Movie Review: Jane Eyre (2011)

Plot: A mousy governess who softens the heart of her employer soon discovers that he’s hiding a terrible secret

I haven’t seen a worse plot description in my life on IMDb. “A mousy governess who softens the heart of her employer soon discovers that he’s hiding a terrible secret” – really? That is all they have to say about one of classical literature’s finest novels? Okay then. My review of the novel Jane Eyre should have alerted you already that I’d been lit up with fervor for this story, and I obsessively searched for a copy of the movie to see if it would hold up with my hopes. In fairness, the movie is now seven years old, so procuring a copy was no easy task. I eventually ordered one online and had to wait two whole weeks for delivery.

The 2011 version of Jane Eyre is fantastic, and very much what I wanted the movie to be. Mia Wasikowska is a fantastic Jane Eyre – she nails the passion of Jane so well. At first glance, Jane appears to be a mousy, plain girl who was lucky to receive an education. The viewer is naturally privy to more information – she was mishandled by her only relatives and her school was a strict and harsh environment. Yet Jane has an amazing capacity to care, noted when she takes care of her charge in Mr. Rochester’s home. Adele (Romy Settbon) is a French oddity in the prudish British countryside, and while the movie briefly references that she might be Mr. Rochester’s illegitimate child, the book illustrates better the responsibility Mr. Rochester unwillingly feels for her.

Michael Fassbender might be a bit too handsome for Mr. Rochester – in the book he is described as distinctly un-handsome (i.e. ugly) – but for intensity he is a fantastic choice for Mr. Rochester. The levels of the man – his harshness and anger towards the world and the façade he can give his more elite guests make him a really intriguing man. I would have liked it had they included his scene as the beggar woman, because it adds another level to his character – a shrewdness to not be deceived.

Judi Dench gives an – unsurprisingly – good performance as Mrs. Fairfax – her nervousness in keeping her master happy and the protectiveness she feels towards the inhabitants of the manor.

Jamie Bell is very convincing as St. John Rivers, and he makes the character more likeable than I found him in the book. St. John Rivers remains a really interesting character to consider, because he is on first glance the male replica of Jane – stern, middle class, quite plain, but further inspection reveals he has nothing of Jane’s passion and determination.

Jane Eyre is as dreary as its literary counterpart – incessant fog and rain makes the watcher feel as closed in as Jane must feel. I’ll definitely re-watch – it’s really good and made me miss the novel again. Again, I felt the movie could have included at least Mr. Rochester reclaiming sight in his one eye – the movie reunites the characters but with very little hope due to his poor condition.

Jane Eyre remains one of my favorite classical literatures. It is feminism at its finest origin – Jane’s determination to be an equal to Mr. Rochester. I have to delve deeper into this world – there is so much more to discover!

Rating: 8.5/10

April 17, 2018April 17, 2018 by Natasha Categories: Movies, movies, Review, Reviews, Romance, UncategorizedTags: Charlotte Bronte, classic, English Literature, Jamie Bell, Jane Eyre, Judi Dench, Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Movies, Reviews, Romy Settbon 9 Comments

Movie Review: Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Plot: Sparks fly when spirited Elizabeth Bennet meets single, rich, and proud Mr. Darcy. But Mr. Darcy reluctantly finds himself falling in love with a woman beneath his class. Can each overcome their own pride and prejudice?

Continuing on my slightly unhealthy craze of Pride and Prejudice and all things Elizabeth and Mr. Bennet related, I had to watch this 2005 adaption again. I can’t find a review for it anywhere on my blog, and I know I’ve seen it before – is it possible that I did it pre-blog? I’ll never know!

I had a great time. I remember enjoying it the first time but not really appreciating the ending back then – I think I didn’t get at that stage just how British this story is and how perfect that ending was.

There are a number of changes made, but it was organic– I didn’t feel that it deducted from the story at all. The changes made were done to fit the span of the book into a movie, so a lot of information and pivotal scenes were ignored. As I said it didn’t damage the film much, but the book certainly provides a more comprehensive scope of Darcy’s character and the change Elizabeth was able to inspire in him.

Matthew MacFadyen is truly a perfect Darcy. He is a wonderful actor, truly being able to convey emotions without saying too much. He is perfectly British and his contained atmosphere and telling outbursts as Mr. Darcy is spot on.

My love/hate relationship with Keira Knightley seems set to continue. The way she has of pulling her mouth frustrates me to no end. But, as I listed here, the fact that she has an annoying mouth does not derive from the fact that she is an accomplished actress. Ms. Bennet is as challenging to a female lead as Mr. Darcy is to a male lead – complex, intelligent characters with the weight of being a beloved classic weighing them down. She manages her role admirably and is a delight as Ms. Bennet, and has sufficient and delightful levels of impertinence that made me love her all the more.

