Am I Persuaded?

Last night was the kick off of the new Masterpiece Theatre series "The Complete Jane Austen". From now until April PBS will be showing a film or miniseries for each of the six novels of Miss Austen. If you know me at all, you know that I am SO EXCITED I CAN HARDLY STAND IT!! My love for Jane knows no bounds and I've been looking forward to this. That being said, it goes without saying (but here I am saying it) I sat down last night wanting to love the new version of Persuasion.

The question is, did I love it? No. I liked it very much, and I love me some Rupert Penry-Jones (see exhibit A, below). As Captain Wentworth he's charming and dashing in a quiet and smoldering kind of way. I don't usually love blondes, but he's YUMMMMMMMMY, and I thought he did an admirable (wink wink. . .'cause he's in the NAVY, get it?) job, especially considering the very large boots he has to fill. I will still think of Ciaran Hinds (see exhibit B, below) from the 1995 film as THE Captain Wentworth, much in the way that Colin Firth will always be the Mr. Darcy of my heart, but I did like him.

Exhibit A:


Exhibit B:


Like Ciaran Hinds, Amanda Root who played Anne in the earlier film created an unforgettable and multilayered character. To try to step into that bonnet and corset is nearly impossible. That being said, I think that Sally Hawkins was a believably fragile Anne, barely hanging on emotionally when confronted with the lost love of her life. I understood her pain, and she made me cry along with her when she gazed right into the camera, tears streaming down her face, believing all hope is lost.

Amanda:


Sally:


Here's my problem. . . For some reason, the screenwriter chose to have Anne running like a maniac for many scenes, including the pivotal engagement scene in Bath. After running for what seems to be 20 minutes straight, she finds Captain Wentworth, accepts his proposal, and then KISSES HIM IN FULL VIEW OF EVERYONE ON A VERY BUSY STREET. I know that this seems very reasonable to those of you who don't visit the Republic of Pemberly on a regular basis, but... Jane Austen's heroines don't forget their manners, they don't gallop through the streets of Bath like lunatics, and they most certainly don't make out with men on the street in front of passers-by! I know that this is a Persuasion for modern audiences, but it's also MASTERPIECE THEATRE for heaven's sake. This film wasn't made for general audiences. It doesn't have Keira Knightly in the lead (so there's very little chance my brother will be caught dead watching!). It was made for Masterpiece Theatre watchers: we're purists, we understand the way these things are supposed to work!

Ok, rant over. I don't think I'll care as much if they mess up parts of Northanger Abbey or Mansfield Park, but don't mess with my Persuasion!