A Little Princess Sara (1985) User Reviews

Amazing drama

[chera_khalid · 8/10 · 23 September 2023]

"Shôkôjo Sêra," with its charming characters and compelling storyline, is a gem in the world of anime. The acting is superb, drawing you into the lives of the characters and making you feel every emotion they experience. The film editing is seamless, keeping you engrossed in the narrative from start to finish. Its strength lies in its ability to tackle complex themes with grace, portraying the struggles and triumphs of its characters with authenticity. While there may be moments when the pacing feels slightly uneven, this is a minor quibble. The music beautifully complements the story, enhancing the emotional impact of every scene. "Shôkôjo Sêra" carries a powerful message about resilience, friendship, and the importance of staying true to oneself. The cinematography captures the world of the characters with stunning detail, immersing you in their world. With an 8/10 rating, "Shôkôjo Sêra" is a must-watch for anyone seeking a heartwarming and thought-provoking anime that will leave a lasting impression.

The most emotionally involving (and maybe defining) animated series of my generation...

[ElMaruecan82 · 10/10 · 5 November 2015]

For some reason, Sarah became Sally in the Arabic version, an artistic license that hardly matters because the name is beautifully carried by the opening song's lyrics, a melody rejuvenating my heart whenever I remember it.

If you have a moment, just listen to it on Youtube, it perfectly conveys the anime's tragic spirit but with an unshakable faith in life that would never desert the heart of the heroine, Sarah, "A Little Princess" from Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1905 novel (also author of "Little Lord Fauntleroy").

This 'princess' title is almost misleading, as Sarah Crewe is no royalty but the daughter of a rich widower, Ralph Crewe, who made fortune in India and decided to put his most cherished treasure in a respected all-girl's seminary school of London. The prologue features his Sollicitor Barrow ordering from the severe headmistress Miss Minchin the best room for whom might be her richest pupil. The strict and no-nonsense Minchin, assisted by her gentle submissive sister Amelia, rapidly understand the financial opportunities of this peculiar newcomer.

But Sarah is beyond these considerations, she's just two days shy away from saying goodbye to her Daddy, and the last day will be dedicated to… a doll. And like in the best anime, the first episodes set the character's personalities as we see how the friendly and good-hearted Sarah manages to convince a reluctant tailor to sell her a decorative doll because she looked like the one she imagined in her dreams, Sarah's imagination and manners are so persuasive he gives it to her.

Meanwhile, we also have glimpses of antagonistic personalities as Minchin tacitly disapproves the way Sarah is pampered, having a personal maid, a parrot, even a carriage driver (a street-smart kid Peter). She's eager to see Sarah's father leave so she can learn a few lessons about life. And then we get our first sour taste of "Princess Sarah" emotionality with the poignant farewell scene. Both Sarah and Mr. Crewe would stand behind a closed door, unaware that this is the last time they see each other. After two episodes, we're already moved to tears.

And the series have been run so many times that the following ones feel like a bittersweet countdown until the infamous crushed birthday party. Yet, what happens before is crucial in the way it conditions all the treatment Sarah would later receive. As soon as she makes her entrance in the school, all the eyes are on her, she has the most beautiful clothes, because her mother is French, she excels in French, in fact, she's instantly popular. And she's so compassionate that she becomes the surrogate mother of a four-year old cry-baby named Lottie, and the best friend of Ermengarde, the target of Lavinia and her henchman-like friends Jessie and Gertrud's jokes.

And once Sarah is appointed School Representative by Miss Minchin, she definitely makes an enemy out of Lavinia, no longer the most popular girl in school. And to call Lavinia an antagonist is an understatement; she's such a despicably proud, manipulative and hateful character I remember we kids hated her as if she existed in real life. But contrarily to Lavinia, Minchin seems to hold a grudge against Sarah for 'reasons', feeling her authority challenged by her over-the-top good manners; but she temporarily masks her hatred when interest raises its head. Learning from Barrow that Mr. Crewe bought one of the richest diamonds mines in India, she cheerfully welcomes Sarah's new nickname 'Diamond Princess', and puts a lot of money to celebrate her birthday, much to Sarah's reluctance.

