Jane Eyre
by Julian Amyes
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Blance Youinou, Carol Gillies, Jean Harvey, Timothy Dalton, Zelah ClarkeDirector: Julian Amyes
Brand: Warner Brothers
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Color, Dolby, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 311 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-04-19
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Model: E2189
Studio: BBC Worldwide
Product features:
- Jane Eyre (Zelah Clarke) is a mistreated orphan who learns to survive by relying on her independence and intelligence. Her first job in the outside world is governess to the ward of Mr. Rochester (Timothy Dalton), a man of many secrets and mercurial moods. The tentative trust between them slowly develops into romance, but their hopes for happiness will soon be jeopardized by a terrible secret .Run
Movie Reviews of Jane Eyre
Movie Review: GUTSY AND ON THE MARK
Summary: 5 Stars
I watched the recent 2006 Masterpiece Theatre adaptation of Jane Eyre, with a nagging certainty, this wasn't the dark, complex tale I remembered from childhood. So I revisited the book, which confirmed my suspicions. Over the next few months people started buzzing about a 1983 adaptation which, among other things, was more faithful to the novel.
I obtained a copy and as promised, it was more faithful to the novel . . . among other things.
- For the pervasive dark tone, only the 1944 adaptation with George Barnes' exquisite black and white photography and lighting captures the mood VISUALLY, at least to me. The necessary rewrites (this one's only 97 min.) are well crafted and tonally consistent. But the story is woefully incomplete and the acting may at times, seem a mite self conscious to the modern ear.
- The 2006 (228 min) is visually lovely, but maybe TOO lovely, even sumptuous in places where understatement or stark ugliness would better serve. And Rochester has been so neutered, he's unrecognizable, if not out-and-out awkward. The rewrites here range from prosaic to shamefully expository. And the Gateshead-Lowood segment is so truncated, her grim childhood context barely registers. To her credit, Ruth Wilson (Jane) makes the most of what she is given...but sorry, no cigar.
One of the most defining elements in Charlotte Brontė's story telling, is her language. Her words not only tell us of feelings and events, but through sharp, deliberate dialog, also keenly shape her characters and by corollary, their relationships. For this, only two adaptations are notable. Both by the BBC, done in '73, and '83.
- 1973 (275 min) The plot and language here is faithful to the novel. But personally, I found the performances, too intellectualized to capture the passion and subtleties in the story. It's also rather wordy. Like the '83, the '73 has comparatively low production values -- video interiors, film exteriors, bad lighting, unimaginative camera work. I realize for some folks, that's the deal breaker. But if it's not, read on, because the similarities end there.
- 1983 The more emotionally charged '83 adaptation (which clocks in at 5 hrs.18 min.), staring Zelah Clarke and Timothy Dalton, not only beats out '73, but in my opinion, trumps all the others by deftly balancing all the story's components the best. Here Jane's bleak childhood is given it's weight. From her marginalized upbringing with her hateful aunt, Mrs. Reed, to her perilous life at Lowood Institution -- where beatings, humiliation, unfounded accusations and a relentless barrage of damning judgment, were administered on the regular. Sean Pattenden as young Jane plays the more feisty, rebellious side of Jane's nature, than the sympathetic one, but she does a fine job. Robert James as the sadistic Mr. Brocklehust is sensational. And this may be the first time, Helen Burns is portrayed as more than just a abused, saintly martyr. This Burns is also distant and alarmingly passive, which casts shadows on her rabid dogmatism. Fully fleshing both these characters, allows the controversial "Evangelism" thread, enough presence, to smoothly carry over to her year at Moorhouse. A thread that's usually obscured at best.
Zelah Clarke as adult Jane is restrained, curious, appropriately guarded and willful. Each time I view her performance I'm struck by how profoundly she listens. And how subtly responsive she is. Watch her look of shock and disgust as Rochester nearly hurls the portfolio of art work at her, then blames her for keeping Adele up too late. Initially some of this might be missed due to the shock of her costar's thunder.
What can I say about Timothy Dalton that hasn't already been said? How about this...
He is the Tony Soprano of Edward Rochesters. Most times you can't tell if he's going to kill her, f*ck her, or shake her hand. Which works spectacularly well. Rochester is after all, about attraction/repulsion. He's the ultimate forbidden fruit. Sure close ups reveal an unfairly handsome man, but that's okay, because Dalton manages to capture Rochester's conflicting nature, with energy to spare... balancing his magnetism, desperation, warmth, wit, playfulness, against his imposing stature, manipulation, sarcasm, brazen sexuality, ethical elasticity, and of course his taste for outrageous debauchery -- like a master juggler. And apologizes for none of it.
And he's sometimes flat out bratty.
When *his* Rochester explains to Mrs Fairfax (Jean Harvey), that Jane bewitched his horse, HE MEANS IT! Which gives Harvey, (who's terrific), a wonderful fall-off-your-chair-in-disbelief moment, when she stammers out, "s-sirrr!?."
