Pride and Prejudice (1940)

I need to catch up on my reviews!  I’m participating in the Pride and Prejudice Bicentenary challenge hosted by Laurel Ann at Austenprose.  I still have a couple more books I want to finish this month for the challenge – so we’ll see how it goes.

As part of the challenge, I rewatched Pride and Prejudice 1940.  I must admit that although this was the first film version of Pride and Prejudice and also stars one of my favorite actors, Laurence Olivier, as Mr. Darcy, this version has always fallen flat for me.

 

The pros:

• Laurence Oliver is a wonderfully handsome Mr. Darcy with a great haughty attitude
• Edmund Gwenn and Mary Boland make a wonderful Mr. and Mrs. Bennet respectively.
• I do like the change at the end that hints of a happy ending for Mary Bennet.

The cons:

• Although Laurence Oliver is wonderful, he doesn’t capture Mr. Darcy as perfectly as Colin Firth.  Olivier is actually too likeable too early!
• Greer Garson is way too old to be Elizabeth Bennet.
• A feature length movie is just too short and it misses many of the major storylines.
• The carriage race at the beginning between the Bennets and Lucas's over who will get to meet the new single men in town is ridiculous and makes me cringe every time.
•  The costumes are all wrong - totally not the right time period at all.  I felt like I was watching Gone with the Wind rather than Pride & Prejudice.
• Lady Catherine de Bourgh is totally changed.  She actually has her confrontation with Elizabeth to make sure she is good enough for Mr. Darcy and totally approves of the marriage.
• The overall tone of the movie is to make it into a madcap farce of desperate women husband hunting.  It is not the real Pride and Prejudice.

Overall, I like to watch this version of Pride and Prejudice as I like old movies; I just wish it wasn’t called Pride and Prejudice as it strays far from the source material. 

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

 Surprisingly, with all of my Austen inspired reviews on my blog over the past six years, the only movie/mini-series version of Pride and Prejudice that I have reviewed is the series from 1980. I need to rectify that situation, and the Pride and Prejudice Bicentenary Challenge is the perfect opportunity to do it!

I recently DVR’d Pride and Prejudice 2005 and thought it was high time for me to rewatch a movie that I love. I own in on DVD, but I have gotten lazy in this digital age and prefer to watch movies on the DVR (or Netflix) where I can pause and keep the movies for later. This especially is useful as most of my movie watching time these days is while I’m folding laundry at night. As a side note, I am much saddened that only the 1980 version of Pride and Prejudice is available on Netflix. I hope the other editions become available soon. This review is of the movie as it compares to other Pride and Prejudice features and does not include a summary of the movie. Check out one of my many reviews of Pride and Prejudice over the years for a more detailed review and summary of the plot.

Whenever I was watching this version of Pride and Prejudice, my kids enjoyed it as well. I was especially amused that my five-year old son and two-year old daughter took such a shine to it. I told my husband Ben and that this will help Daniel win over the ladies when he is older and can talk about Jane Austen. By the end of the movie, I had convinced Ben that after all of these years of being married that he needs to watch Pride and Prejudice. This occurred after he argued with me for a few minutes that Elizabeth and Darcy DO NOT get married. I’m not sure how he got it so wrong, except that I can never convince him to watch it.

The Pride and Prejudice motion picture in 2005 is a beautiful movie, but it seems like Pride and Prejudice on fast forward. Many key items are so rushed, but it was necessary to make this a 2 hour movie. I much prefer one of the mini-series formats that keep the entire wonderful novel intact.

The visuals are for this version much grittier and more realistic than previous versions. There is much more of a difference between Longborn and Netherfield Park. I don’t really like this version of Longborn with pigs in the kitchen and all. It is a little too gritty to my taste and doesn’t seem the house of a gentleman to me.

I know I will get butchered here by Matthew McFadyen fans, but he seems way too cold and can I say, awkward. Colin Firth (aka the perfect Mr. Darcy), had Mr. Darcy down pat. He was austere, but yet had a certain look in his eye that promised much more.

I like how the actors portraying the characters appear to be the correct age in this movie and not far too old as they often area.

Mr. Collins as played by (Tom Hollander) is actually kind of cute and cuddly. Sure he spouts off his annoying lines, but I like him. He is not the slimy unlikeable Mr. Collins (David Bamber) in the 1995 production. He was perfect.

(Rupert Friend) as Mr. Wickham is beautiful. With such a specimen of a man, you can easily see why Lizzie and her sisters would be enchanted and willing to believe the best of him. The only downfall is that he is on the screen so little. He is introduced, gives his sad story about Mr. Darcy, and then is married to Lydia. The suspense for this part of the plot was not given enough time to develop

I love the music with this movie. Listening to it again made me realize I need to put the soundtrack on my wish list!

Overall, Pride and Prejudice from 2005 is a lush and wonderful adaptation of the classic novel. While it can’t beat a mini-series to me, it is the best movie adaptation.

Wuthering Heights (1939)

1939 was an epic year of filmmaking with Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Stagecoach, and Wuthering Heights. Wuthering Heights is based on the novel by Emily Bronte and starred Laurence Olivier as Heathcliff, Merle Oberon as Catherine, and David Niven as Edgar. For a summary and review of the novel Wuthering Heights, please see this link.

