North & South // Movie Review + Ramblings of a Fangirl

My sister finally got me to watch North & South. Oh my goodness. Where to begin?

For those of you who don't know, North and South follows Margret Hale - a preachers daughter who moves to the industrial town of Milton when her father quits his parson. There in Milton she meets Mr. Thornton. He is the master of Marlborough Mills, and is a good man, works hard, and tries his hardest to treat his employees fairly. Unfortunately, however, Margret's first encounter with him is when she witnesses him beating up one of his employees who was (once again) smoking inside the work rooms - thereby endangering everyone there since the cotton is so flammable. She dislikes him instantly, and no matter who tells her that the man deserved it, she refuses to changer her opinion of Mr. Thornton. He, however, feels quite differently about her, and actually ends up falling in love with her.

The story deals with more than just the relationship between Margret and Thornton, however, but also delves a bit into the conditions between workers and "masters" in 1850's England's industrial business. When the workers strike, Mr. Thornton is forced to get workers from Ireland since he cannot afford to meet the demands of the union. The union workers riot and Margret ends up being injured by a large rock that was thrown in Thornton's direction.

I don't want to giveaway too much, but it really is one of the best movies I've seen before. The story is really interesting and keeps you eager to see what happens next. There really isn't a dull moment, because even though there isn't a lot of adventure (besides that one riot) there is a lot of tension throughout the whole movie between the workers + the masters, and between Margret + Thornton, and Thornton really is almost too sweet.

I've watched it twice already in the last week, and I'm hoping/planing to watch it a third time. It's just one of those movies I cannot get enough of. Even the soundtrack is perfect. It's haunting and eery but in gorgeous, a beautiful way. It suits the movie + story so perfectly.

Just writing this makes me want to watch it again! ♥