My Background
I don't want to deem myself an expert on Molly, World War II, or movie production, because I'm not. However,
Molly has been my favorite American Girl for nearly 20 years, and I've devoured her original six book series
again and again in the past (nearly) two decades, until every detail is in my subconscious mind!
The Movie Apart from the Books
The two family members I watched the movie with didn't know a thing about Molly. One struggled not to fall
asleep while the other read and made phone calls. This alone should indicate the movie's shortcomings--we're
all normally fans of this genre. The acting was hit or miss--surprisingly, one of the most well-known actors seemed to do the worst job. However, that's not important, especially considering this is a made-for-TV movie, after all. The movie is presented in a series of vignettes that are hardly connected to one
another, with a trauma about Dad added to the end of the movie in order to give some semblance of a typical
climax and resolution storyline. It seems to be a movie without a focus, searching around for a plot. Rather
than being a movie solely about Molly, Miss Campbell, Dad, and Emily get a lot of attention throughout.
War
Being such a Molly fan has naturally led to being interested in World War II, since I was a small girl. One of
my favorite hobbies is listening to World War II radio broadcasts. Not only am I exposed to what life was like
for people during this era, but I also get to hear advertisements for Tide, Colgate Tooth Powder (ew!), and
advertisements for Ovaltine premiums. It is, as an English professor would deem it, the "full immersion
experience." Additionally, both an uncle (during World War II) and my father (during peacetime, as a
serviceman) participated in Christmas radio programs, so I feel connected to the Molly stories.
Merchandise Tie-In
Most of the endearing scenes and story-lines in Molly's books are completely left out (such as Molly and her
siblings getting a tree, camping, her birthday, their snowball fight, school Lend a Hand projects, finding
Dad's package and hiding it, Molly and her friends trying to give her a perm, Halloween . . . the list goes
on), while some that were hardly necessary are disproportionately expanded upon, such as Emily's.
Little Changes Add Up to Big Changes
Perhaps one of the strangest aspects of the scriptwriting for this movie is how little things have been changed
that would make absolutely no difference to the plot. For example, Mom being "Rosie the Riveter" is
immaterial--she only mentions it, and it makes her be away from home frequently at dinnertime. Didn't her
"original book" job as a Red Cross volunteer do just the same? While big changes (see next section) were
possibly needed in order to tie this particular movie interpretation together, smaller changes that were
unecessary come across as the writers thumbing their noses at loyal fans. "We can make changes if we want to,
so nyah!"
Books | Movie |
Mrs. Gilford works as housekeeper | Mrs. Gilford is a neighbor |
Mom volunteers for the Red Cross | Mom works as "Rosie the Riveter" |
Molly has a little brother named Brad | Brad doesn't exist |
Ricky is blonde, older, and a huge pest | Richard is brunette, is of an unknown age (he appears to be younger than Molly or the same age), and not very pesky |
Dad's letters to the family are funny and full of jokes and drawings | Dad's letters are straightforward and factual |
Alison is a perfect, blonde, arch-rival of Molly | Alison is brunette and barely present |
Dad sends a box of Christmas gifts that Molly and Jill hide | Dad hands out gifts in person, including one for Emily |
Molly slowly comes to a realization that war is not fun and games | Molly knows war is dangerous |
Emily lost her dog in a bombing | Emily lost her mom in a bombing |
Emily stays with the family for two weeks | Emily lives with them for so long that she is considered family |
Emily will live with an aunt who is currently ill | Emily was originally to live with a lady she doesn't know; it is ambigious as to whether or not she will stay on with the McIntires |
Molly spends the summer at camp | Molly spends the summer practicing tap |
Dad comes back from war due to being restationed | Dad comes back to war after being MIA and seriously wounded |
Big Changes Make Molly Not Seem Like Molly
The main point of the entire original series is the Everyman quality of Molly; these qualities make her loveable and easy to identify with. She is supposed to be an average girl, one who dreams and imagines herself as one day being much better than she really is. She has average hair that won't curl, stinks at math, and comes up with ideas that are too big to work (like collecting bottle caps). She dreams and dreams, but her dreams don't come true in the end. Then, when she least expects it (and is sick in bed and thinks it's the end of the world), something amazing happens. Kind of like real life.
Books | Movie |
Molly is horrid at math bees | She wins a major spelling bee competition in front of the entire school |
Dad is present over the radio for Christmas | Dad is present in person on a magically unexpected Christmas |
Molly knows about Emily's visit ahead of time, and dreams (inaccurately) about what she will be like | Emily's stay is out of the blue--with her standing right there |
Molly's hair is horribly stubborn and will only remain straight | She has lovely curly hair when she wants it |
Molly gets sick and can't be Miss Victory | Molly is Miss Victory |
Molly's dad doesn't get to see her be Miss Victory | He watches from the wings |
Molly never plays Miss Victory in a program | Winning the title means many shows and travel |
In Closing
Perhaps where they most missed the mark was in not seeing the true message in Molly's books--it would still
work today. Molly's original stories demonstrate how our family and friends, through love and humor, can help us hold everything
together during difficult times.
By Melissa Taylor, December 2006. The above should be taken only as an op-ed piece. The author has no relation to the American Girl company.