Indeed, Sarah's fortune was her misfortune, because later, Mr. Barrow announces Crewe's bankruptcy and death from fever, he takes all Sarah's possessions leaving Minchin speechless and moneyless with a passionate anger finally ready to implode on Sarah, and it's only out of fear from negative publicity that she makes Sarah a servant instead of kicking her out. And there begins Sarah's chronicles, but no matter how low she sunk, Minchin and Lavinia never succeeded in breaking her spirit, and went on mistreating her, perceiving Sarah's resilience as passive-aggressive behavior.

Indeed, even with that sad expression on her face, Sarah never gave up and fought with her only weapon, a pure heart, and this is why "Princess Sarah" is a great lesson of perseverance, without one-dimensional characters. The motivations of the antagonists are understandable in their own wicked way, and Sarah can still count on friends, like Becky, the country girl who also works as a maid, and treats Sarah with the same deference as if she was a princess, also Peter, Lottie, Ermengarde, Amelia Minchin, French teacher Monsieur Dufarge and a few providential helpers like a baker and a Buckingham Palace guard… and more crucial ones who'll come later.

Still, what a painful-to-watch show for the many heart-breaking moments it features, a heart-piercing music and these countless moments where Sarah comes back at the attic and cries, between Emily and her family photograph. "Princess Sarah" another success of the 'World Masterpiece Theater' really deserves the 'masterpiece' title as we didn't just watch "Sarah', she became a part of ourselves. I remember these early 90's days where Sarah was in everybody's thoughts and mouths, when we all waited for her to get a break. Basically, it was the girl's cartoon boys watched like "Captain Tsubasa" was the opposite.

And it was so emotionally involving, that the happy ending was just the reward to our patience. Yes, it was worth enduring her hardship, because it made her triumph during that unforgettable 'stairs' moment all the more satisfying, especially the sight of Minchin realizing she treated like garbage a real "Diamond Princess".

Sarah would hold no grudge against her, but will rather show the extent of her good heart, proving that her title is not so misleading after all as she's the Princess of the hearts... and especially ours, children of the 80's/90"s

The most emotionally involving (and maybe defining) animated series of my generation...

[shantonhtti · 10/10 · 7 July 2021]

For some reason, Sarah became Sally in the Arabic version, an artistic license that hardly matters because the name is beautifully carried by the opening song's lyrics, a melody rejuvenating my heart whenever I remember it.

If you have a moment, just listen to it on YouTube, it perfectly conveys the anime's tragic spirit but with an unshakable faith in life that would never desert the heart of the heroine, Sarah, "A Little Princess" from Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1905 novel (also author of "Little Lord Fauntleroy").

This 'princess' title is almost misleading, as Sarah Crewe is no royalty but the daughter of a rich widower, Ralph Crewe, who made fortune in India and decided to put his most cherished treasure in a respected all-girl's seminary school of London. The prologue features his Solicitor Barrow ordering from the severe headmistress Miss Minchin the best room for whom might be her richest pupil. The strict and no-nonsense Minchin, assisted by her gentle submissive sister Amelia, rapidly understand the financial opportunities of this peculiar newcomer.

But Sarah is beyond these considerations, she's just two days shy away from saying goodbye to her Daddy, and the last day will be dedicated to a doll. And like in the best anime, the first episodes set the character's personalities as we see how the friendly and good-hearted Sarah manages to convince a reluctant tailor to sell her a decorative doll because she looked like the one she imagined in her dreams, Sarah's imagination and manners are so persuasive he gives it to her.

Meanwhile, we also have glimpses of antagonistic personalities as Minchin tacitly disapproves the way Sarah is pampered, having a personal maid, a parrot, even a carriage driver (a street-smart kid Peter). She's eager to see Sarah's father leave so she can learn a few lessons about life. And then we get our first sour taste of "Princess Sarah" emotionality with the poignant farewell scene. Both Sarah and Mr. Crewe would stand behind a closed door, unaware that this is the last time they see each other. After two episodes, we're already moved to tears.

And the series have been run so many times that the following ones feel like a bittersweet countdown until the infamous crushed birthday party. Yet, what happens before is crucial in the way it conditions all the treatment Sarah would later receive. As soon as she makes her entrance in the school, all the eyes are on her, she has the most beautiful clothes, because her mother is French, she excels in French, in fact, she's instantly popular. And she's so compassionate that she becomes the surrogate mother of a four-year old cry-baby named Lottie, and the best friend of Ermengarde, the target of Lavinia and her henchman-like friends Jessie and Gertrud's jokes.

