10 Movies That Unexpectedly Confused Audiences

Greta Gerwig's Best Picture-nominated adaptation of the legendary novel Little Women shouldn't have had much room to confuse people, given that it's been adapted to the screen countless times before and, all things considered, isn't a terribly confusing story.

But the film received blowback from audiences less-familiar with Louisa May Alcott's novel, who felt that Gerwig failed to sufficiently distinguish the film's two time periods set seven years apart, which she freely cuts between without title cards.

To make matters more complicated, the same principal cast is used for both sets of scenes, despite the titular characters all being young women who, realistically, would change drastically during those years. Hence, the weirdness of a 22-year-old Florence Pugh playing a 12-year-old Amy March in the flashbacks.

There is admittedly a visual "tell" to help audiences keep track of the two time periods, as the flashbacks have an almost sepia-style tint to them, while the present-day scenes are graded to look more stark and "realistic."

It certainly didn't prevent the film from being a critical and commercial success, even if many unacquainted with the source material found themselves struggling to keep up.