In 2019, when my dad suggested that we go see the new version of Little Women, I begrudgingly agreed, not really caring for period pieces and thinking it would bore me. Little did fifteen-year-old me know, that movie would become perhaps my favourite film ever—thanks in part to its use of colour.
The function of colour in film is arguably often overlooked, yet plays a significant psychological role in storytelling. Greta Gerwig expertly employed colour in her Little Women to evoke certain emotions, set the mood, and enhance the film’s storytelling.
Based on Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 novel, the film is centred around the lives of the four March sisters, capturing their journeys from childhood in 1861 to adulthood in 1868. While Gerwig employed a non-linear chronology, it’s not hard to follow along with the timeline thanks to her use of a distinct colour palette shift to signify the time jump.
In the events of 1861, Gerwig employed warm hues and vibrant colours to capture the March sisters’ youth, evoking a deep sense of nostalgia. The warmth of the past visually represented the joy of childhood—a time when all four sisters were together, and the future seemed to promise them the fulfilment of all their ambitions. However, as the plot unfolded, each sister came to realise that life doesn’t always go as planned, and were forced to cope with that awakening.
Gerwig captured this disillusionment through the shift in colour—from warm, vibrant tones to cool, muted colours—visually marking the jump to 1868. Now seven years older, each sister was facing the realities and challenges of adulthood, as reflected in the film’s somber palette. Beth is dying in their childhood home, Amy is feeling unfilled in Europe both artistically and romantically, Meg is in her own home struggling financially, and Jo is in New York falling short of her dreams. Their lives were all far from what they had once imagined, leaving them to yearn for the joy, togetherness, and hope of the past, a place to which they cannot return. Gerwig’s use of colour not only distinguished the film’s setting but also deepened its emotional core, reflecting the March’s journey from youthful idealism to the realities of adulthood. This visual shift reinforced some of the film’s central themes—nostalgia, loss, and the inevitability of change—making colour an essential tool in bringing Little Women to life.
Illustration by Anna O’Gara @ansoctopus on Instagram.