And once Sarah is appointed School Representative by Miss Minchin, she definitely makes an enemy out of Lavinia, no longer the most popular girl in school. And to call Lavinia an antagonist is an understatement; she's such a despicably proud, manipulative and hateful character I remember we kids hated her as if she existed in real life. But contrarily to Lavinia, Minchin seems to hold a grudge against Sarah for 'reasons', feeling her authority challenged by her over-the-top good manners; but she temporarily masks her hatred when interest raises its head. Learning from Barrow that Mr. Crewe bought one of the richest diamonds mines in India, she cheerfully welcomes Sarah's new nickname 'Diamond Princess', and puts a lot of money to celebrate her birthday, much to Sarah's reluctance.

Indeed, Sarah's fortune was her misfortune, because later, Mr. Barrow announces Crewe's bankruptcy and death from fever, he takes all Sarah's possessions leaving Minchin speechless and moneyless with a passionate anger finally ready to implode on Sarah, and it's only out of fear from negative publicity that she makes Sarah a servant instead of kicking her out. And there begins Sarah's chronicles, but no matter how low she sunk, Minchin and Lavinia never succeeded in breaking her spirit, and went on mistreating her, perceiving Sarah's resilience as passive-aggressive behavior.

Indeed, even with that sad expression on her face, Sarah never gave up and fought with her only weapon, a pure heart, and this is why "Princess Sarah" is a great lesson of perseverance, without one-dimensional characters. The motivations of the antagonists are understandable in their own wicked way, and Sarah can still count on friends, like Becky, the country girl who also works as a maid, and treats Sarah with the same deference as if she was a princess, also Peter, Lottie, Ermengarde, Amelia Minchin, French teacher Monsieur Dufarge and a few providential helpers like a baker and a Buckingham Palace guard and more crucial ones who'll come later.

Still, what a painful-to-watch show for the many heart-breaking moments it features, a heart-piercing music and these countless moments where Sarah comes back at the attic and cries, between Emily and her family photograph. "Princess Sarah" another success of the 'World Masterpiece Theater' really deserves the 'masterpiece' title as we didn't just watch "Sarah', she became a part of ourselves. I remember these early 90's days where Sarah was in everybody's thoughts and mouths, when we all waited for her to get a break. Basically, it was the girl's cartoon boys watched like "Captain Tsubasa" was the opposite.

And it was so emotionally involving, that the happy ending was just the reward to our patience. Yes, it was worth enduring her hardship, because it made her triumph during that unforgettable 'stairs' moment all the more satisfying, especially the sight of Minchin realizing she treated like garbage a real "Diamond Princess".

Sarah would hold no grudge against her, but will rather show the extent of her good heart, proving that her title is not so misleading after all as she's the Princess of the hearts... and especially ours, children of the 80's/90"s.

The true epitome of drama shows, for all tastes and ages

[Johnny-Dy · 10/10 · 28 September 2022]

A Little Princess Sara - one of my only few to several 10/10 anime. An anime not just inspired, but really closely following the book "A Little Princess", by Frances Hodgson Burnett, 1st published in 1907.

I really wanted to make a review for this epic anime for a long time now, a show that nearly nobody knows these days and I will do it by describing, almost completely spoiler free of the action, my favorite 3 characters that make 90% of the show, listed by preference.

1. Sara Crewe - the absolute best character design a human being can have, I feel she's better than Jesus Christ every time I think about her. She practically makes the whole show hit you in the gut like a rocket fist, cutting your air supply. Without her, the show would probably be almost unwatchable even for infants, as it stands it's completely unmissable if you like sorrow-type anime, no matter the age. What can I say about Sara!?... You get it from her inspired design right away: her superb hairline, her magnificent kind eyes, her exquisite manners, her opened mind by reading loads of fantasy books, her mind-numbingly kind voice only surpassed by her tender character and impossibly kind and resilient heart. The show practically takes this 10 years old jewel of a girl and throws her into Hell, making a mockery out of her soft hands, distinguished face-lines and upbrought sophisticated manners and character. Her only comfort being Becky, Peter, Ermengarde and Lottie, 4 poor very young people that have been struck by Sara's true nature, that nobody except them want to see or accept. I love Jesus Christ, but he's got nothing on Sara.

