Worthwhile Movie #5 - A Green Journey

Earlier this year I raved about the book, A Green Journey.   Months later I was startled to discover that the book had been made into a film.  (I watched it via instant streaming on Netflix.)

Anyway, I liked the book a lot and felt sure the movie couldn’t match up.  It did and it didn’t.  First of all the film was surprisingly faithful to the book.  The actors did an excellent job of capturing the personalities of the book’s characters.  And, miracle of miracles, the faith of the protagonists was not watered down.

But, the romantic elements in the book (which I would never have classified as a romance novel) were exaggerated in the film.  However, the acting was better than your average “Hallmark” film so all was not lost.  Angela Lansbury is convincing as Agatha McGee and her co-star, Denholm Elliott is quite good, as well.

Do I need to add that you should read the book before watching the movie?  Without the background the book gives, the movie seems sketchy.  Telescoped events take a minute on film that take a whole chapter in the book.  The element I missed most was Agatha’s friend, Lillian, who is a very funny part of the book, but only a small player in the movie.

This made-for-TV movie was originally called “The Love She Sought”.  Lansbury also brought two other books to film that you might enjoy: Mrs. ‘Arris Goes to Paris and The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax. (The first is available on VHS only, and the second one I watched on TV.)