TV Reviews : The Struggle and Triumph of ‘A Girl of the Limberlost’ on Channel 28

PBS’ “Wonderworks Family Movie” scores high marks for “A Girl of the Limberlost,” airing Sunday at 5 p.m. on KCET Channel 28.

Based on part of Gene Stratton Porter’s novel, set in 1908 rural Indiana, it’s the story of a gifted 15-year-old who struggles against poverty, the scorn of her peers and her widowed mother’s bitterness, to find her own future.

As Elnora Comstock, Heather Fairfield is a believable mixture of vulnerability and unquenchable stubbornness, with a memorable smile in her moments of triumph.

Joanna Cassidy (“Who Framed Roger Rabbit,” “Under Fire”), as the soignee naturalist who inspires Elnora, doesn’t have much to do except provide a sympathetic presence. But Annette O’Toole is a surprise as mother Kate. Most recently seen in the Stephen King TV thriller “It,” O’Toole eschews all glamour here. Her Kate is stocky, hard-faced and weathered, sullen over the fate that left her to a life of endless toil.

Under the resentment is pain and love, and O’Toole shows it through the gruffness, but not too often, and not too soon.

Pamela Douglas’ screenplay is predictable, filled with a climactic storm, a ruined crop, an adorable orphan, a villainous tax collector and helpful mentors. But the heroine’s consuming quest for knowledge is a refreshing theme, and Burt Brinckerhoff’s thoughtful direction and solid principal cast make enjoyable watching.