2. Becky - a peasant, younger Sara. Don't know how else to describe her! :)) Absolutely lovable this girl, in spite of her lack of education as education in those times could be afforded almost exclusively by the rich, she's humble and respectful to a fault! Poor and ever wanting for food and affection in a world full of strangers that exploit her, she's working from dawn to dusk to pick up Sara's inexperience and incapacity to work as hard, working more than an adult person and never complaining. She can't afford to, and the little money she makes in the near slavery she had to enlist, sent to her mother and her little brothers and sisters far away in the country, so they can live; as their father died and in Victorian England there was no notion of social assistance yet.

3. Lavinia - surprisingly a favorite to me after I've seen this show multiple times, in multiple stages of my life, as it's the character every viewer loves to hate. On solid accounts, as she portrays the absolute villain born out of superficiality and spoiled upbringings (but not the only one), she's every ugly bully's source of inspiration. The amount of pettiness this girl has is the largest in the known Universe, it's incredible and a real joy of pain to watch it being riveted on the rest of the characters, battering and humiliating them psychologically and sometimes even physically. A friend of mine, expert in the anime world called her the worst villain in all of anime's history, and I can't contradict him one bit. If she'd been Lucifer's daughter, her father would've been proud of her. If without Sara the show would be unwatchable, without Lavinia the show would definitely lack bite and blood, figuratively speaking. ^^'

Witnessing all of this, it's safe to attest A Little Princess Sara is nobody's right to ignore, it's simply too good, too unmissable for comfort. There was never a show that depicted more true the saying "They don't make them like this anymore!", they truly don't.

As a Standalone Anime series, it's okay. As an adaptation of the book, it leaves a lot to be desired..

[valadaemalek · 6/10 · 8 March 2019]

For starters, this is the second closest adaptation there is of the book after the 1986 version, but I didn't personally agree with the characterization in the version. Sara's character is considerably dumbed down in this. She's also much more passive as well. In the book, Sara stood up for herself when she had too, and the way she did it with her imagination was awe inspiring. She also had a temper and could be proud and arrogant at times. Anime Sara is nothing like this. And her dialogue sucks. I've lost track of how many times she's said "Yes, Headmistress" in this and that's all she's given as dialogue really. Many of the parts of the book that show her strength of character, such as the scene with the story of the King Albert and the end, where she comes up with the idea to feed the homeless children, are replaced by other characters coming up with these ideas instead of her, which further weakens her character. Also in the book, she rarely cried, and if she did, it was a big deal. In this, all she seems to do is cry. The headmistress is treated like a monster, but then in one of the later episodes is given a 15 minute Freudian excuse for her behavior and then is redeemed in the end. I preferred the ending of the book, where Sara does not forgive her and does not return to the school, because, after the way she was treated, why should she? They also lay on the mistreatment of Sara in this a bit too thick. At times it's very tragic, and at other times it's almost comedic the way Sara is treated like a perpetual butt monkey. The villains (the cook and housemaid) don't seem to have lives as all they do is pick on poor Sara, and the seem to only do it to be evil, rather than because they've been abused, mistreated and are depressed themselves. In the book, her life was dismal because of all the work she had to do, but the people mistreating her also led dismal lives of hard work that left them without time to constantly track Sara's actions and life. The creators seem to have forgotten that this is supposed to be about Sara overcoming her misfortunes with her imagination. There is very little of her imagination in this at all. The story instead focuses on her rivalry with Lavinia for much of the series, which was barely mentioned in the book. The pacing is also slow as molasses. This is a 46 episode series based on a book with about ten chapters, so there is a lot of very repetitive filler. There is one part in the series that is very realistic, which is the part where Sara gets sick from being over-worked. There's a new character named Peter who wasn't in the book at all. He serves a potential love interest. I have nothing to say about Peter other than i don't know why Sara didn't go and live with him in the first place since she would have been happier there than at the school. In the book, she had no such option. The detail in the setting of Victorian London is absolutely amazing though. You really get a feel for how life was back then for both the upper and lower classes. Overall, this is a decent series. Its' relaxing to watch, but I wouldn't call it a masterpiece.

