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| Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel | |
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DVD cover |
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| Genre | Drama |
| Running time | 230 minutes (approx.) |
| Written by | Lucy Maud Montgomery (original novels) Kevin Sullivan (adaptation) |
| Directed by | Kevin Sullivan |
| Produced by | Kevin Sullivan |
| Starring | Megan Follows Colleen Dewhurst Wendy Hiller Frank Converse Jonathan Crombie Marilyn Lightstone Schuyler Grant Rosemary Dunsmore Kate Lynch Geneviève Appleton |
| Music by | Hagood Hardy |
| Country of origin | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Release date(s) | 1987 on Disney and CBC |
| Preceded by | Anne of Green Gables |
| Followed by | Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story |
| Official website | |
| IMDb profile | |
Anne of Avonlea is a 1987 television film. It is a sequel to the 1985 Anne of Green Gables film. The film incorporates elements from not only Anne of Avonlea, but also Anne of the Island and Anne of Windy Poplars, and introduces several characters and issues not present in the books.
The film was initially broadcast by Disney as Anne of Avonlea. However, on video and all other television airings, it was titled Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel. The film was also shown theatrically in Israel, Japan and Europe as Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel.
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The film resumes the story of Anne Shirley, who at 18 has chosen to put aside her dreams of becoming an author to remain at Green Gables to help care for an aging Marilla. Anne, teaching at Avonlea School, is courted by Gilbert Blythe, her one-time rival, but though the pair have become close she rejects his proposal of marriage because she does not believe he is her ideal man. Marilla convinces Anne to accept an opportunity to teach at a private school for girls in Kingsport, Nova Scotia, but Anne finds the experience challenging, with disruptive students who seem determined to give her a hard time. She grows close to one student, Emmeline Harris, and is welcomed by Emmeline's entire family, including her father who eventually also proposes to Anne. Coming to her senses, Anne realizes that the right choice for her is to return to Prince Edward Island and try to win back Gilbert.
Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story was released in 2000 and followed Anne Shirley as she embarked on a new journey, taking her from her home in Prince Edward Island to New York, London and into war-ravaged Europe.
Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning to be released in fall 2008 serves as a prequel to the previous films in the Anne movie trilogy. Set between two different time periods, Anne Shirley, now in her fifties looks back on her early childhood before arriving at Green Gables only to uncover answers to questions that have plagued her throughout her life.
Road to Avonlea is a television series which was first broadcast in Canada and the United States between 1990 and 1996. It was inspired by a series of short stories and two novellas by L.M. Montgomery, author of Anne of Green Gables, which Sullivan had previously adapted as Anne of Green Gables in 1985 and Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel in 1987. Many of the actors in the Anne of Green Gables movies also appear in storylines crossing over into the long-running Emmy award-winning series.
Several actors from the first two Anne films can be seen in both Road to Avonlea and the Anne of Green Gables, including Rosemary Dunsmore, Patricia Hamilton, Colleen Dewhurst, Jonathan Crombie, Jackie Burroughs, Cedric Smith, Mag Ruffman and Marilyn Lightstone and David Fox.
When Kevin Sullivan was commissioned by CBC, PBS and The Disney Channel to create a sequel he started by combining many different elements of Montgomery’s three later books: Anne of Avonlea (1909), Anne of the Island (1915), and Anne of Windy Poplars (1936) into a cohesive screen story. Sullivan invented his own plotline relying on several of Montgomery’s episodic storylines spread across the three sequels, He also looked at numerous other nineteenth century female authors for inspiration in fleshing out the screen story.
The film succeeded in re-popularizing Megan Follows and Colleen Dewhurst in their original roles. Sullivan also cast British veteran actress and Oscar winner, Wendy Hiller, in the role of the impossible Mrs. Harris, a character Sullivan specifically invented for the storyline.
In Canada, the film became the highest rated drama to air on network television in Canadian broadcasting history. This Sequel became known as Anne of Green Gables – The Sequel when shown around the world and as Anne of Avonlea – the Continuing Story of Anne of Green Gables when it premiered on The Disney Channel.
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