A Little Princess (1995 Film) - Differences From The Book

Differences From The Book

• The book takes place in Victorian era London, while the film is set in New York City at the time of World War I. Sara's father also fights in World War I here, which he did not in the book.
• Like the Shirley Temple film version, this adaptation changes the fate of Sara's father. While he dies of brain fever in India in the book, here he is said to have been killed in the war. He is revealed to have been alive all along only with amnesia, and the movie ends with Sara going to live with her father.
• In the book, Becky is a stereotypical Victorian-era Cockney girl. In the movie, she is African American.
• The character of Carrisford is replaced by Charles Randolph.
• In the book, Ram Dass gradually fills Sara's attic room with fresh bed sheets, extra food, and other amenities over time, while in the movie, Sara and Becky wake up to find the room completely furnished and decorated for them with all the food.
• In the book, Sara walks into the house to return Ram Dass's monkey and meets Carrisford there. The movie has an entirely different take on this; Miss Minchin discovers the decorated attic room and accuses Sara of stealing so she calls the police. Sara escapes from the police by crawling across into the other house where she finds her amnesiac father.
• In the book, Miss Minchin is allowed to keep the school but lives in terror that Sara could ruin her with one word to Carrisford. In the movie, Mr. Randolph takes over the school and Miss Minchin is reduced to working as a chimney sweep.
• In the film, it is implied that Sara's father has adopted Becky, rather than her becoming Sara's personal attendant like in the book.
• In the book, the story that Sara tells is a story that she makes up, while in the film she tells the story of the Ramayana.