Syl Mary Lennox was born and raised in India before her parents died horrifically there. She is sent to England to live with her mysterious uncle in a large estate house. Maggie Smith played the housekeeper. Mary must learn to survive without her parents in this foreign land with strangers. The film does a surprisingly good job in showing how Mary changes. She befriends the servant child, Martha, and her brother. She learns about a family secret and a secret garden near the property.

The Jellicle Kat Some "children's films" are only for children. Some can be watched by the whole family. Others are so good they seem hardly intended for children at all, and "The Secret Garden" falls in that category. It is a work of beauty, poetry and deep mystery, and watching it is like entering for a time into a closed world where one's destiny may be discovered.The movie's dark themes, unhurried pace and talkiness make it something of a gamble for many children. But older children -- especially those who have been asking specific questions about death -- may find some nourishment in this garden. The film retains the gothic atmosphere of the book and looks amazing, thanks to Roger Deakins's scintillating photography. Any kids' movie that aims for something richer than the Saturday-matinee escapism of smiling whales and preschool ninjas -- that actually captures some of the mystery of childhood -- ought to be embraced. whatever its peculiarities.By the end of the film I was surprised by how much I was moved; how much I had come to care about the lonely little boy, the orphaned girl, and the garden that a dead woman had prepared for them.The result is an instant classic -- rich, dense, resonant, powerful.

crash21 This is one of the few stories that you can have someone give you, and be both entertained and even have feelings for the characters. For instance, Mary lives in a rich family, yet she almost would like her way out of of it. A lot of this is what gives her the feelings for the outside life and the garden when she finds it, along with her making friends with people like Martha and her brother Dickon, along with her spoiled and supposed sick cousin Colin.I love the ending to this story when Mary's uncle finds the kids (specifically his son) playing in the garden, and the orphan cousin Mary runs off crying that no one wants her. It's a feeling everyone feels at some time in their life. Then her uncle says that she had brought the family back to life, and tells her that the garden is hers. The moment will bring tears to your eyes. After this, where she says "if you look closely, you will realize the whole world is a garden" which is very true, even when you include what we have done to hurt the world. The closing scene in the movie where they show the shadow effects over the grass hills makes me think of what you can truly see in simply an open field, or even trees with an open sky and clouds passing overhead. The whole movie is touching and beautiful.The only thing I didn't like about the movie was that there were a couple moments you can tell weren't what the story to the original book had told, other than that, "The Secret Garden", both the book and the movie are touching entertainment for the whole family.

Wuchak To be honest, I remember seeing previews of this movie way back when it came out (in 1993) and thinking to myself, "WHY would anyone want to see such a film and why would anyone make it?" Well, about five years later it appeared on TV one night and I started watching, fully expecting to turn it off within 20 minutes or so. WOW -- was I ever wrong! What I saw was beautiful and captivating, artistic and entrancing -- filmmaking of the highest order. "The Secret Garden" is a movie of such artistic quality that it ranks up there with the hallowed original "Apocalypse Now" (although they're totally different genres). It's no surprise that Francis Ford Coppola had his hand in both pics -- he was, of course, the director of "Apocalypse Now" and he's the executive producer of "The Secret Garden." In any event, the cinematography is breathtaking and the score is awe-inspiring, ranking with the best in cinematic history.***PLOT SPOILER*** The story's about a spoiled 10-year old English girl, orphaned in India, who comes home to live on her uncle's vast estate in the early 1900s. The girl, Mary, finds herself trapped in a mysterious, colossal manor -- almost a castle -- tyrannically managed by a life-stifling witch, Mrs. Medlock, in the frequent absence of her uncle, Lord Cravin. Because Mary is intelligent, independent and sly she is able to reconnoiter the manor and learn its forbidding secrets. The biggest secret is that her aunt died ten years earlier and her son, Colin, still lives there, albeit confined to a bed, sickly and unable to walk. Her uncle never healed from this heartbreak.Mary discovers another secret in her explorations, a hidden garden, closed off and neglected since her aunt's death. After meeting the sickly and sad Colin, Mary inevitably finds a way to sneak him into the garden along with her pal Dickon. She senses that Colin isn't as sick as everyone is convinced; she knows the best thing would be to get him out of the dreary castle and the oppressive clutches of Mrs. Medlock. Mary and her secret garden are the keys to restoring health, life and freedom to Colin, Lord Cravin and the gloomy manor.***END SPOILER*** "The Secret Garden" is sort of a 1990's version of the outstanding "Pollyanna" with Hayley Mills (1960). Both pics involve a young girl restoring a spirit of joy and liberty to a lifeless community. The difference is that Mary is not even remotely the "glad girl" Pollyanna. In fact, look for the hilarious line from the old gardener who responds to Mary's puzzlement concerning her lack of friends."The Secret Garden" is no doubt labeled a "children's film," which is a shame because it transcends such a limiting category. The ending's too quaint for my tastes but, nevertheless, this is a beautiful work of wonder and deep mystery, which can be enjoyed by people of all ages -- children and adults.The film was shot in England and runs 101 minutes.GRADE: A