It was very adventurous and at times I was really on the proverbial "edge of my seat."
I think that, although it is not based on Rilla of Ingleside (and it makes no claims to be so...it merely says "Written by Kevin Sullivan"), it is a good companion to Rilla. Why? Because as Rilla showed what it was like for women to be at home during the war, Anne #3 showed what it was like for a woman to actually be there, not fighting, but assisting; not to mention the agony that a woman would go through when her husband was missing.
As for the acting, it was all great. Megan and Jonathan were Anne and Gilbert and it didn't really seems as if any time had passed. All of the characters were played by the same actors (so far as I could tell), except for Fred Wright. I was giggling when I saw him because, it appears that "David Hawes" from "How Kissing Was Discovered" morphed into Fred Wright! (Fred was played by Greg Spottiswood rather than Bruce McCullough as in the second Anne movie.) Janet Laine-Green (Gus Pike's mother) also had a substantial role.
There are going to be different versions of Anne #3, a movie and a mini-series. (I think mine was the movie version. Anyway, I saw the same version New Zealand will be seeing next week.) I think it's the same way as the first two...there were versions that were slightly different depending on what country it aired in. (Just little scene changes, nothing big.)
I truly hope that everyone will give the movie a chance. Remember Anne asking Marilla if she ever imagined things differently from what they were? "Oh, Marilla, how much you miss." Just watch it with an open mind, and I don't think you will be disappointed!
Amber is former editor of the Avonlea Spectacle. The above was taken from a message she sent to the Avonlea Village Mailing List on June 29, 1999 (used with permission). Amber's five-page review of the movie is in Issue #22 of the Spectacle.
Preview ©1999 by Amber S. Used with permission