Historical Romance UKKate Allan: I've been watching the drama unfold each week, and although I read Jane Eyre as a teenager, the series has made me think about the story in some new ways.
For example I had never liked how Rochester had tricked Jane, from the fortune teller prank to nearly commiting bigamy with her. However, I think I now understand Rochester better as someone weighed down by his past, and too unsure of Jane's love to be able to act in an entirely straightforward manner.
I also understand better the attraction between he and Jane in the way that they both touch each other very deeply. I think it is at least partly because they are essentially very lonely characters that they both understand what is like to have their real natures hidden or suppressed from the world outside. Jane's is hidden because of her circumtances, Rochester's is chained in by his mad first wife.
Miss ReadGallivant: The final episode of the BBC's Jane Eyre was a decidedly mixed bag and rounds off a similarly mixed, though enjoyable series. We have had strong acting performances and lush cinematographic delights but also a determinedly stolid interpretation of Charlotte Bronte's classic novel and at times, a far from dazzling display of directorial imagination from Susanna White, who promised so much with last year's triumphant Bleak House.
Here White clearly felt it necessary to spice up what is generally perceived to be the dullest passage of events in the novel, when Jane is rescued from near-death after wandering desolate and alone on bleak moorland and removed to the safety of the Rivers household, with a fractured, non-linear narrative, utilising multiple flashbacks, which strive to keep Rochester on-screen for as long as possible without destabilising narrative coherence. Unfortunately the Rochester/Jane chemistry failed to sizzle, despite (and perhaps because of) extraordinarily determined efforts to ramp up their sexual connection. (...)
Indeed, Buchan has proved to be one of the stand-out performers of the entire series. St. John's exchanges with Jane make no attempt to 'electrify' and are consequently more natural and realistic in tone, eliciting excellent performances and a heartfelt, friendly repartee from both Buchan and Ruth Wilson (Jane). We have a powerful sense of St. John as a fundamentally good man; a man, who Jane informs him in a forthright manner, 'trembles' when Miss Oliver (who he is in love with) enters the room, while he himself admits that his 'skin may burn with fever' but he is a cold man, controlled by his puritanical zeal to pursue Godly works. (...) (Read more)
Adapted from Charlotte Bronte's novel by Sandy Welch, this was one of the best adaptations of a classic novel I have seen. I love the source material, which helps, but the tone of the piece, the scenes which were kept from the book, the dialogue, the characters, the absolutely wonderful acting and the look of the piece made this incredible. When it finished last night I was in tears, and could have watched it all again.PennyforyourDreams (she promises more soon, the picture on this post belongs to Penny's post)
Ruth Wilson was the perfect Jane, whilst Toby Stephens smouldered nicely as Mr Rochester. He might have been a little too good looking for the part, but I'm not going to complain about that... In fact, I'd make Colin Firth's Mr Darcy budge over on his pedestal and make some room for him. The acting support was equally strong, and I was particularly happy that Pam Ferris played Grace Poole. Such a great actress for such a small but vital role.
Sandy Welch also wrote, among other things, the recent adaptation of North and South - which I was also a big fan of. However, her adaptation of Jane Eyre seemed a cut above North and South - there wasn't a thing I would fault. The alterations made to Jane's history seemed logical, the characters were all nicely rendered, and it came together as a piece so well.
This episode wasn't the finest one, the second was, but it did have the best scene in the entire series: the reconciliation scene, which coincidentally was Toby Stephens best scene, all Ruth could do was react and if you didn't feel a little of his anguish at getting his Jane back, you have a heart of stone.
The ratings according to The Guardian:
The first instalment of the two-parter (Prime Suspect on ITV) was up against the concluding episode of BBC1's Jane Eyre, with the period piece attracting its biggest audience yet - 6.6 million viewers, a 27% share.EDIT: And more...
The sets felt ‘settish’ and the flashy camerawork just got in the way of the story. The creaking doors and other haunted house clichés belong elsewhere and nowhere was suspense or atmosphere built up. All of the important scenes are rushed through and the viewer’s left scratching their head as a result. Take, for instance, the death of Helen Burns, a deeply affecting part of Brontë’s novel; Jane only knows her for one afternoon, according to the BBC! Similarly, this adaptation excises Jane’s begging scenes from the beginning of Episode 4; instead, she’s found unconscious on the moor by her own cousin, who just happens to be passing. Jane’s discovery of her relatives was implausible in the book; here, it’s incredible.
Supporting cast members seem far too young and inexperienced. Familiar faces like Tara Fitzgerald, Pam Ferris and Francesca Annis do their best but their efforts are in vain. Laugh as Jane tries to put out an inferno with a little jug of water and keep an eye out for that zombie in the red room. When the miniseries concentrates on the relationship between Mr. Rochester and Jane, it does pretty well, although I’m sure that pre-marital relations in Victorian society were never this… steamy? I don’t remember that in the book either – I think the pair shared a single kiss compared to the bedroom fumbling in this adaptation. (...)
0 comments:
Post a Comment