Mansfield Park 2007 vs 1999

Oh, dear, the matter of a Mansfield Park film. Her most controversial novel has been, unsurprisingly, the most difficult to film. In both the 1999 and 2007 film adaptations (112 minutes and 120 minutes respectively) the shy, sensitive and highly moral Fanny Price is changed into...well...not Fanny Price, in order to make her more sympathetic to modern viewers.

The 1999 Mansfield Park by Patricia Rozema openly admits in the opening credits that it is based on the book and on the diaries of Jane Austen. Basically, Patricia Rozema makes the character of Fanny Price into a version of Jane Austen herself, in order to give her the liveliness and spark that so many have found lacking in poor, weak little Fanny. Heck, apparently even Jane Austen's own mother found the Fanny of the novel "insipid".

I am fully aware that Jane Austen purists tend to dislike the 1999 film, however it is actually one of my beloved old friends, and tends to get popped into the DVD player on a regular basis. I have no problem with the slightly modern costumes and the feisty, robust Fanny as played by Frances O'Connor. I love the cheeky way that Fanny (both young and older version) looks into the camera to deliver the odd aside. I find the photography breathtaking, the music perfectly wonderful, and most of the main thrusts of the plot are there, even if they have been tinkered with a little bit.

OK, OK, my love of this version may have a teensy weensy bit to do with the fact that a very young Jonny Lee Miller plays Edmund Bertram (albeit with unnaturally red lips, but I won't hold that against him). I mean, look at that face! It's no wonder Fanny fell for him, am I right?

Victoria Hamilton and Justine Waddell are truly wonderful as Maria and Julia - the wicked, selfish cousins who delight in making Fanny feel inferior every chance they get.

And I tip my hat to Hugh Bonneville who captured the idiotic Mr. Rushworth perfectly. And the hair...oh the hair! Teeheeheehee!

Alessandro Nivola made the character of Henry Crawford quite appealing and really helped us feel that Fanny almost got swept away by his very effective courting. Oh, the fireworks and the doves and the flowers! And he seemed so earnest (almost). But Fanny listened to her heart. Good girl, you held out for Jonny- I mean the virtuous vicar Edmund!

The rest of the cast is pretty darn good too, from Lindsay Duncan as both Mrs. Price and Lady Bertram to James Purefoy who is easy on the eyes as Tom Bertram. Sheila Gish is almost as good a Mrs. Norris as the cat in Harry Potter (I love J.K. Rowling for that little gem)! And Sophia Myles was very taking as Susan Price.

However, I can't be the only one creeped out by Harold Pinter's lecherous Sir Thomas Bertram. Ewwwwww! Great acting but a really creepy take on Sir Thomas.

And now we move on to the 2007 Mansfield Park. I am a pretty easy audience when it comes to Jane Austen adaptations but I found this one particularly difficult to love. I think it mostly has to do with the casting of Billie Piper as Fanny Price. Buxom, bleached blonde (with dark brows), she seems to be all teeth and unkempt hair. And they made the young Fanny a bleached blonde with dark brows too!!! Again, she is not the timid, sickly and saintly Fanny of the novel as she tears around the house grinning maniacally. But that would be the fault of the script. I suppose Billie Piper is a good actress, she just didn't make me care for her Fanny.

Now, apart from the casting of the main character, let's begin with the good points of this adaptation. There is some fabulous acting, starting with a very heartfelt performance from Blake Ritson as Edmund (OK, apart from the delivery of the line "I have always loved...this room!"- groan).

The performance of Hayley Atwell as Mary Crawford was really very good. I always love Hayley Atwell in whatever she is in, and she delivered again here. Unfortunately Joseph Beattie was a bit dull as Henry Crawford. He just didn't do it for me after the brilliant sex appeal of Alessandro Nivola's Henry Crawford. Sorry!

James D'Arcy was very good in the role of the heir to Mansfield Park, Tom Bertram. He is a great actor, but I believe James Purefoy has the edge in a Tom Bertram smackdown. However as for the actors who played Maria and Julia Bertram and Mr. Rushworth, I cannot even be bothered to look up their names. Enough said.

I do have to give a shout out to Joseph Morgan the actor who plays Fanny's elder brother William Price. I really missed his character in the 1999 version and he is everything I pictured him to be. Adorable, actually, even though they made him dance the hornpipe on the lawn of Mansfield Park. Actually there was altogether too much outdoor dancing in this adaptation. I can't help but think that it was cheaper to film out of doors. Pity!

Mrs. Norris as played by Maggie O'Neill was just OK. But I really kind of liked Jemma Redgrave's take on Lady Bertram. Lindsay Duncan's drug addled Lady Bertram in 1999 was a bit too indolent (her pathetic and slatternly Mrs. Price was much better). Although it was a departure from the novel, Jemma Redgrave gave Lady Bertram a sweetness and prescience that was refreshing, although not perhaps what the author intended. It may be my affection for Jemma Redgrave as Bramwell which is disposing me kindly to her acting here.