This movie overall makes Heathcliff and Catherine into much more romantic leads than what was originally in Emily Bronte’s novel. They are painted solely as star-crossed lovers that are just never able to get together because of various misunderstandings. The movie leaves out the entire second half of the novel, which shows how Heathcliff carefully plotted his revenge onto the second generation. In this movie, there are no children born.

Heathcliff first of all is portrayed by the very handsome Laurence Olivier. While I love Laurence Olivier and think he is a spectacular actor, he is not the dark personage described in Wuthering Heights. He is viewed in much more a sympathetic light because of the lack of showing his revenge on the second generation. His wife Isabella is shown to be miserable solely because of his continued love for Catherine. His abuse of her and the knowledge that he only married her to be able to inherit the Linton estate, Thrushcross Grange, is not mentioned. I believe that this movie may be one reason that people think of Heathcliff as a romantic character, when he is really not a very likeable character.

Merle Oberon is a good Catherine, although her selfish motives do not take center stage. I found her to be a much more unlikeable character in the book than in this production. David Niven is a good Edgar, although if I were Catherine and had to choose between a Laurence Olivier Heathcliff and a David Niven Edgar, I would be hard pressed to pick Edgar. You have a passionate love for Heathcliff who shares your passion and he is also hot as sin. Why are you picking the boring neighbor again? I feel kind of sorry for David Niven. I know him from being the Bishop in The Bishop’s Wife. In that movie, he is afraid his wife, Loretta Young, is developing feelings for an angel played by Cary Grant. Niven always seems to be the second fiddle.

The deathbed scene seemed strange to me. There is a very passionate speech from Heathcliff, while Catherine’s husband Edgar kneels by the bed in a prayerful poise saying nothing. This is very different than the death scene in the book. Catherine and Heathcliff have a passionate speech to each other when Edgar is away at church. There is suspense when he returns and he “flies at” Heathcliff enraged to see him there, but Catherine faints. Edgar has a bit more edge to him in the novel.

I did not like the omission of Hindley’s wife, Frances. Hindley is not a good man, but you can understand him better in the novel. First he has to see his father love Heathcliff rather than himself, and then his beloved wife Frances dies. It is easier to see why he became an alcoholic when Frances is in the picture and it humanizes Hindley.

Overall, I enjoyed the romance of the 1939 film version of Wuthering Heights, but I think it did a poor job of bringing Emily Bronte’s classic to life. The romance actually took away from Bronte’s original intent, and the omission of the younger generation made it so the viewers were unable to see the masterful plotting of revenge by Heathcliff.

This if my first item for the Victorian Challenge 2012.



Jane Eyre (2011)

As readers of this blog know, I am more than slightly obsessed with all things Bronte. One of my particular obsessions is watching all movie and TV versions of Jane Eyre. One of my fondest memories is watching the 1983 TV version of Jane Eyre starring Timothy Dalton as Mr. Rochester with my best friend Jenn while we were in high school. Even to us teenagers in the 1990’s the 1983 version was dated with poor background scenery and some rather bad dialogue. Even now, if one of us says, “She is a strapper, a REAL strapper,” it’s enough to send me into a fit of laughter.

It is always interesting to me how Jane Eyre is adapted from a beloved novel to the big (or small) screen. Some versions are excellent (2006 mini-series), while others are rather lacking (1983 mini-series). I am happy to say that I thought the 2011 version of Jane Eyre was one of the better productions – I loved it!

 

This version of Jane Eyre starred Mia Wasikowska as Jane and Michael Fassbender as Mr. Rochester. I have never seen the movies they are famed for (Alice in Wonderland and Inglourious Basterds respectively), but their superb acting in this movie makes me want to go and watch all of the other movies that they have been in. Wasikowska and Fassbender were both excellent leads with superb chemistry. You could almost feel it cackling off of the screen, particularly during a snowstorm scene where Mr. Rochester swooped into the room and swept Jane into his arms. This may have only been a figment of Jane’s imagination and not in the original novel, but it was highly romantic and a great addition. Is it getting hot in here or is it just me?

Judi Dench was also fantastic as Mrs. Fairfax. It was the best portrayal of that character that I’ve seen. I thought she really humanized the character into more than a cliche.

I thought the screenplay had an interesting framing of the story. It started at the middle of the novel with Jane’s flight from Thornfield and subsequent refuge at the Rivers’ home. I’m glad the Rivers were included as the second half of the novel has been left out of a lot of productions. This framing makes the story rather dramatic and mysterious if you don’t know the story of Jane’s flight. One negative though is that it makes the story seem as a romance between St. John and Jane as we know them together with some spark between them (at least on St. John’s end) before Mr. Rochester is introduced.

I particularly loved the lighting of this movie. It was eerie with the lights going dim at night with just the small light from a candle. It seemed more like the lighting would have been at the time and I loved the gothic feel. I also loved the sweeping music, it was beautiful. I need to look for the soundtrack!

The Lowood School scenes in this movie made me sad as they always do. I find that part of the novel heart wrenching, particularly because Charlotte Bronte and her poor sisters lived through a similarly dreary school experience that ended with the deaths of her older sisters Elizabeth and Maria.

