Classy and Well Acted

More Jane Eyre 2011 reviews:
On the Box:

Performances are excellent across the board and appropriately mirror the stark surroundings. Mia Wasikowska is superb as Jane: her pursed lips and severe attitude belie a woman barely containing the frustration, anger and disdain for her claustrophobic social standing, a stifling world in which the highest a woman could only ever aspire to was subordination. (...)
The pace is impressively brisk (even if the running time still clocks in at two hours) but the abridgement does rob It of the emotional punch that its climactic scenes should have. Nevertheless, this adaptation is a classy and well acted piece and well worth every rain-lashed thunderstorm. (Jez Sands)

Neil Young's Film Lounge /Tribune Magazine:

The screenplay’s flashback-based, time-hopping structure is, however, unneccesarily complicated and confusing in its (inevitable) condensation of Brontë’s original text, resulting in a film which is much more effective and memorable in terms of its elemental, often spooky atmospherics than it is in terms of characterisation and story-development. And for all its hand-held immediacy, Jane Eyre can’t quite elevate itself above the general, seemingly endless run of British period dramas – we may perhaps have to wait for Andrea Arnold’s upcoming, reportedly uncompromisingly stark Wuthering Heights for a truly 21st century re-imagining of a seminal Brontë Sisters text.

Coventry Telegraph:

Fukunaga chooses Mia Wasikowska as the much abused heroine and is rewarded with a deeply moving and emotionally wrought performance.

With a single mournful look into the camera, the fast-rising Australian actress conveys all of the unspoken desires and shattered dreams of a young woman, who has survived as much by her wits as by good fortune.

What Culture!:

Fukunaga gets the best from his actors and they emit Brontë’s words with such sophistication, it’s a delicious script written by Tamara Drewe scribe Moira Buffini who takes full advantage of the poetic dialogue. But for all its beauty the film does seem to be lacking, for a perfectly directed film and an admirably written script it does feel slightly hollow.
In all honesty this genre of film doesn’t appeal to me and I believe that fans of period dramas and those classic romance tales will lap this up (and they should do, it’s perfect viewing for that audience), I on the other hand felt like the movie could have done with a more refined, Gothic atmosphere and more drama to keep me engrossed for the long running time. Fukunaga has demonstrated incredible skill in filmmaking and has established a worthy romance from its leads yet the film unfortunately yearns more of that gritty passion, that which the Jane Eyre character has represented for centuries. (Adam Lock)

PsychCentral particularly looks into Bertha's character both in film and novel:

In Rochester’s view, in Brontë’s view, Bertha is “just plain bad” and there’s nothing more to be said about her. Though Fukunaga’s adaptation faithfully portrays this archaic point of view, one scene in the film nonetheless contains the seeds of a more modern understanding. After Bertha’s brother interrupts the wedding and Rochester escorts them all to the attic to meet his wife, Bertha at first responds to her husband with deep affection. Then, when she sees Jane, she becomes enraged and violently assaults him. One can imagine that she shifts from love to hatred in a moment, unable to bear the feelings of jealousy that come up at the sight of Jane. We could view it as an example of the extreme splitting characteristic of psychotic disorders, and the inability to bear emotion that results from an extremely impoverished emotional background. From a modern perspective, we might speculate that the failure of her mother to contain and make sense of her earliest emotional experience means that Bertha never developed the ability to hold on to and understand her own feelings; instead she’s overwhelmed and swept away by each of her passions as it arises. (Joseph Burgo)

Collider:

Mia Wasikowska delivers a wonderful, nuanced performance in the title role, filled with subtlety, restraint and multi-layered emotions. She is ably supported by the rest of the cast, as director Fukunaga manages to craft an enthralling picture that cuts against the grain of what one has come to expect from period dramas—all the more compressive considering the familiarity of the story as both a book and countless other productions. To be fair, structure is somewhat odd, initially consisting of an extended intercut of Jane’s young life with her runaway sequence before switching to a straightforward chronological narrative when she first comes to Thornfield Hall. What I found puzzling was not the intercut, which worked from a character development standpoint, but the switch away from it—almost like two distinct films style-wise.
Special note should be made of Dario Marianelli’s beautiful score and especially Adriano Goldman’s cinematography. The latter plays heavily in Jane Eyre not feeling or looking like your typical period film. The photography is cold, harsh and unsentimental, and much of it is handheld. The indoor shots are lit mostly with practicals; the outdoor shots often have an epic sensibility; and the romantic close-ups have the intimacy and motion of flirtatious home video.

Cinema Blend:

Rather than focus on cheap thrills, Fukunaga uses the mystery of Rochester’s house and reluctance to pursue Jane fully as a way to bring some chills to the romance. There does seem to be something sinister and at times other-worldly that ratchets up the tension while Jane and Rochester have their own tension.
It’s not like this will turn those who don’t think much of period romances. I’m really one of those; it’s just not a genre that warms my heart. But anyone can appreciate a good story, great acting, a spooky atmosphere, and attention to detail that draws you into a different world. While there are scores of these adaptations, it’s not like you can’t make another good one, and Cary Fukunaga has made one that is pretty good.  (Ed Perkins)

Brontë Parsonage Blog:

