Little Women (VHS, 1994)

Winona Ryder and Susan Sarandon star in Little Women, "an affectionate, superbly acted" film that quickly became a classic in family entertainment. With her husband off at war, Marmee (Sarandon) is left alone to raise her four daughters - her "little women." There is the spirited Jo (Ryder), who longs for a career as a writer; beautiful and conservative older sister Meg (Trini Alvarado); fragile Beth (Claire Danes); and the romantic Amy (played at different ages by Kirsten Dunst and Samantha Mathis). As the years pass, the sisters share some of their most cherished - and painful - moments of self-discovery as they become women. Aunt March (Mary Wickes) and Marmee's wisdom and strength guide them through issues of independence, romance and virtue. Gabriel Byrne, Eric Stoltz and Christian Bale co-star in this "handcrafted valentine" that the whole family will enjoy.