I liked Douglas Hodge's version of Sir Thomas. He is a bit bombastic and mean to poor Fanny, although I suppose that is the character as written. I will say that I liked Douglas Hodge better in both The Way We Live Now and Middlemarch, but that is probably partly due to the script here. I mean, leaving Fanny on her own to skip around the Great House (instead of sending her back to Portsmouth) is hardly a punishment for refusing Henry Crawford. It was rather a treat for her to be away from all those who normally mistreated or took her for granted.

Hey, I just realized that there is a haha in the photo above! (LOL or hahahaha!)

Anyway, I guess this version is OK. Meh! But we still need a really good film adaptation (preferably miniseries in length) of Mansfield Park. Or is this book truly unfilmable? I don't think it is. All it needs is the right screenplay (come on Andrew Davies or Sandy Welch) and some money and good direction and casting behind it.

But the real question is can they leave the character of Fanny Price as it was written by Jane Austen or does she need to be livened up a bit for the modern audience? Please discuss in the comments below. I look forward to your views!

Cheers!

The Mayor of Casterbridge 2003

Oh, Thomas Hardy...why so tragic? I have had my copy of The Mayor of Casterbridge kicking around my house for about a year now, still with the wrapping on it. I know that Thomas Hardy is a wonderful writer but he can be such a downer that it took until this week for me to get this one into the DVD player. Why did I wait???? It is wonderful!

I should have known with Ciaran Hinds in the title role that it would be good. But this one is really good! Now, don't get me wrong, it is Thomas Hardy and the subtitle of the book is "The Life and Death of a Man of Character" so don't you be expectin' any happy endings. I mean it starts with the main character Michael Henchard selling his wife and baby daughter to a sailor at a country fair after he has had too much to drink.

Then we pick up the story 18 years later, when Henchard has made good and is a respectable grain merchant and Mayor when his wife Susan shows up in Casterbridge as a widow with a grown daughter. And then the story gets complex and really dark as it always does with Hardy.

I have to say, if I knew James Purefoy had such a prominent role in this I would have cracked open the DVD much sooner. My goodness, that man looks good in Victorian clothing! And he does a fairly good Scottish accent as Donald Farfrae, the man who unwittingly complicates Henchard's life over and over again.

Mmmmmmmm....sorry, I got lost in those dreamy eyes and adorable smirk in the photo above.

But seriously all of the actors in this are top notch, from Jodhi May as Elizabeth-Jane, Henchard's daughter right on down to the wonderful Jean Marsh in a small but pivotal role as the Furmity Woman who gets Henchard intoxicated at the fair. You know a production is fabulous when even the tiny roles are perfectly cast. And Polly Walker is captivatingly gorgeous as usual as Lucetta, the love interest of both men.

I think what I liked most about this story is how Thomas Hardy humanizes his characters and doesn't try to make them all good or all evil, which is a refreshing change for Victorian literature. Everyone has depth, even if there seems to be just a little too much coincidental tragedy for my liking.

So, there you are. By all means this has my two thumbs up but make sure you are in a good mood when you decide to watch it. It is quite a roller coaster ride. And of course it makes you want to read the book. I think this will be cottage reading for me this summer!

Cheers!

A Knight's Tale 2001 with Heath Ledger

A Knight's Tale with Heath Ledger

Another one of my all-time favourites, A Knight's Tale was on television a few nights ago, and we just sort of fell into watching it. I have seen it so many times, I can watch the middle, the end or any part and enjoy whatever I have time for. My boys loved this one when they were young teens and used to watch it with their friends.The modern music in this gives it a wonderful energy-We Will Rock You!

A Knight's Tale cast promo photo

This medieval underdog tale is great for everyone of all ages. For the females, we have an adorable young Heath Ledger as the thatcher's son turned makeshift knight. We also have a naked Paul Bettany (carefully filmed of course) as Geoffrey Chaucer for those who like their men long and lean! For the men we have exotic looking Shannyn Sossamon as the noble lady Jocelyn whom William Thatcher/Ulrich von Liechtenstein tries to win. My guys all liked the feisty little blacksmith-lady Kate played by adorable Scotswoman Laura Fraser with her Nike swoosh and her amazing metallurgical know-how! And the kids just love the jousting and the comedy.

Rufus Sewell as Count Adhemar in A Knight's Tale

The rest of the supporting cast is brilliant too. Rufus Sewell always makes a great baddie!

Adhemar: You have been weighed, you have been measured, and you have been found wanting. In what world could you possibly beat me?

James Purefoy as The Black Prince in A Knight's Tale

James Purefoy is delicious in his small but wonderful role as The Black Prince, disguised as Sir Thomas Colville.

Prince Edward: Your men love you. If I knew nothing else about you, that would be enough.

Paul Bettany as Geoffrey Chaucer in A Knight's Tale

Chaucer:  My lords, my ladies, and everybody else here not sitting on a cushion!

Shannyn Sossaman and Heath Ledger in A Knight's Tale

William: Where will we live? In my hovel? With the pigs inside during the winter so they won't freeze?
Jocelyn: Yes, William. With the pigs.

