A thoroughly emotional, richly rewarding and stunningly crafted piece of cinema, writer and director Greta Gerwig’s Little Women will envelope you in an embrace you never want to stop.

Gerwig takes her deep love for Louisa May Alcott’s classic novels and renders them on the screen with tenderness, reverence and respect. But not too much reverence because Gerwig has played around with the structure of the story and added a spin on the ending that Alcott herself would’ve surely approved of.

The story of the March sisters – strongheaded Jo, wise Meg, saintly Beth and naughty Amy – are imbued with a modern sheen while retaining the irrepressible spirit of Alcott’s book.

But also not too modern, well not in the way that would offend any Alcott purists because Alcott’s story and life was always more suited to our era than hers.

Little Women takes place over two time periods – when the sisters are in their teens and then when they’re young adults. In Alcott’s books, it’s a linear narrative, but Gerwig has structured her version by oscillating between the two time periods, so you meet each March as an adult, already separated from her sisters.

Then by flashing back to the earlier times, you get a much better sense of these familiar character arcs and their emotional journeys. It’s also a more empathetic approach, especially for a character like Amy whose childhood insolence is less grating when it’s contrasted with the thoughtful woman she grows up to be.

Gerwig has brought to life the verve of the March household and the bonds of the sisters, played brilliantly by Saoirse Ronan as Jo, Florence Pugh as Amy, Emma Watson as Meg and Eliza Scanlen as Beth.

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Gerwig’s writing frees each sister from the archetype they’ve been squeezed into in previous adaptations so that Meg doesn’t always have to be responsible, and Amy’s recalcitrance is grounded in her wider story.

The March home, run by Marmee (Laura Dern), is a cacophonous house full of laughter, play and verve. The mania and the chatter are symphonic. It’s no wonder Laurie (Timothee Chalamet) so desperately wants to be part of their family. You do too.

The movie is a seduction in which its alluring spell of family, cosiness and nostalgia surrounds you until you’ve completely bought into this world, which takes about all of seven minutes, by the way.

Running through Little Women is a defiant spirit – Jo’s spirit, Alcott’s spirit and Gerwig’s spirit – that dares you to look away or dismiss it, knowing full well you can’t. Why would you want to tear away from being bathed in its warmth and intimacy?

The performances are superb, especially from Ronan and Pugh, while not a single other actor in this perfectly cast, stacked ensemble sings a wrong note.

The story of the March sisters, even though it was penned 150 years ago, is the story of women today – a quest for economic independence, to be heard and to matter.

That’s all women have ever wanted, and that’s the story that Alcott tried to tell, one which Gerwig understands intrinsically and has retold with great compassion.

Don’t be surprised if you end up a blubbering mess.

Rating: 5/5

Little Women is in cinemas from January 1

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