Rosamund Pike as Jane Bennet was a choice that I was not that all that pleased with, but she did her best. There was a desperation to her impression of Jane that I did not enjoy – Jane is shy and sweet natured and a bit too believing in the best of others, but she isn’t a desperate woman. Jenna Malone as Lydia Bennet was a perfect choice – Lydia is really the worst thing, she is a flirting little girl with no sense or morals or particular care for her family. It takes a strong actress to bring that particular disregard to family and tradition to life, and the callousness with which Lydia does it as well. Donald Sutherland as Mr. Bennet properly emanates that exhaustion Mr.Bennetmust feel from a lifetime with the skittish and irritating Mrs. Bennet (Brenda Blethyn) – who can’t but help being such an annoying person. I wish I could have seen more of Rupert Friend as Mr. Wickham – he was good on screen but not particularly often on it, which is frustrating as Mr. Wickham is quite important to the events that unfold. I wish I liked Simon Woods as Charles Bingley – he was just too ginger for my idea as Bingley. I did like Kelly Reilly as Caroline Bingley – she was as snobbish and backhanded and mean spirited as her character requires.

I felt similarly in the book – a need to rush through and to get to the end to know everything, but the pacing was slow and careful and makes you subsequently pay a lot more attention. The British countryside is beautiful despite the depressing weather, and the director managed to capture it and incorporate it into this very British movie.

The ending of the film is different to the book only in execution, with the phrases altered slightly but still much the same. It is powerful and touching, and the chemistry between Knightley and MacFayden is through the roof at that very moment. I’ve seen the extended version and the normal version, and the extended is a lot more true to what happens in the book.

I enjoyed this adaption so much. It is a great cast, it is well paced and despite missing some key events it still tells what it needs to tell. Watching this soon again is inevitable. An 8.5/10 for me.

 

June 7, 2017June 14, 2017 by Natasha Categories: Movies, movies, Review, Reviews, RomanceTags: Beautiful, Brenda Blethyn, Carey Mulligan, classic, Donald Sutherland, Elizabeth Bennet, English, feminism, Jane Austen, Jena Malone, Judi Dench, Keira Knightley, Kelly Reilly, literature, Love, Matthew MacFayden, Mr. Bingley, Mr. Charles Bingley, Mr. Darcy, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, Mrs. Bennet, Romance, Rosamund Pike, Rupert Friend, Talulah Riley, Tamzin Merchant, Tom Hollander 11 Comments

Blindspot 2016: To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)

Plot: Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the Depression-era South, defends a black man against an undeserved rape charge, and his children against prejudice.

Rating: 9/10

YESSSSSS. Guess who is finally done with their 2016 Blindspot list?! MEEE! It hasn’t been easy. 2016 was such a busy, annoying year and I had some really heavy movies on my list. I was lagging behind all the time. It’s bad! Anyway, I finished this one up last night, and patted myself on the back.

To Kill A Mockingbird was so good. I loved Atticus Finch (I guess everyone does) and Gregory Peck was so good in the role. The character is kind and wise and ahead of his time. I appreciated that he stood by his morals even when it would have been a lot easier than just to punch someone. The children were surprisingly non-grating and their games reminded me of an Enid Blyton book. They were sweet and adventurous. Scout was so amusing with her tomboy ways and love for fighting. Her brother was a young miniature of their father – admirable when Atticus Finch is your father. The kid actors were also all very good – that is so rare these days.

TKAMB also deals with material that could only have been considered extremely risqué in the time the book was published as well as the movie. It is now so clear to me why the book was banned. An innocent black man? That must have boggled everyone’s minds back then!

It always amazes me that black and white films manage to show so much more than color films, being able to draw attention the smallest aspects of the shot. To Kill A Mockingbird is surprisingly easy to follow despite many events occurring at the same time, which in itself speaks legions about how well the film was written and directed.

I really liked this film – it’s not upbeat and it’s not depressing. It manages to show both the best side of humanity and the worst side of humanity all in one go, and makes you think a bit about on which side you really are. I only have one request – that they NEVER remake this film.

PS: Robert Duvall is Boo Radley?!?!

January 6, 2017January 3, 2017 by Natasha Categories: Blindspot, Movies, movies, Review, Reviews, UncategorizedTags: 1962, Blindspot, Blindspot 2016, Brock Peters, classic, Gregory Peck, Harper Lee, John Megna, Mary Badham, Movies, Phillip Atford, racial prejudice, Reviews, Robert Duvall, Rosemary Murphy 7 Comments