I thought the romance between Jane and Mr. Rochester seemed sudden in the movie. This is probably due to the lack of time for build-up (it is a rather large novel). I enjoy the build-up of love in a longer mini-series. Some of my favorite scenes also didn’t make it into the movie (also probably due to time constraints) including Rochester’s turn as a gypsy, Jane’s torn wedding veil, and the very end of the novel “Reader, I married him.”

Overall though, the filmmakers succeeded in making a gothic, romantic version of Jane Eyre in the time constraints of a movie. I loved the leads and need to purchase this movie so I can watch it again . . . and again!

Have you seen this version of Jane Eyre yet? What did you think? Make sure to let me know in your comments. I loved Michael Fassbender as Mr. Rochester, but there have been many good Rochesters over the years. Vote on your favorite Mr. Rochester in my poll on the sidebar. We’ll have a Mr. Rochester discussion about the results next month – but you can also voice your opinion in the comments on this post.

Speaking of polls, I’ve also added one about the “All About the Brontes” Challenge. I hosted it in 2010 and I’m thinking about bringing it back for 2012. Would you be interested in joining it again? What can be done to improve it? Or should I try something different, but related such as a “Gothic” challenge, women of suspense challenge, Victorian Literature, or 19th century authors challenge? Vote on the poll and let me know your thoughts in the comments on this post!

DVD Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

2011 Movie Update

 I love to watch movies. When I first started this blog, I would post about each movie that I watched. Now if you look at my blog, you would think the only movies I watch are to fulfill Jane Austen challenges. Back in my single, dating, and newly married days, there was nothing I loved better than going out friends or Ben to the movie theatre. My movie watching has decreased with time and more kids, but I still watch movies. Ben and I don’t get to the movie theatre too much anymore. When you have three kids and the movie theatre is 30 to 45 minutes away, the babysitter fees are too much to get out that often. Most of the movies I watch are DVDs from the library, on Turner Classic Movies, or are on Starz (we get Starz “free” this year because of an increase in our monthly bill from Dish). I mostly watch movies in pieces during times I’m nursing Penelope . . . my movie time is going away now that she is getting weaned.

The following are movies I’ve watched this summer that I enjoyed. What movies have you watched and enjoyed lately? When do you watch movies?

Oscar Contenders:

The King’s Speech – Wow, sometimes I watch best picture contenders and I find myself wondering what the fuss is about and vowing to never watch that movie again (I’m looking at you No Country for Old Men and There Will be Blood). The King’s Speech was a positive movie that I loved and would enjoy watching again and again. Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush are spectacular as King “Bertie” George VI and Lionel Logue. I love how the movie is not only a tale of an unlikely friendship, but how a great tale of working to overcome a disability.

True Grit – I also loved True Grit. It was a great story also with brilliant performances. I have never seen the original or read the book so I can’t compare. Hailee Steinfield steals the show as Mattie Ross, a young teenage girl trying to avenge her father’s murder. She hires Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) to help her track down the killer. They are joined by a Texas Ranger, LaBoeuf (Matt Damon), who is tracking the same guy. I thought the cinematography, music, script, and acting were all superb. I loved this movie. Ben only saw pieces of it, but he was stopped in his tracks each time and had a few laughs at some of the witty dialogue. I did the The King’s Speech better, but True Grit was a very close second best film of 2010 in my opinion.

Period Movies

Bright Star – I really enjoyed this tragic love story of the poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne. I didn’t know anything about this story at all and I enjoyed learning about the love affair. I also thought the cinematography was very beautiful and I loved the costumes. I also loved to hate poet Charles Brown, the arrogant friend of Keats that had a declared hatred for Fanny.

The Last Station – I always love learning something new about writers and historical figures. The Last Station gave me an education about Leo Tolstoy and his very unconventional end of life. The end of the movie had me want to burst through the TV and strangle Paul Giamatti as the sinister Chertkov. Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer gave powerhouse performances as Tolstoy and his wife Sofya. I also enjoyed James McAvoy as the young Bulgakov, but Mirren and Plummer really stole the show.

The Young Victoria – As you can tell from the books I read, I may be slightly obsessed with British royalty. I loved this movie starring Emily Blunt as the young Victoria before and shortly after becoming queen of England. The romance between Print Albert, Rupert Friend, and Victoria was beautiful.

Chick Flicks

Easy A – Another movie I absolutely adored. I love chick flicks, rom-coms, whatever you like to call them – but I’ve felt that recent fair the past few years has been not the greatest. I was pleasantly surprised to discover Easy A. Emma Stone has a fantastic performance in this movie, which is a modern take on The Scarlet Letter. It is an original take on a classic, in the same vein as Clueless was to Emma.

(500) Days of Summer – Another non-traditional rom-com that I really enjoyed. I loved that it was from a man’s point of view of the 500 days he spent falling in love, in relationship with, and trying to get over a perfect girl named Summer.

Classics

Letter to Three Wives – This was a rather saucy tale of a letter a “friend” sends on her way out of town to three wives saying she has run off with one of their husbands. All three wives flash back to how they got together with their husbands and current relationship problems that may be the cause of their husband leaving them. A great early performance of Kirk Douglas.

I know I watched other great movies this summer, but these are the ones that I really enjoyed and am still thinking about. I really like sci-fi and action movies, but didn’t really watch any this summer for whatever reason.