A few niggles...

[unicornssparkles · 6/10 · 19 March 2023]

This seemed like a really nice anime, usually enjoying anime adaptations of classic stories and fairy tales I love, I really liked the anime vibe. However, there were a few things that niggled me about this particular anime adaptation of A Little Princess.

Firstly, like someone else has mentioned here, it consists of a whopping 46 episodes for what is only a 10 chapter book, with the live-action Wonderworks mini-series only consisting of 6 episodes, and the Alfonso Curran 1995 live-action film only being 1 hour and a half, clearly proving just how excessive and unnecessary it was to drag it out this much, with a lot of it clearly being fillers. Likewise, as someone also mentioned, as much. It clearly did not need to be this long, as I remember being at coming to episode 16 and thinking "Oh were in the second half of the story so we must be relatively near the end now" but then realized I still had another 30 episodes to go which just seemed ridiculous! I actually had to skip to the last couple of episodes, realizing that most the rest of the episodes would just be fillers to drag it out this much. As someone else has also mentioned here, there was too much focus on Sara and Lavinia's rivarlry, which definitely wasn't as focused upon in the book, and this just felt unnecessary, dragged out and overemphasized.

I also definitely agree with what someone else has said here about the ended, how they annoyingly changed and undermined it by having Sara stay as a day student at the seminary even after she regains her fortune and moves in with Carrisford, which just didn't seem right to be, as like the other reviewer has said here why should she have stayed there after all she went through there and how she was treated?! It undermined the original purpose in the book where she was supposed to move on with her life, and she could still have easily seen the likes of Lottie and Ermengarde regularly given she lived just next door, so I found this really annoying.

What I found most annoying though was that Sara actually ends up getting Carrisford to donate a whopping £100,000 to the seminary, which particularly undermines and goes against the point the original book was trying to make of leaving those who mistreated you without any advantages that they were originally trying to use you for, in this case Miss Minchin using Sara to benefit from her wealth, by leaving her with nothing, because that is what she deserved after the way she treated Sara, which the original book was trying to make a point of. It meant that Miss Minchin faced even less comeuppance than she did in the original story, and made Sara a more passive character with her not only forgiving those who mistreated her so easily but also even giving them a big chunk of her wealth despite the fact they did absolutely NOTHING to deserve it. It's not like Miss Minchin even seemed to do anything to try and make it up to Sara before or after this either, not that she ever could do anything to make it up to her of course given that the way she treated Sara was, and she was, as she was always meant to be, an non-redeemable villain, so why have Sara forgive and end on good terms with her. It just really annoyed me, having seemed really stupid and ridiculous to me. As if it wasn't annoying enough she gets no real comeuppance in the book, she actually gets rewarded her, which is just most infuriating! Also what was with the other two antagonists, the two cooks, who were absolutely horrible and abusive to Sara and Becky, suddenly coming into the Christmas party dressed up like Santa, with all the children gathering round them-there was no real explanation for this whatsoever, just yet more villains suddenly getting treated nicely as if they never abused innocent children!

Sara and Lavinia suddenly parting on good terms also didn't feel right, and was again changing and undermining a part of the original novel, being something that never happened and was never supposed to happen. The 1995 live-action film also does this, but here it is more annoying, as Lavinia in this version is even more horrible than that version, and it got annoying 'cause they of course really dragged this rivalry out of course. I mean why suddenly "reform" these villains without them actually having done anything to redeem themselves, while also just defeating the whole idea of leaving the villains behind so you can get on with your life and prove yourself to be the winner, having not let them win and destroy you. I mean yes it was annoying in the original novel how all the villians got of scot-free, but here they were just suddenly forgiven and treated as goodies in the end as if nothing had happened and when they did nothing to redeem.

This Sara was also a bit too sweet and syrupy, as I feel a lot of adaptations seem to view her in black and white, making her either too sweet and passive or too mouthy and pert, when I feel Sara was supposed to be something between these two poles.

It really seemed like a nice concept, A Little Princess as an anime, it really did, but these things just really niggled me to be honest, so I guess it's just a missed potential really, like this could've been pretty much perfect if they'd just fixed all these things.