes! The first 2 films in that series are fabulous and I adore them and they should live on forever.

I've not seen the 3rd ("Anne: The Continuing Story" or some such) but I heard it mucks things up by mixing Anne with her youngest daughter Rilla and sending Gilbert to war, or whatever. So I don't really WANT to ever see the 3rd.

Harper said...

@kristan...don't watch the third!! it made a muck of everything and forever be stuck in my mind as a disappointment.
Dorothy, no one will replace megan follows as anne with an "e" ...hopefully, this new attempt won't botch it up.
p.s. i just met this lovely lady that looks so much like meagan follows it makes my head spin. HOT!

Anonymous said...

I never saw that clip before. That was SO GAY

Unknown said...

Wow... Why reboot such an amazing and classic story? They got it right the first time! Such beautiful memories of Anne ”with an E” Shirley as played by Megan Follows...

Morgan said...

I know I'm going to get some backlash for this, but I've never seen Anne of Green Gables. Saying that, I have to comment that the above clip might be the gayest thing I have ever seen. Bosom friend? I think that would only apply to a friend whose bosoms I would be touching in a more than friendly manner. lol

Anonymous said...

Oof, I had SUCH a crush on Megan Follows when I was younger. My whole family would watch Anne of Green Gables during the PBS telethon every year. And I didn't quite understand why at the time, but I REALLY wanted Anne and Diana to be the bestest of friends and hang out all the time and grow old together, and yeah...

sadie0777 said...

I happen to own all of the episodes. My grandmother left me the entire series of books when she died! You Cannot replace the original... Does No One have an original thought or idea in their heads these days? Bleh... We might as well just name everything Spider Man or Batman from here on out... Talk about riding on coattails... Hee Hee... Bosom Friend... ;)

SlyNellie said...

It might work as long as they don't turn Gilbert into a vampire, cast a Kardashian as Diana, and make Marilla Tyler Perry's Medea...

The real sin is that the mega talented and gorgeous Ms. Follows is not currently in her own show. I so miss that super smooth voice -- it doesn't sound like a Disney princess taking a hit of helium, nor a dirty ashtray being rinsed out with tequila.