What have you been watching lately? Any great movies you would recommend?

From Prada to Nada (2011)

Nora and Mary have grown up living the good life in Beverly Hills. After the death of their beloved father, they discover that the financial crisis has hit their family more than they knew and there is nothing left of the family fortune. They also discover a secret half-brother, Gabe Jr., that their father neglected to tell them about. Gabe takes over the family home in order to renovate it up and put it up for sale. His evil wife Olivia does have an attractive brother, Edward. Nora and Mary move to the East side of Los Angeles to live with their Aunt Aurelia and try to figure out a way to make their fortune.


Nora is a law student who has a slight flirtation with Edward, but doesn’t seem to recognize the fact that he is enamored with her. She stops going to school to take a part time job in a law firm to help support the family. Mary continues on in college and falls in love with her suave TA, Rodrigo Fuentes, while not noticing homeboy Bruno has a crush on her. Will the girls find true love?

I thought From Prada to Nada was adequate, but wasn’t that great of a movie or as a Sense and Sensibility adaptation. To me the bar for a straightforward Austen movie was set by the Sense and Sensibility movie of 1995 starring Emma Thompson, and an adaptation bar was set by Clueless (1995) and Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001). From Prada to Nada could not touch these movies even remotely.

First of all, the movie wavered on its theme, was it a Sense and Sensibility remake or a getting in touch with your Latina roots movie? It seemed to go back and forth between the two. Secondly, there was zero chemistry between any of the romantic couples. I loved Edward, but he did not have any chemistry with Nora. The love stories were all cute, but didn’t carry any emotional impact with me. I didn’t feel for Nora or Mary ever in the movie. I think overall, a poor script and poor acting contributed to make this a rather sad Austen modernization.

Am I being too harsh? Did anyone love From Prada to Nada?

From Prada to Nada is my sixth item for the Sense and Sensibility Bicentenary Challenge.

DVD Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Sense and Sensibility (2008)

I recently re-watched the 2008 Sense and Sensibility for my third item for Austenprose’s Sense and Sensibility Bicentenary Challenge. I watched it when it first aired on Masterpiece Theatre in 2008, but I thought watching it again might give me some second insights into the program. And who am I kidding – do I need a reason to watch a Jane Austen mini-series?

Andrew Davies wrote the screenplay for this version, and made an attempt to sexualize the story. I didn’t approve of these attempts. I thought the new Willoughby/Eliza scene of passion at the beginning didn’t really work. It was rather confusing when I first watched it and thought for a bit that I had the wrong channel.

Davies also tried to sex up Edward by having him chop wood. I could have done without this scene - it was not the Mr. Darcy wet shirt moment that Davies hoped it would be. I did like how Colonel Brandon was spiced up with his duel with Willoughby, rescuing Marianne in the rain, taking care of Eliza, and hawking. One could definitely see how Marianne could transfer her affections to Colonel Brandon, something I couldn’t always see when he was played by Alan Rickman in the 1995 version. It didn’t hurt that David Morrissey was cast as Colonel Brandon. He is an excellent actor and very attractive.

I like how the 2008 version fills in the gaps with several scenes not in the book. While I don’t think Austen needs improvement, it did tend to set this version apart and make it different from other versions of the story. In particular, I love a good dual and was pleased to see Colonel Brandon and Willoughby take their animosity to the next level. I also loved the scene with Colonel Brandon and Eliza; it was heartbreaking when she hoped to see Willoughby one last time. It really made me think about how Colonel Brandon must have felt about Willoughby seeing how he hurt two of the most important women in his life. I also enjoyed seeing Mrs. Ferrars disowning Edward and Lucy. I thought it was funny after Marianne’s accident when Colonel Brandon shows up for a visit and Mr. Willoughby is hiding behind Mrs. Dashwood. It was different then described in the novel, but funny and showed that Willoughby might not be all that he seemed.

I thought the cast was good in this mini-series, in particular I liked David Morrissey as Colonel Brandon and Dan Stevens as Edward Ferrars. I didn’t really like Dominic Cooper as Willoughby. I don’t quite believe in him with the hiding behind Mrs. Dashwood, smirks, and general ill-humor throughout. I’m not that surprised when he turns out to be deceitful. I think overall he can’t compare to Greg Wise’s superb performance in the 1995 version. I also enjoyed the music in this production.

I thought the last scene was rather strange. Is Edward chasing chickens with Elinor laughing? It was not nearly as romantic as Colonel Brandon carrying Marianne into the house.

Overall, this mini-series tried to spice up the classic Sense and Sensibility, but I don’t think it needed to be spiced up as shown in the excellent 1995 version of the story. It was an interesting version to watch, but definitely not the definitive version.

Have you watched this version? What is your overall impression?

I Have Found It

I watched I Have Found It for my first item for the Sense and Sensibility Bicentenary Challenge hosted by Austenprose. I Have Found It is a Kollywood (Tamil speaking cousin of Bollywood) film loosely based on Sense and Sensibility.

Two sisters, Sowmya and Meenakshi help their mother care for their ailing grandfather. Sowmya would love to get married, but it is rumored that she is “cursed” as her former fiancé came back from America dead. Sowmya places duty and family above love, but Meenakshi dreams of finding a romantic “white knight” to marry. Sowmya finds herself falling n love with Manohar, an aspiring filmmaker who returns her love. Manohar is an engineer, but he doesn’t want to go into the family business or marry Sowmya until he has made his first film.