Viewers who have read the book might be a little disorientated at the beginning, because the film begins with Jane’s distraught flight from Thornfield and her progress across bleak moorland until she finds refuge with St John Rivers and his sisters. The flashbacks follow – and there is plenty of space given to Lowood. It was clever to adopt the non-linear approach because it allows interest to be maintained right up until the end, enhances the suspense, puts St John in a significant position and “allows all the scenes to be peppered over the movie to keep them watching” in Fukunaga’s words. The director was worried about Charlotte’s final chapter, which he thought was “the weakest”. The ending he provides is appropriately brief and cameo-like, Rochester and Jane under a tree at Ferndean. All of which could be compared favourably with the previous BBC version of 2006, the very watchable television series with Ruth Wilson and Toby Stevens. (...)
Mia Wasikowska was an inspired choice for Jane, and Fukunaga was lucky to find the young Australian, because she catches the character’s sense of independence, quick wit, restraint and passionate intensity better than most of her predecessors. Plain she is not – at times she looks as if she has stepped out of a painting by Millais. She conveys Jane’s capacity for mental fight and her gradually emerging love with great skill, and the crisp exchanges with Rochester, intelligently selected from the original by Moira Buffini, are a delight. Her Yorkshire accent is well...nearly right, but this should not be noticed by many from outside the area. Michael Fassbender’s Rochester has just the right squire-like air about him, and does not reveal much sensitivity until he unlatches himself later – all very satisfying and... faithful. In fact, he is strikingly curt and unpleasant at first, taunting the new governess about tales of woe, when he still sees her as one of a species. The story of how his coarseness is refined by the girl from the class beneath him is beautifully told, and many hearts will race at their final togetherness. Jamie Bell’s dogmatic St John is also convincing, and Jane must have been simply polite to have told him she wanted him as a brother rather than as a husband, because this one is only a few steps away from Brocklehurst in his enthusiastic religiosity, a kind of non-violent cousin. (Richard Wilcocks)

John Wilson and Kathryn Hughes ("this is really, really good!") reviews the movie on BBC Radio 4's The Front Row. More reviews: You've been sued!, Latest7,

The Huffington Post interviews Mia Wasikowska:

“It was interesting, not at all glamorous, and definitely helped us discover the mood and ambience of the period. I can’t claim to have experienced the deprivations of Jane, but we definitely had a little taste.”
This lack of colour and bling extended to Wasikowska’s own treatment. In the film, it looks like the title character is not wearing a speck of makeup, but this can’t be right for the self-respecting female lead of a Hollywood period romp. And what of all those references to “plain Jane” – that can’t be good for a young actress’s ego, surely?
“Not a makeup brush in sight,” Wasikowska confirms. “Maybe a bit of powder under the lights occasionally, but that was it, I swear. Cross fingers, I’ll get do something a bit more glamorous soon.” (Caroline Frost)

Sky Movies gives away an exclusive Jane Eyre writing set (just UK residents) and iVillage presents the film.

The Yorkshire Post interviews Cary Fukunaga:

“I had a really long conversation with my location manager, Giles Eddlestone, about the landscape. From the beginning, I said ‘It’s Yorkshire’ and he said ‘No, it’s Derbyshire’,” he reveals with no sense of embarrassment.
“That was the first thing we talked about. What inspired the story were places in Derbyshire, and the landscape is very similar. Even the place where she ends up in the last third of the book, with the Rivers family, is said to be within a 20-mile radius of ‘S-----’, which people think is Sheffield. So that’s right there on the border between Yorkshire and Derbyshire and easily could be right on the border or deeper into Yorkshire.
“My understanding of it was that Thornfield could easily be in Derbyshire and her journey later on the moors could be southern Yorkshire. So we shot the whole sequence on the moors near Hathersage, right on the edge of the Peak District, [and] we shot Derbyshire for Derbyshire at Haddon Hall [near Bakewell]. At first I had my reservations and Giles said ‘You wanna shoot different for different’s sake or you wanna get the best location?’ (...)
“I hope that there’s a consistency to my film that’s lacking maybe in some of the other ones. I mean that in the sense of going between the gothic and the period drama. They are two genres that are very hard to mix. It works okay in literature but it’s not as easy to execute in film.
“Taking on any story I’m gonna have butterflies. I was nervous because every step along the way you can fail. I don’t think the movie is a failure. I think it will stand the test of time but it’s up to audiences to decide whether it’s great or not.” (Tony Earnshaw)

The Northampton Chronicle publishes an article about Haddon Hall:

But it is perhaps most closely associated with depictions of Thornfield Hall in Jane Eyre, having been used in the Franco Zeffirelli version as well as subsequent productions of the famous Charlotte Bronte novel.
I can see why the 12th century site has proven such an inspiration to film makers. Nestled not far from the bustling village of Bakewell, Haddon Hall is extraordinarily atmospheric.
On the approach, one crosses a small footbridge over the River Wye (where it is possible to glimpse brown trout) and is met by an awe-inspiring view of a fortified manor house.
In my mind’s eye I could almost see Jane Eyre’s “mad woman in the attic” tortuously scampering around the ramparts.

Impact things that the Treefight for Sunlight cover of Kate Bush's Wuthering Heights is 

a pitch-perfect cover[.] (Charlotte Krol)

The Morton Report reviews The Man Code: A Woman’s Guide to Cracking the Tough Guy by David Good:

In essence, the Man Code, as defined by Good, is a positive thing. It’s a kind of moral code that theoretically molds guys into a quality mix of Sir Lancelot, Steve Jobs, and Heathcliff, meaning that those who adhere to the code are still waters that run ambitious, romantic, and deep. (Emmie Scott)

Female First publishes an article about the most adatped female authors including the Brontës of course; The Squeee and blogletteratura (in Italian) review Jane Eyre, the novel; Jennifer's Loveshack! hated Wuthering Heights; brontëana1 uploads videos of the recent Cambridge Brontë conference: a fragment of Keith Jenkins's lecture: 'Bricolage, Bronte Style: Atypical Typology in Jane Eyre', Welcome by Ms. Sally McDonald, Chairman of the Brontë Society, Tom Winnifrith's opening lecture 'The Religion of Patrick Brontë'.

Categories: Brontë Society, Jane Eyre, Movies-DVD-TV, Music, References