Alan Tudyk as Wat in A Knight's Tale

Wat: We're the sons of peasants. Glory, and riches, and stars are beyond our grasps. But a full stomach, that dream can come true.

Modern dance scene from A Knight's Tale

Chaucer: And one and two and three and four and your hands should be light like a birdie on a branch. And one and two and three and four and Wat doesn't lead he follows like a girl.
[Wat punches him. Scene changes, and Chaucer now has a tissue stuck up one nostril]
Chaucer: And one and two and twirlie twirlie twirlie! And one and two and you're still getting it wrong! And one and two and three and four you can hit me all day cause you punch like a... what?
Roland: A girl!

Well, hopefully that gave you a laugh or at least you are smirking right now. So again, if you have never seen this one, rent it or better yet buy it (good extras on the DVD) and if you have seen it, you might want to dust this one off from your DVD collection!

P.S. Here is a deleted scene I found on YouTube with Olivia Williams as Chaucer's wife. Cute joke at the end of the scene with Wat and Kate!

Vanity Fair - Film vs Miniseries

Vanity Fair BBC miniseries 1998 wins!

OK, I have given it away right here at the beginning...the 1998 BBC miniseries with Natasha Little, Nathaniel Parker and Philip Glenister is hands down the winner. I am betting that although many of you likely saw the 2004 film version with Reese Witherspoon, not many of you likely saw my winner (or read the amazing novel by William Makepeace Thackaray). I never would have read the novel if it hadn't been for the miniseries with the screenplay written by my hero, Andrew Davies, and with the captivating and mesmerizing Natasha Little in the title role. Mira Nair and Reese Witherspoon did their level best, but no contest between these two versions.

Natasha Little as Becky Sharp and Frances Grey as Amelia Sedley in Vanity Fair

Natasha Little does a fantastic job of playing the woman that other women love to hate, Becky Sharp. She is gorgeous, charming, cunning and ruthlessly manipulative, which is what she needs to be to climb that difficult social ladder in 19th century London. Frances Grey is also great as the unbelievably sweet and incredibly doting Amelia. They are both exactly as they should be.

Nathaniel Parker as Rawdon Crawley in Vanity Fair

Nathaniel Parker is spot on as Becky's husband the empty headed Calvary Officer Rawdon Crawley but the one you'll really fall for in this version is Philip Glenister as Dobbin.

Philip Glenister as William Dobbin in Vanity Fair

Philip Glenister will steal your heart as the tall, ungainly and supposedly plain William Dobbin, who is loyal to George Osborne and in love with Amelia Sedley until the bitter end. Stupid, stupid Amelia. You'll want to shake her little blond head and then run off with Dobbin yourself!!!!

Vanity Fair 2004 with Reese Witherspoon

The 2004 film version directed by Mira Nair is ambitious to try to cram this wonderful novel into 141 minutes. Well....good try, but not quite. Too much plot to condense and it loses something in the process.  Not surprisingly, Mira Nair gives her version an exotic, Indian twist, which is fair enough considering that the character of Jos Sedley as a successful Nabob in India was likely part of the draw for her.  It is gorgeously filmed and a feast for the eyes, which is probably enough to get me to watch it again if only for the costumes and locations.

James Purefoy as Rawdon Crawley and Reese Witherspoon as Becky Sharp in Vanity Fair

I will say that James Purefoy is quite sufficiently yummy as Captain Crawley.  Mmmm, mmmm, good. Unfortunately Reese Witherspoon is a bit too likeable to really pull of the anti-heroine Becky Sharp. She is quite beautiful enough and nails the alluring, intelligent, talented part of her personality. She just doesn't make me buy the amoral, manipulative, insincere part which is really the entire point of the story.

Romola Garai as Amelia  Sedley and Rhys Ifans as William Dobbin in Vanity Fair

Romola Garai who I usually love, does her best here but has to work fast to develop her character. And although he may have done a good job here, to me Rhys Ifans will forever be the goofy roommate Spike from Notting Hill running around in his underwear.

Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Rhys Ifans and James Purefoy in Vanity Fair

I didn't really like Jonathan Rhys Meyers portrayal of the selfish, vain George Sedley, although maybe he played it so well that I just hated the character. Or maybe I just hated the fact that he had too much 20th century hair gel going on????

In any case, if you haven't seen the 1998 BBC miniseries then you are in for a treat. And if you, like me, bought the Reese Witherspoon version, watch it again for the visual feast. And if you are tempted to read the novel, I believe it is one of the best novels I have ever read, even if it doesn't end as happily as one might like.

By the way, thanks to Charleybrown from Enchanted Serenity of Period Films for her wonderful lists of Georgian, Regency, Victorian and Edwardian films which have reminded me of many I want to see again, and many I have yet to see.

P.S. The music score of the 1998 Natasha Little version IS a travesty. Please try to ignore it and enjoy the acting. It's really in need of re-scoring but I'm sure it would be too expensive.