Major Bala is a drunken flower grower who falls in love with Meenakshi. Meenakshi inspires Major Bala to stop drinking and to pursue her through music. His hopes are dashed when businessman Srikanth rescues Meenakshi after a fall and they fall in love over poetry.
After the death of their grandfather, Sowmya and Meenakshi find that their mother was disowned because their grandfather did not approve of her marriage, and their uncle who has not visited in ten years is left with everything. The family moves from their estate and tries to find means to support themselves. Sowmya initially finds work as a secretary, but soon puts her computer programming skills to use to get a better job.

Love also runs into trouble when Manohar appears to be in love with his leading lady and Srikanth disappears after business woes. Will Sowmya and Meenakshi be able to find true love?

While I Have Found It is set in a different place and time, I thought it did a great job of updating Sense and Sensibility to modern day India. In fact India with its arranged marriages and family obligations, allows the story to be more like the source material then if it were set in modern day England. I’m going to break it down and compare the I Have Found It characters to their Sense and Sensibility counterparts.

Major Bala as the “Colonel Brandon” of the story is given more of a back story showing his military experience. He also is missing a leg, unlike Colonel Brandon. He doesn’t have the tragic past love story of Colonel Brandon, but he does try to inspire Meenakshi, Marianne, through music just like his counterpart.

Manohar is the “Edward Ferrars” of the story. I thought he was livelier than Edward Ferrars and he definitely was more able to express his feelings to Sowmya than Edward was to Elinor. There is no Lucy Ferrars subplot in this movie, although Manohar and Sowmya has difficulties because of Sowmya’s perceived bad luck and also the rumors that Manohar is involved with his leading lady.

Srikanth is as mysterious as Mr. Willoughby in the original novel. He rescues Meenakshi in a rain storm after she has twisted her ankle and carries her home, a scene reminiscent of the 1995 Sense and Sensibility movie. Srikanth and Meenakshi fall in love over poetry, but then Srikanth mysteriously disappears because of business troubles. There is a meeting again later with a marriage that must take place to save the business all very reminiscent of the original novel. I didn’t think that Srikanth and Meenakshi had enough time falling in love in this movie.

Sowmya is the responsible Elinor that will marry for family obligations and also tries to keep her family afloat during financial hard times. I loved that Sowmya was a computer programmer (yeah women in science!), but I thought she was a little too emotional about her bad luck. The bad luck was not in the original novel.

Meenakshi is a very romantic Marianne and is able to sing her way through the movie. She has tragic love, and much sadness. The actress, who played Meenakshi, Aishwarya Rai, was also in Bride and Prejudice. She has a beautiful singing voice.

Overall, I enjoyed the movie and thought it was an interesting twist on the original classic, complete with great songs and scenery. It does not replace my beloved 1995 version of Sense and Sensibility, but it was something different to watch!

Movie Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Sense and Sensibility (1981)

Sense and Sensibility was made into a seven-part TV serial by the BBC in 1981. Each part is roughly twenty-five minutes long. As part of the Everything Austen Challenge II, I decided to watch this version of Sense and Sensibility as it is the only version I haven’t seen. As a disclaimer, the 1995 movie is not only one of my favorite Austen adaptations, but also one of my favorite movies of all time.

First of all, I didn’t like the short segments the serial was broken up into. The way the segments worked out, the writers tweaked the storyline to have one segment be about Willoughby, one about Edward, etc. These segments did not give the appropriate build-up to understand why Elinor had feelings for Edward or why Marianne was attracted to Willoughby. Everything seemed abbreviated to fit it into a short segment.

Although this version is longer than the 1995 movie (but shorter than the 2008 mini-series), poor Margaret, the third Dashwood sister, is completely deleted. Most other characters appear. I particularly liked Diana Fairfax who played Mrs. Dashwood, I thought she did an excellent job and it was my favorite portrayal Mrs. Dashwood.

I know this sounds mean, but Irene Richard who played Elinor had some truly terrible teeth. It reminded me of Austen Powers and the joke about bad British teeth. Irene looked like she was continually trying to hide her teeth throughout the series and whenever she did smile, it made me almost fall out of my chair. Tracey Childs did a fair job as Marianne.

Bosco Hogan as Edward Ferrars was unattractive and there was no chemistry with Richard’s Elinor. Robert Swann was a pretty good Colonel Brandon, but Peter Woodward as John Willoughby could not hold a candle to Greg Wise as Willoughby in the 1995 version. Julia Chambers was actually a pretty good Lucy Steele. Instead of always realizing something was amiss with her as in the 1995 version, she actually seemed like a nice girl. If I didn’t know the storyline, her betrayal of Edward would have been a complete surprise. It brought a different aspect to the story.

