At last I have seen it!

All right, I have finally viewed everyone's favorite Elizabeth Gaskell movie, North and South.  I can't say it was my favorite Gaskell movie.  I liked Cranford better.

However, it was very good, and I did enjoy it greatly.  Now I really want to read the book, which I probably should have done before, only I don't have the book.  So, here are some of the things I liked and disliked about North and South.  Just don't break out the rotten tomatoes, please!  :)

Likes:

1. I loved the story.  It was a really interesting story, with a fast-moving plot and plenty of adventure to set off the romantic aspect.  I liked the element of the mills; they were a huge issue in Elizabeth Gaskell's time, so it's no wonder that she included them.

2. I liked John Thornton.  He was, I think, supposed to be a very harsh character at first, one that was supposed to repel.  Even thought you knew right at the beginning that Margaret was going to end up falling in love with him (It was pretty obvious to anyone familiar with any kind of a love story.), you were still supposed to dislike him, at first.  I did not dislike him.  I thought he was perfectly justified in being exactly the kind of person he was.  After all, even though he was supposed to be harsh, he was used to harshness and hardship, and it was no wonder that he had to act with a gruffness.

3. I really liked the music.  It was a great soundtrack, and it certainly captured the spirit of the story and the atmosphere of the setting.

Dislikes:

1. I did not care for the ending.  It seemed unrealistic (to me) that Margaret would go off with Mr. Thornton if she was traveling with Henry Lennox first.  It would not have been proper in that day for her to do so.

2. I did not like the Fanny Thornton at all.  Big surprise, I know.

3. I was not happy that there was swearing, as it ruined the otherwise good movie.  If you have never seen North and South, I would definitely warn you to watch out for the profanity.

All in all, it is a movie that I would recommend to others, and I would watch it again.  Out of five stars, I would say that it deserves four and a half!

Thanks for reading.