Persuasion

Rating:
Summary: irritatingly sucky
Review: Poorly directed and thoroughly uninteresting. I am at a loss to explain why so many people have rated this film so highly: I personally got nothing out of it.

The plot is convoluted and has many red herrings; the pace slogs in the middle; the main character is frigid and unreadable, and the climactic moment of passion is confusing and predictable.



Rating:
Summary: The Best Jane Austen Film
Review: My husband and I both love watching this film. In fact, he has watched it several times with me, very intently. The tension that is maintained throughout the story is tremendous. Then finally, when they make us think we will still have to wait a bit longer (until evening) for the happy reunion, he is waiting for her near the door when she comes flying out. Finally, we can breathe and bask in their happiness. This is the most amazing feel-good, romantic movie; and it is perfectly cast. I have read the book twice and these characters seemed to just jump from the pages for me. Of course, I also think Persuasion is Jane Austen's best work, so I am a bit partial to this story; but I think the job they did on this movie is so incredible, it deserves to win awards. I will be watching this on rainy days for the next fifty years.

Rating:
Summary: ''Wentworth, he's a nobody''
Review: 'Persuasion' as a novel is flawless and to adapt it onto film, that was undoubtedly going to be a colossal task. The reason for this being that story is about love lost and the fear that it might never be able to be regained, two subjects that are difficult to portray without great acting, scenery and music. Luckily for the viewer, this adaptation of 'Persuasion' has all of that.

It really resonates with you from how it just captures each character perfectly and displays how aggravating the unbearably suffocating social etiquette of Regency England truly was. This might have seemed 'romantic' and 'emotional' in some overly sentimental Hollywood period films but in this adaptation, you see how heartbreaking it is. It is a raw and unflinching portrayal of how Regency England would have been like for the debt-ridden landed gentry yet it is a subtle and almost repressed tale of the choices we make.

The acting is sublime, I cannot applaud it more and other reviewers agree with me so it just can't be dissed! The music was beautiful and I loved the attention to detail that the camera gave - it just shows that the BBC weren't trying to make an adaptation that would make loads of money, they did it to fulfill what Austen wanted us to see.

I can see why some enthusiasts of the novel would feel that better looking people should have played the two main characters because that is Austen describes it in the book but don't be put off! The choice of actors actually works better because it is just about pure emotion, not how fit they are in the book.

Last Thought: This adaptation won't be for everyone but if you just want to appreciate matters of the soul without having image or superficiality in the middle of things, don't be dissuaded - watch 'Persuasion'.

Rating:
Summary: perfect regency drama...
Review: I happened across this movie in, of all places, a bargain bin several years ago. This is one of my all time favorite movies. Ciaran Hinds and Amanda Root give knock out proformances, the supporting cast is just as high caliber, the sets are accurate and visually stimulating and the film, IMO, is on par with A&E's Pride and Prejudice.

I recently began switching my VHS over to DVD. While this DVD has no special features, it was great getting a more accurate cover than the old VHS had (an embarrasing "clutch" shot of two models who aren't ever in the movie!). If you love the Regency period or an "Austenite"-you cannot pass this film up:)

Rating:
Summary: True to the spirit of the book
Review: Out of the recent film adaptations of the Jane Austen's novellas, this one tops them all. It's not to be compared to BBC's Pride and Prejudice as that's not a film. But when compared to Emma Thompson's Sense and Sensibility, Gwenyth Paltrow's Emma and Francis O'Conner in Mansfield Park, this film adaptation of 'Persuasion' is my favourite.
I found it difficult to accept the actress as Anne at first, butshe does grow on you. I found this film exquisite and true to the spirit of the novel. This version delivers in quality above all the rest.



Rating:
Summary: Very good
Review: I do not like Jane Austin books. I read several and was bored out of my mind. Now, having said that I absolutely adore the movies that are based on her books. I guess I just like the stories but not her style of writing. This is a great love story and since I like Ciaran Hinds this was very enjoyable. However, if you don't like long movies and english accents, I advise against it.

Rating:
Summary: Romance at its best!
Review: "Most faithful" doesn't always equal "best" for film adaptations: often you want to see a new angle to the material if you loved the book that formed the basis for the screenplay. Yet Roger Michell's adaptation of "Persuasion" for the BBC is perhaps the most faithful of the many Austen adaptations that followed, and is still simultaneously the best. Like Patricia Rozema in :"Mansfield Park," he brings great intelligence and brings forth certain latent ideas in the text that speak to the era in which he filmed it: he shows the grubbiness of the Regency era, and emphasizes the differences in class relations. But unlike Rozema, Michell has the good sense to trust Austen and allow his heroine to be as quiet and as patient as the author wrote her to be. Amanda Root, with her beautiful undertsanding eyes that speak volumes, is as faithful to Austen's conception of the role as could be imagined. The rest of the cast is terrific: Corin Redgrave enjoyed some well deserved praise later in his career for his snobbish and empty headed Sir Walter Elliot, and Phoebe Nicholls is just as good as his eldest daughter (given to fits of pique against her sister Anne). The compositions are also marvelous, with tremendous innovative use being made of the actual Bath and Lyme Regis locations.

Rating:
Summary: A gem
Review: This movie is not only the best film adaptation of a Jane Austen novel, it's also a wonderful film in its own right. What did I love about it?

1) It isn't stuffy and unnatural. The characters sound human when they speak; you can imagine that this is how people spoke in the 19th century - not like pompous orators, but like real people. The world surrounding the characters isn't overly polished or brightly lit; again, there's a natural, "lived-in" feeling to all the buildings and landscapes; they do not look like they came out of a glossy postcard.

2) The performances. I don't have enough praise for Amanda Root, who plays Anne Elliot, a woman whose marriage prospects are slim to nil, and who has just been thrown into the company of a man whom she rejected years ago. Root can speak volumes just with her eyes, and everything about her fits perfectly with the gentle, wry and intelligent Anne Elliot. As Captain Wentworth, Ciaran Hinds is also great; he disappears into the character. Both actors aren't conventionally beautiful or handsome either; Root in particular blossoms before the viewers eyes - at first she's very faded and quiet, and then we (like Wentworth) see her spirit shine out. In addition to Amanda Root and Ciaran Hinds, the rest of the cast also do a wonderful job. Perhaps because there aren't any big name actors, we can get totally immersed in the film.

3) It's true to Austen. There's subtle humor, real human feeling, and a keen understanding of human nature. It's an unforgettable love story.

4) The kiss. One kiss - perfectly timed, perfectly executed... you will melt.

5) The soundtrack. This holds true particularly for the assembly at Bath, and the Italian vocal pieces.