I think overall this adaptation was poorly written, especially in comparison to Emma Thompson’s excellent adaptation in the shorter 1995 movie. The beginning of the movie in the carriage has very awkward dialogue and camera angles. Other scenes were also very awkward, the one that comes to mind is Fanny’s screaming at Anne’s telling her about Lucy and Edward’s engagement. It was such bad acting that it was actually quite funny. Another awkward scene is when Edward comes to the cottage at the end, Elinor runs off while Marianne and Mrs. Dashwood just laugh at Edward. The scene pales in comparison to the quiet power of the same scene in the 1995 version. The ending was very odd with Colonel Brandon giving Marianne some books and calling her “my child.” It did not seem romantic at all and was rather abrupt.

Overall, I think the 1981 mini-series was a poor adaptation of Sense and Sensibility. It was interesting to watch, but both the 2008 mini-series and 1995 movie were much better. The 1995 movie is still my favorite adaptation.

This was my ninth item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Persuasion (1971)

I’m continuing my look at BBC versions of Austen’s novels in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Persuasion is tied with Pride and Prejudice as my favorite Austen novel. I had never seen the 1971 version of this beloved novel and decided now was the time!

The 1971 version is close to four hours long and therefore is able to provide a lot more detail than either the 1995 or 2007 versions. It followed pretty closely to the novel, but did change some scenes around and add some extra items. The production was low budget, but does change locations and have great inside décor. The outside scenes could use some improvement and appeared blurry at times.

Anne Firbank starred as Anne Elliot and Bryan Marshall was Captain Wentworth. I thought

Anne Firbank did an excellent job as Anne Elliot and I also loved her hair. I would rate her above Sally Hawkins from the 2007 version, but below Amanda Root in the 1995 version. Bryan Marshall however I thought was only an okay Captain Wentworth and rates below both Ciaran Hinds from the 1995 version and Rupert Perry-Jones from the 2007 version.

I never really felt the chemistry between the two leads in this version of Persuasion. I also think the length was just too long. There were several rather pointless scenes that were boring and didn’t add to the plot. I previously thought the 2007 version was too long and really hated the sprint at the end. I think the length needs to be somewhere between the 1971 and 2007 versions, perhaps more like the 1995 version.

Overall, this was an okay production of Persuasion and I’m glad I watched it. I still consider the 1995 version the definitive version as to me it had the right amount of time for the story, great chemistry between the leads, and two fantastic actors in those leads.

The 1971 version of Persuasion is my eighth item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

I obtained this movie from the Kewaunee Public Library system.

Pride and Prejudice (1980)

I have suffered for years knowing that a version of Pride and Prejudice exists that I had never seen. Luckily the Kewaunee Public library system had a copy of the 1980 Pride and Prejudice BBC production and I finally found the time (while nursing an infant in the middle of the night) to watch it.

The 1980 BBC version is a mini-series and as such, tells a lot more of the story than either movie version. The 1980 P&P largely sticks to the novel, although there are a few slight changes in dialogue, places of action, etc. The most noticeable change for me is that Elizabeth spends much of her time at the beginning of the mini-series talking with Charlotte and doesn’t seem to spend any time at all with Jane. Also the ending left out a lot and seemed actually rather abrupt. Otherwise, I loved how the mini-series had the time to tell the entire story.

While the 1980 P&P obviously lacked the budget of the 1995 P&P, it still did a great job at telling the story. It does not have the “made for TV on one sad set look” that many BBC productions of the 1970s and 1980s are prone too, although it does lack the lushness of the 1995 version.

I was pleasantly surprised by the two leads of the 1980 version. I thought David Rintoul was an excellent Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Garvie was also an excellent Elizabeth Bennet. I still prefer Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy, but I think Garvie is definitely among the best for Elizabeth Bennet. I give her a tie as my favorite Elizabeth with Jennifer Ehle.

Overall I thought the 1980 BBC production of Pride and Prejudice was quite good and I highly recommend it to anyone who has not seen it. I rank it behind the 1995 mini-series as one of my favorite productions of the book. I enjoyed the 2005 movie, but I think both mini-series are much more enjoyable as they are able to tell so much more of the story.

The 1980 Pride and Prejudice was my seventh item in the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Eclipse (2010)

My FLICKS Book and Movie Club went together to see Eclipse last Wednesday evening. It is always fun getting together with the ladies and enjoying a movie, and we all had been looking forward to this movie for quite some time. Twilight was my book choice pick for the club last fall and I managed to get many of my friends addicted to the series.

I know there are a lot of “haters” out there of the books and the movies, but I am not one of them. I read books of all types as you can tell from this blog and the Twilight series was great escapism reading that I literally could not put down. While it is not a literary masterpiece such as Pride and Prejudice, I think there is room in this world for fun reading. While I enjoy many types of books, not too many keep me wrapped up in them the way the Twilight series did.

To me, the movies follow the same principle. At times the first two movies were good campy fun, but they are fun to watch. I enjoyed Eclipse and thought it was a better movie than the first two. I thought the screenplay, acting, and special effects all had enjoyed a boast as the movies have come along. I enjoyed Eclipse as I have the other two movies as it is really enjoyable to finally have a movie that is about romance and not just sex. It’s also nice to have the action without gross out violence. I thought I was the only one that has gotten tired of super violent sexed up movies, but I think the popularity of the Twilight movie series shows that many people feel the same way. Bring back the romance!

My favorite line of Eclipse was when Jacob entered the tent and said something along the lines of “I’m hotter than you” to Edward. It made me laugh out loud. I also LOVED the back stories of Jasper and Rosalie. I was sad the back stories got mostly cut out of the other two films and hope they are put back in Breaking Dawn.

