Monthly Archives: January 2016

January 17, 2016 · 10:00 pm

Sense and Sensibility – 1981

I have moved on to Sense and Sensibility. I forgot that I had a copy of the 1971 Sense and Sensibility, so I started with the 1981 version.

Sense and Sensibility 1981

Like all of these older adaptations, it is not particularly beautiful, but this one at least has outdoor scenes. It consists of 7 episodes – each 30 minutes long – and it is quite faithful to the novel (they do get rid of Margaret Dashwood).

Marianne (left) and Elinor

I thought Irene Richard’s Elinor was great, but Tracy Childs over-enunciated as Marianne (she had obviously had elocution lessons).

Edward Ferras

Mr Willoughby

Colonel Brandon

Robert Swann was a great Colonel Brandon, but Alan Rickman is always going to be the definitive Colonel Brandon.

Lucy Steele

Mrs John Dashwood (on learning of Lucy’s engagement to Edward)

This was a good adaptation, but there is better available now. It is probably only for the die-hard Jane Austen fans.

More reviews …

Sense and Sensibility Movie (1981) – A Review

http://felicelog.blogspot.com.au/2011/08/sense-and-sensibility-1981-review.html

Northanger Abbey 2007

I continue on my Jane Austen Adaptation Festival with the latest (2007) version of Northanger Abbey – I do prefer this one to the 1987 version. First, it has high production values – beautiful to look at, secondly Andrew Davies is the screenwriter and he always manages to be reasonably faithful to the novel, but ramps up the sexual tension a bit (Mr Darcy diving into the lake?).

Northanger Abbey

Henry Tilney (J J Feild)

Catherine and Mrs Allen

One of the Gothic Dream Sequences

Isabella Thorpe (Carey Mulligan)

Miss Tilney

Mr Thorpe

General Tilney

See what I mean about it being a bit ‘sexed up’ – Isabella wondering if her and Captain Tilney are now engaged.

I thoroughly enjoyed this adaptation – even the extra bits added by Andrew Davies – I thought it was well cast (the two leads in particular). It is short (93 minutes), but manages to get across all of the important plot points.

More reviews …

Do you only ask what I can be expected to tell? A review of Northanger Abbey 2007

https://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/the-three-northanger-abbey-films/ – this one is worth reading!

Jane of Green Gables

It is always interesting what you find when clicking links indiscriminately while browsing the internet.

I came across this interesting article Jane of Green Gables: L. M Montgomery’s Reworking of Austen’s Legacy by Miriam Rheingold Fuller, which links my two favourite authors.

I found this article via Sarah Emsley and I find her through the janeites email list ( it is worth being on the list for all of the controversy about shadow stories and conspiracies).

Northanger Abbey – BBC 1987

I have set my self the task of watching the adaptations in the order Austen wrote the novels :- Northanger Abbey, Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma and Persuasion. I have several versions of each so this should keep me busy for sometime.

First up this version of Northanger Abbey

Northanger Abbey BBC 1987

This one has Katharine Schlesinger as Catherine Morland and Peter Firth as Henry Tilney. This film is an interesting mix – period costumes and settings, but modern music.

It is quite faithful to the story – except for this character