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Mansfield Park - screenplay by Patricia Rozema *****
Now, to this movie, which caused a great stir in Austen circles. If you read the review of Weldon's Letters to Alice, you'll know that Mansfield Park does not feature (in my opinion) one of JA's best female protaganists. Fanny Price is a sad thing, really, insipid and (not to put too fine a point on it) a bit masochistic.
So here comes Patricia Rozema, who decides to write a screenplay of this novel. In the Times Literary Supplement (December 31, 1999) Claudia L. Johnson reviewed this movie and wrote:
Rozema's Mansfield Park is a stunning revisionist reading of Austen’s darkest novel. Adaptations cannot replicate the novel on which they are based, and Rozema’s movie, more of an intervention than an adaptation, departs radically and frequently.I love this, because it's so true. This movie is an intervention -- Rozema has taken Fanny and interjected into her a healthy dose of her creator. By using Jane's own juvenalia and what letters still exist to give us a brighter, clearer Fanny, Rozema delivers something close to a miracle.
Obviously, purists don't like this kind of thing. The Word must not be tampered with. But oh, what a tribute this movie is to Jane herself, and to her characters.
This is a witty, clever, thoughtful, touching piece of work. It's one of my favorite movies.
November 23, 2003 04:31 PM
Comments
I am a teenager, but I enjoy all of Jane Austen's novels. I did not particularly enjoy this book. While in all her other books I found that the women were pleasingly foward in their opinions of women's rights at the time, I found none of the same vitality and ergo, found myself less able to relate to Fanny. However, after seeing the movie, this story is much more attractive to me. I agree that books and movies can never be compared, but it must be said that this movie positioned the viewers to better understand Fanny's mind and heart. This is one of my favourite period movies. Five stars.
Posted by: Bridget at January 28, 2004 07:07 AM