My only complaint about Eclipse was that Bella really needed a jacket after the tent scene. She was almost frozen to death in the night, but yet the next day she wanders outside with no hat, mittens, or coat. While that is okay for Edward and Jacob, it is not okay for Bella. I know it isn’t as romantic to have her kissing Jacob all bundled up, but it would be more realistic!

As I posted on Facebook, I realized after this movie at the grand old age of 32 I might be getting old as I decided I am “Team Charlie.” Charlie is funny and not bad looking. I especially liked his attempt to have “the talk” with Bella in Eclipse.

I am looking forward to Breaking Dawn, although I am not looking forward to seeing “the birthing scene” on the big screen. I’m also not thrilled about it being broken into two movies. The first one will just probably include the marriage, honeymoon, and baby birth with the large action scene at the end being movie two. I think it could have easily been one movie like the previous movies and think it’s just a way for the movie makers to make some extra cash . . . which they will out of me as I will be there! I’m only sad that Breaking Dawn Part 1 won’t be out until November 2011.

New Moon (2009)

It was a girls’ night out in Kewaunee on Saturday night. I went with a couple of friends to see New Moon in Green Bay. Armed with our pre-purchased tickets, we only had to wait in line for 15 minutes or so before we were let into the theatre. It was a full house consisting of almost all women, but we luckily were able to get good seats. How awesome is it that New Moon was such a success largely due to women? Hopefully Hollywood starts to realize that if they make movies women would like to see, they will go to see them.

New Moon is the second movie and book in the Twilight saga. The story begins with Bella’s 18th birthday. The Cullens throw her a surprise party. Bella accidentally cuts her finger, causing Jasper to almost kill her. Afterwards, Edward decides to leave forever in hopes that Bella can live a normal and safe life. Bella sinks into depression and is only able to finally see her way out of it when she starts spending more time with her best friend Jacob. Jacob has secrets of his own. A series of dramatic events leaves Bella racing to save Edward’s life.

The highlight of the movie going experience for me was when the entire theatre gasped with Jacob ripped his shirt off. I have never experienced anything like that in my life, I laughed out loud for awhile. In Facebook conversations with my friends in different movie theatres, it seems that is was a nationwide phenomenon. Did this happen in your theatre? Sound off below!

I thought the movie did a good job of bringing the novel to the big screen. I especially liked how the movie managed to show the passage of time during Bella’s depression, but did not dwell on it as much as the book did. I also thought Taylor Lautner was hot as Jacob. He played the perfect part of being Bella’s best friend torn by his love for her and his new life. I also love Charlie, Bella’s dad. He always has some great lines, such as when he was telling Bella to move on and then realized he never really followed his own advice.

There was one scene with much cheese in it – Alice’s vision of Edward and Bella as happy vampires in the future. I laughed when it showed them frolicking in slow motion through the woods. The special effects were MUCH better in this movie. I especially liked how Edward now sparkles more as I imagined it would be by the book description. In the first movie, the sparkle was hardly there and I was confused on why Edward couldn’t go out in the sunlight if I was viewing the movie alone without the book. I liked the score and edgy direction of the first film better than this movie, but it was still a good movie.

There were two scenes I had issues with, but it has been a year and a half or so since I read the book so I need readers to comment on what they think. Did Bella ride on the back of some stranger’s motorcycle? I don’t remember this happening. Also, I don’t remember Edward proposing until Eclipse. Did they just put that in as the final moment of the movie to make it a cliffhanger until next summer?

Overall, it was a very enjoyable movie and movie going experience. It’s always fun to go to the theatre on opening weekend and see the crowd full of excitement. I can’t wait until Eclipse comes out next summer as that was my favorite novel of the saga.

The Proposal (2009)

The Proposal was the best romantic comedy that I have seen in quite awhile. I don’t watch too many movies these days. With the two boys and work, it seems that the only movies I see are Bob the Builder or Thomas the Tank Engine. I watched this movie in pieces over a period of several days. It is always fantastic when you take the time to watch a movie and it is vastly entertaining.

Margaret (Sandra Bullock) is an uptight editor similar to many uptight editors we’ve seen in books and movies in recent years. Her assistant Andrew Paxton (Ryan Reynolds) dreams of being an editor in his own right or a novelist, but is stuck fetching Margaret’s coffee. Suddenly facing deportation to Canada and the loss of her job, Margaret forces Andrew to marry her to get a green card. Andrew takes Margaret back to his hometown in Alaska to meet his family and much hilarity ensues.

I really loved how the gender roles were reversed in this movie. Margaret was the boss and Andrew was her personal assistant. I think my favorite character was Andrew’s grandmother, Gammy (Betty White). She was hilarious. I also loved how Ramone (played by Oscar Nunez from The Office) worked everywhere in the Alaskan town.

Overall, it was a good romantic comedy and well worth watching. I liked Margaret’s character development throughout the movie and Andrew Paxton was good to look at!

Sense and Sensibility (1995)

Sense and Sensibility is not only my favorite Austen movie, but it is one of my favorite movies of all time. It is a movie that I really enjoy watching. Whenever I’m sick, this movie is my “comfort” movie that I love to watch to help me feel better. That being said, I haven’t been able to watch this movie this year so I decided to should watch this movie for The Everything Austen Challenge. I thought this was especially relevant as I recently listened to the audiobook recording of Sense and Sensibility.

