Becoming Jane

Pros: A must-see for Austenites and a good (but not great) costume drama for general viewers
Cons: The script's density of characters and ideas result in a single viewing being insufficient

Tonight, I went out on a double-date by myself. I scooted over to Androscoggin County here in Maine for a solo dinner at my favorite Thai restaurant and then met up with my date, Jane Austen, at a movie theater in Auburn. Then, I sat through the film ...

Pros: Plot, writing, acting, costumes
Cons: I missed the first five or ten minutes.

"Becoming Jane" is totally fictitious, but perfectly believable. It takes one of the English language's best authors as a young woman and spins a love story for the ages about her. The three elder boys having departed to seek their fortunes, only ...

Pros: acting, good story
Cons: not the real story.

I am a fan of Jane Austen's work, it is sad that she wrote only six. This movie of her life mirrors her novel Pride and Prejudice in the way that Shakespeare in Love mirrored Romeo and Juliet while both are based on information that ...

Pros: If you love Jane Austen, you want to see anything connected with her.
Cons: Austen fans may resent the freedom that is taken in inventing events.

As a confirmed Jane Austen fan, I waited anxiously for this film to arrive in my city. It was only available at the downtown movie house that shows art films and foreign films. Though it was a disappointment overall, I would not have wanted to miss it. ...