I’d been pretty good at keeping up with my reviews of the Jane Austen-fest on PBS, but a got a little behind with the last few, now that it’s spring, and I’ve had to DVR them rather than watching them all when they aired.
Ms. Austen Regrets disappeared into the black hole of the DVR, though I did manage to catch large swatches of it when it aired. While I liked what I saw, I have to say I was a little leery of watching it. I’ve read some biographical sources on Jane Austen, and for whatever reason, since we know so little about her actual life, I feel somewhat strange watching a movie about her, since it’s based so much on speculation or secondary sources.
I didn’t watch Pride and Prejudice since I own it on DVD. I love that book, and every single screen adaptation I’ve seen of it. There’s really nothing more to say.
The Kate Beckinsale Emma was fun. I loved Samantha Morton’s frizzy hair for some reason. It made her portrayal of Harriet for me. I also loved Olivia Williams as Jane Fairfax, due to her portrayal of Jane Austen in Ms. Austen Regrets. It seemed a fitting cross-over. The gardens at Mr. Knightley’s estate (the name of which escapes me at the moment) were lovely. But, my favorite thing about this movie was Mark Strong as Mr. Knightley. I’m sure I’d seen him in other things before I saw Stardust, but he’s now stuck in my head forever as Prince Septimus, and I just loved it every time he walked on screen.
I actually was able to watch the first part of Sense and Sensibility on the night it aired. Since I didn’t know it was a two-parter, I was starting to get fairly confused when 10:30 was rolling around and the girls hadn’t been invited to London yet.
I really enjoyed this adaptation. The cottage, and the Devonshire coast scenery in general, were stunning, and were used to great effect to contrast all the emotional goings-on in the story. Actually, all of the scenery was lovely, and they picked some very interesting houses for the various locations. I especially liked the hall in Cleveland where we last see Mr. Willoughby. The woodwork and the balcony were very atmospheric. I believe I liked this better then the Emma Thompson version, and that movie actually convinced me to give the book another try, after an initial failed attempt to read it.