I love the actors in this movie. I think Kate Winslet as Marianne and Greg Wise as Willoughby are absolutely perfect and just as I would envision them from reading the book. I also love Emma Thompson’s performance, although she is a lot older than Elinor should be from the novel’s description.

I love the comedy that appears throughout the movie. Hugh Laurie as Mr. Palmer is perfect. I love his biting remarks, they give me a chuckle. I also love his character growth. When you see the nice caring man that he is when he helps out during Marianne’s illness, it brings the character an added depth. Mrs. Jennings the annoying matchmaker and gossip is also hilarious. Don’t we all know a Mrs. Jennings? Harriet Walter as Fanny Dashwood is also funny in her way to manipulate her husband. I love the opening scene when she is able to talk her husband down into giving his poor half-sisters nothing after the death of their father.

As this is a two-hour movie based off of an approximately 350 page novel, there are changes. The major change is that Colonel Brandon tells Elinor that Willoughby did indeed love Marianne, but this didn’t happen in the novel. In the novel Willoughby makes a visit when Marianne is sick and confesses all to Elinor. I’m not sure why this was changed. Also Marianne gets sick in the movie by standing in the rain looking at Mr. Willoughby’s country estate, which did not happen in the novel. I liked this change, it makes it more romantic. That is if catching your death of cold can be considered romantic. I like how the novel has more detail at the end on how everything works out, but there just wasn’t enough time for that in the movie.

My favorite scene in this movie is when Elinor breaks down at the end (also not in the book). She is able to keep control of her emotions for so long, it is nice to finally see her let go and be happy!

Overall, I love this movie. Great actors, music, wonderful cinematography and perfectly directed, it is a very entertaining movie. This was my thirteenth item in the Everything Austen Challenge.

Movie Source: I received this DVD for my birthday from my best friend Jenn replacing my old VHS tape.

The Time Traveler’s Wife (2009)

I just went and watched The Time Traveler’s Wife yesterday evening with my FLICKS Book and Movie Club. My overall impression was that it was good, but not great. I enjoyed it. This review is meant as a companion to my review of the audiobook.

I liked how the movie got rid of most of the things I didn’t like about the book. I still was a bit creeped out when Henry first appears naked to six year old Claire, but they got rid of the other creepy scenes. I liked seeing the story unfold over time and loved the chemistry between Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams. The ending was good, but I was kind of sad that it wasn’t old Claire as in the book.

I didn’t like how the characters and their story were not as well developed as the book, but that is a very common problem in trying to translate a complex work to the screen. I also didn’t like how the movie started with the accident scene. I like how the book builds to this revelation. I personally wanted Eric Bana to shave throughout the movie. He is a hot guy, but I didn’t like his scruff!

Reactions to the movie by the club were mixed. Mostly there was a lot of confusion about time travel and Henry’s ability to exist in the same time with himself (no one was able to get the book from the library in time before the movie). Also many missed the build-up of romance between Henry and Claire. They chopped out all of their first getting to know each other as romantic individuals in the meadow. A couple people liked it and a couple didn’t. My favorite quote by a friend who shall remain nameless was, “I can believe in Vampires and Werewolves in the Twilight series, but I just can’t believe in time travel.” I love time travel books and movies so I thought it was funny!

Mansfield Park (1999)

I watched Mansfield Park as my ninth item for the Everything Austen Challenge. I own this movie, but it had been quite a few years since I had watched it.

Overall, as a movie, it was quite enjoyable. As a production of Mansfield Park the novel, it was not so much. Overall the movie generally followed the plot of the novel, but there were many changes in characters, situations, and settings. One of the major changes was to “spice up” Fanny. In my review of the audio book, I discussed that Fanny is a hard heroine to love because of her shyness and tendency to hide behind the scenes. The writers of this movie must have thought the same thing as they gave Fanny a makeover. She is now an opinionated authoress who loves to exercise. She becomes the author of Austen’s juvenilia and letters. While she is a more spirited girl and easier to empathize with, she is not Austen’s Fanny.

The other major personality change was of Sir Thomas Bertram. He is now a harsh taskmaster and abuser of slaves. I like abolition movies, but I don’t like when abolition is thrown into movies based on material where it didn’t appear previously. It feels forced. I didn’t like Sir Thomas as an evil character.

Sex was also added in with Fanny catching Henry and Maria in the act at Mansfield Park. I didn’t approve.

I did like the actors and actresses who portrayed the parts, they were perfectly cast. I especially loved Johnny Lee Miller as Edmund. I also really liked how this movie had Fanny’s visit to Portsmouth. That is one of my favorite parts of the novel.

I do not think there has been a great adaptation of Mansfield Park yet. There were numerous problems with the 2008 version that I reviewed previously and all I remember of the 1980’s version was that it was long and very boring. It has been probably 15 years since I watched the 1980’s version so perhaps I should give it another try.

This ends my tour of Mansfield Park. I have a couple of books I want to read first (including Mr. Darcy, Vampyre and Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict) and then I will be on a Sense and Sensibility binge!