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Movie Review

I was with my son in the video store the other day and I noticed something intriguing on the shelves in the Family section. It was Felicity: an American Girl Story.

If you’re not familiar with the American Girl phenomenon, you’re probably not a librarian, teacher, or parent. The series of books (and expensive dolls, outfits and accessories for both doll and owner) examines notable eras in American history through the eyes of a fictional girl of the time. Felicity is set in Williamsburg, Virginia in the year 1775.

For whatever reason, most fiction set during the Revolutionary era is meant to be appealing to boys (think Johnny Tremain, The Patriot). This is the first film about the era with a female protagonist that I’d seen, and I thought, “Hey, this is wonderful! Something about the Revolution that might make the period interesting for the girls! I wonder if it’s any good?” So I added it to the stack of videos we were renting and brought it home in case any teachers out there might want the benefit of my opinion. Here’s what I think.

If I had to choose one word to describe the plot, it would be “superficial.” This isn’t terribly surprising in a movie that’s meant to sell dolls and accessories. The characters learn to get along in spite of their differences, even the bad guy has a good heart, and by the end of the film, it seems that Felicity and her friends will live happily ever after, unless they get caught up in the war that has just begun. The plot isn’t what makes the movie useful for a classroom, though. In spite of the triteness of the dialogue and predictability of the story, there are several things the movie does well (the beautiful costumes and sets come to mind), and a few issues that the movie skirts around that could be springboards to valuable classroom discussion.

Felicity is a ten-year-old daughter of a well-to-do shopkeeper in Williamsburg. As such, she begins her formal education as a lady. This education has nothing to do with anything so practical as mathematics or science, but rather things like etiquette, penmanship, deportment, and dancing. Much mention is made of the nuisance of wearing petticoats and gowns, and how breeches would be much more convenient, though it would be scandalous for a proper young lady to wear them (Felicity actually steals a pair so she can sneak out and ride a forbidden horse). The movie paints a fairly accurate picture of what life was like for a girl growing up in Revolutionary times, with a couple glaring exceptions. The men in Felicity’s life are surprisingly willing to pay heed to a ten-year-old’s words, and near the end of the story, Felicity is invited to a ball. As I understand it, ten is a very young age to have been “out” in society. If Felicity had been fourteen, or even twelve, it would have been more believable.

It’s also difficult to believe how conciliatory the Tories and the Whigs are. Felicity is close to both loyalists and patriots. Her father and his apprentice both favor independence, while her grandfather and her best friend support the king. This causes several arguments, and the father of Felicity’s friend is jailed for his loyalist politics. But in the end, Whigs and Tories alike are toasting each other’s health at Christmas dinner. Remember that the war has started. Lexington and Concord would have happened at about the beginning of the film, Bunker Hill soon after, and Boston would have been under siege throughout most of the story. Loyalists and patriots across the colonies used the war as an excuse to settle old grudges against one another and open violence was not uncommon. It would have been more likely that Felicity’s father would not have tried to get a loyalist out of jail, either because he felt the loyalist represented a genuine danger to society or else out of fear that he’d be suspected of being a loyalist himself.

One thing that is glossed over almost entirely is the existence of slavery in the colonies. There are two Black characters in the film. The dialogue indicates that these characters are socially inferior to Felicity (she addresses them by their first names only, while they call her Miss Felicity), but the word “slave” is never heard. Interestingly, it’s entirely possible that both these characters are not meant to be slaves at all. There were many free Blacks working as laborers and artisans across the colonies (though the existence of the phrase “free Blacks” makes it obvious that they were fairly rare). The issue of slavery is beyond the scope of the film (besides, it would be difficult to sympathize with a character who keeps slaves), though it might have been interesting to have one of the loyalist characters point out the hypocrisy of a patriot (who professes to favor liberty) who keeps slaves.

Other items you might wish to discuss with your students are the conditions in the Williamsburg Gaol (very different from a modern jail), the danger of being imprisoned for debt, serving as an apprentice, the differences and inequalities between boys’ and girls’ lives, or having to make all your clothes by hand (or pay to have them made for you). The DVD extras include a tour of the real Colonial Williamsburg hosted by the stars of the film, and a behind-the-scenes look at moviemaking.

All in all, this is not a great film, but it could be a useful tool to help your students understand life during the Revolutionary War.