Clarke and Dalton are never better than during the first crucial interviews. When Rochester explains to Jane that, "[he's] a trite, commonplace sinner, hackneyed in all the petty dissipations of the rich and worthless."... we don't doubt it. His transitions are flawless. Watch him turn away -- as he conceals from Jane, he's been studying her -- then slip into a trance, fixed on some distant point imperceptible to us, uttering what sounds like nonsense. Lines that might easily land with a thud, move unselfconsciously over the man's tongue. Here Edward also plays the corrective teacher, when he tells her, with certainty, "[repentance] is not the cure..." for what ails him. This is probably the first time Jane's heard anyone say those words and it's a VERY IMPORTANT LINE. Through it all, Clarke 's Jane grapples intensely, turning her enigmatic boss's words over in her head. Opining only when asked, in a balance of poised candor, and soft, deep-seeded concern. And from here this relationship is off to a running start, developing from the point from which Brontė intended. It is also here, we first appreciate the power of the author's language and an artist's ability to translate it.
OTHER NOTABLE SCENES
- About Adele (Jane's Smack-Down) Jane verbally flogs her boss for his abhorrent behavior toward Adele, without breaking a sweat, while exuding moral superiority in the process. You go girl! This is also the first Rochester who actually seems to do something. I mean like work. He even seems good at it. Dalton establishes this in one decisively delivered line at the end.
- After The Fire: Edward holds Jane's hand with an expression of profound warmth and gratitude, while pulling his panicked but entranced employee closer to him. He needs her to stay with him tonight. He cannot justify overpowering her, but he enjoys knowing he can. This scene superbly captures the duality in this character. I think more artful camera work might have helped amplify Jane's POV.
- The Gypsy Scene (Dalton In Drag) He's mostly hilarious and solidly on the mark as he uses Brontė's words to soothe, shock and ultimately manipulate Jane. The scene shifts and Clarke is mesmorizing as she moves from impatience with the feeble fortune teller to near hypnotic fascination by her faint recognition of the words and their oddly insightful messenger.
- After Richard's Departure: The louder he gets, the softer she becomes. Rochester raptures on sardonically, about the virtues of Blanche. In response, Jane softly says "yes sir" three times, hitting the line three different ways. The third time, is in pained resignation and is barely audible. They're both phenomenal here.
- Mrs. Reed's Deathbed: Clarke's spin on Jane's forgiveness of her aunt (Judy Cornwell)is a sharp departure from every other actress I've seen play this scene. Here there is a bite in Eyre's tone. Whatever forgiveness means to *this* Jane, it may not be so generous as to permit forgetting, nor rendering Mrs. Reed free from Eyre's own judgment and disgust. What's important is she's now free of any damage Mrs Reed may have inflicted. To me, this interpretation is closest to the Jane in the novel. And Cornwell is superb, as she hisses out her last words of condemnation at her "tormenter."
- The Proposal: Notable mainly because, Dalton is the only Rochester who really seems to know how to kiss his girl. And his rambling justification about atonement is chilling and exquisite. Otherwise the scene clearly needed reworking and is one of the few instances where you can see the effects of a tight budget and scheduling intrude.
- The Tell-Tale-Torn-Veil: In this explosive scene, Dalton and Clarke lock horns over Grace's continued presence at Thornfield. This helps make the absurd Grace Poole story line a touch more palatable (Carol Gillies as Grace delivers some rare moments).
- Aftermath Of The-Wedding-That-Wasn't: Perhaps the most sensual scene EVER. Jane leaves her room, stumbles, Edward catches her, securing her on his lap, and starts talking softly into her neck in a deep, throaty voice. Jane is palpably exhausted, disheartened, depleted. Sexy and poignant, what more can you ask for.
Unfortunately some of the scene that follows tips into melodrama, even after a good start, (which is rare here). I think this is likely due to time constraints and/or directorial assy-ness. Still there are some great moments to be had. Clarke, who's nearly despondent, fully captures a woman brutally injured, by a mighty blow to the heart.
- Moorhouse: Andrew Bicknell hits a home run as St. John Rivers. He embodies the icy, remote man, whose kind acts are more motivated by securing his box seat in the kingdom of heaven, than his full capacity to feel on earth. "You are ... forgive the word . . . impassioned," he warns Jane, with the hesitancy of telling someone they have a boil on their chin.
- Return To Thornfield: Many great moments here, from his tearful discovery that his wayward faery has returned, to Janes teasing him into a fury.
I could quibble that this or that, might have been tweaked (The occasional scoring is bad and it runs in half hour segments which is annoying. A few scenes needed to be reworked, but only a few). But with 90% plus of remarkable drama, at likely the lowest budget per hour... "quibble" don't amount to a hill of beans. And you know the director Julien Aymes deserves a lot of the credit for that. And Alexander Baron who wrote the dramatization, also did a bang up job.
Summary of Jane Eyre
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