Emma
I am torn between liking the movie for what it is or reviewing this with regard to its authenticity with the novel or indeed by comparison to other visual interpretations over the years.
Either way there were some distinct problems with this production and indeed some total joys.
What was good
We had some brilliant cameos that upped this movie and were quite memorable, Miranda Hart for one.
The styling was spot on in terms of the clothes, hair, makeup and interiors.
What was deeply problematic
What separates Jane Austen from Barbara Cartland, obvious, her brilliant use of language to poke fun at a society of manners and the rigid conventions of her time and thereby reveal some insights into the human condition. This production was unfortunately Barbara Cartland, Georgian "speak" was largely absent in the first 45 minutes, the script was heavy and there was just no lightness of touch in recreating the interchange between Knightly and Emma. I would suggest everyone can understand Georgian speak as with Shakespearean speak and if they can't they best man up or leave the theatre, we cannot dumb down the language of these great authors without it ceasing to be their work.
Emma is a flawed heroine, Jane Austen said "no one could like her except herself", but we must love her despite her shortcomings, she is well meaning, but her reading of the world and her errors in judgement come from inexperience, the gap between these realities is revealed by Knightly and it is this that defines the manners and conventions of the day, whether just or not. In this movie she just appeared an interfering busybody and we didn't like her, her motivations were merely suggested to be vanity, not true!
Mr Woodhouse was really presented as a caricature but in the novel he was less comedic and more irritating pedant, in many ways, as F.R.Leavis argues, it is his influence and indulgence that has created the monstrous errors in judgement that Emma makes.
We just were not rooted in the Georgian period, the score was wrong, the script was wrong, everything was too clean even on the farm. The set pieces, the balls, the picnic was all clumsily handled, such a shame. I did enjoy the piano recital scene that was good.
We have had in recent months Liitle Women, David Copperfield and now Emma, of the three Little Women was the best. But overall all three are an unmitigated disaster as they failed to capture the essence of the great novels from which they derived, in all it is not just the story that needs to be conveyed but the larger insights into humanity and the interactions between us all. If you want a new story then write one, never butcher a great masterpiece for either accessibility or political reasons. No more please!
I am torn between liking the movie for what it is or reviewing this with regard to its authenticity with the novel or indeed by comparison to other visual interpretations over the years.
Either way there were some distinct problems with this production and indeed some total joys.
What was good
We had some brilliant cameos that upped this movie and were quite memorable, Miranda Hart for one.
The styling was spot on in terms of the clothes, hair, makeup and interiors.
What was deeply problematic
What separates Jane Austen from Barbara Cartland, obvious, her brilliant use of language to poke fun at a society of manners and the rigid conventions of her time and thereby reveal some insights into the human condition. This production was unfortunately Barbara Cartland, Georgian "speak" was largely absent in the first 45 minutes, the script was heavy and there was just no lightness of touch in recreating the interchange between Knightly and Emma. I would suggest everyone can understand Georgian speak as with Shakespearean speak and if they can't they best man up or leave the theatre, we cannot dumb down the language of these great authors without it ceasing to be their work.
Emma is a flawed heroine, Jane Austen said "no one could like her except herself", but we must love her despite her shortcomings, she is well meaning, but her reading of the world and her errors in judgement come from inexperience, the gap between these realities is revealed by Knightly and it is this that defines the manners and conventions of the day, whether just or not. In this movie she just appeared an interfering busybody and we didn't like her, her motivations were merely suggested to be vanity, not true!
Mr Woodhouse was really presented as a caricature but in the novel he was less comedic and more irritating pedant, in many ways, as F.R.Leavis argues, it is his influence and indulgence that has created the monstrous errors in judgement that Emma makes.
We just were not rooted in the Georgian period, the score was wrong, the script was wrong, everything was too clean even on the farm. The set pieces, the balls, the picnic was all clumsily handled, such a shame. I did enjoy the piano recital scene that was good.
We have had in recent months Liitle Women, David Copperfield and now Emma, of the three Little Women was the best. But overall all three are an unmitigated disaster as they failed to capture the essence of the great novels from which they derived, in all it is not just the story that needs to be conveyed but the larger insights into humanity and the interactions between us all. If you want a new story then write one, never butcher a great masterpiece for either accessibility or political reasons. No more please!