Archives: April 2009 February 2009 April 2008 December 2007 November 2007 September 2007 June 2007 May 2007 Search:	Welcome! Welcome to Hands-on History, where the field trip comes to you. Hands-on History is available for historic presentations to students, Scouts, Historical Societies, or any group with an interest in Colonial era history. News Movie Review I was with my son in the video store the other day and I noticed something intriguing on the shelves in the Family section. It was Felicity: an American Girl Story. If you’re not familiar with the American Girl phenomenon, you’re probably not a librarian, teacher, or parent. The series of books (and expensive dolls, outfits and accessories for both doll and owner) examines notable eras in American history through the eyes of a fictional girl of the time. Felicity is set in Williamsburg, Virginia in the year 1775. For whatever reason, most fiction set during the Revolutionary era is meant to be appealing to boys (think Johnny Tremain, The Patriot). This is the first film about the era with a female protagonist that I’d seen, and I thought, “Hey, this is wonderful! Something about the Revolution that might make the period interesting for the girls! I wonder if it’s any good?” So I added it to the stack of videos we were renting and brought it home in case any teachers out there might want the benefit of my opinion. Here’s what I think. If I had to choose one word to describe the plot, it would be “superficial.” This isn’t terribly surprising in a movie that’s meant to sell dolls and accessories. The characters learn to get along in spite of their differences, even the bad guy has a good heart, and by the end of the film, it seems that Felicity and her friends will live happily ever after, unless they get caught up in the war that has just begun. The plot isn’t what makes the movie useful for a classroom, though. In spite of the triteness of the dialogue and predictability of the story, there are several things the movie does well (the beautiful costumes and sets come to mind), and a few issues that the movie skirts around that could be springboards to valuable classroom discussion. Felicity is a ten-year-old daughter of a well-to-do shopkeeper in Williamsburg. As such, she begins her formal education as a lady. This education has nothing to do with anything so practical as mathematics or science, but rather things like etiquette, penmanship, deportment, and dancing. Much mention is made of the nuisance of wearing petticoats and gowns, and how breeches would be much more convenient, though it would be scandalous for a proper young lady to wear them (Felicity actually steals a pair so she can sneak out and ride a forbidden horse). The movie paints a fairly accurate picture of what life was like for a girl growing up in Revolutionary times, with a couple glaring exceptions. The men in Felicity’s life are surprisingly willing to pay heed to a ten-year-old’s words, and near the end of the story, Felicity is invited to a ball. As I understand it, ten is a very young age to have been “out” in society. If Felicity had been fourteen, or even twelve, it would have been more believable. It’s also difficult to believe how conciliatory the Tories and the Whigs are. Felicity is close to both loyalists and patriots. Her father and his apprentice both favor independence, while her grandfather and her best friend support the king. This causes several arguments, and the father of Felicity’s friend is jailed for his loyalist politics. But in the end, Whigs and Tories alike are toasting each other’s health at Christmas dinner. Remember that the war has started. Lexington and Concord would have happened at about the beginning of the film, Bunker Hill soon after, and Boston would have been under siege throughout most of the story. Loyalists and patriots across the colonies used the war as an excuse to settle old grudges against one another and open violence was not uncommon. It would have been more likely that Felicity’s father would not have tried to get a loyalist out of jail, either because he felt the loyalist represented a genuine danger to society or else out of fear that he’d be suspected of being a loyalist himself. One thing that is glossed over almost entirely is the existence of slavery in the colonies. There are two Black characters in the film. The dialogue indicates that these characters are socially inferior to Felicity (she addresses them by their first names only, while they call her Miss Felicity), but the word “slave” is never heard. Interestingly, it’s entirely possible that both these characters are not meant to be slaves at all. There were many free Blacks working as laborers and artisans across the colonies (though the existence of the phrase “free Blacks” makes it obvious that they were fairly rare). The issue of slavery is beyond the scope of the film (besides, it would be difficult to sympathize with a character who keeps slaves), though it might have been interesting to have one of the loyalist characters point out the hypocrisy of a patriot (who professes to favor liberty) who keeps slaves. Other items you might wish to discuss with your students are the conditions in the Williamsburg Gaol (very different from a modern jail), the danger of being imprisoned for debt, serving as an apprentice, the differences and inequalities between boys’ and girls’ lives, or having to make all your clothes by hand (or pay to have them made for you). The DVD extras include a tour of the real Colonial Williamsburg hosted by the stars of the film, and a behind-the-scenes look at moviemaking. All in all, this is not a great film, but it could be a useful tool to help your students understand life during the Revolutionary War.