Oh, ITV, what's the rush?
Apr. 10th, 2007 06:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
owlYesterday we did a great deal of cleaning and tidying—the stairs haven't been so clean in months—and also a slight book cull. We have finally convinced the parents that what we need is not fewer books but another bookcase, and they say we can get an Argos one this week. There is not such thing as too many books, only too few bookshelves.
I also sat down and watched the tapes of the ITV Austen adaptations.
Mansfield Park: First mistake was casting Billie Piper as Fanny. Emma Woodhouse, certainly, Elizabeth Bennett, perhaps, Fanny Price, definitely not. Once you have Billie Piper, playing her as shy and delicate becomes difficult. So instead she ran and skipped and giggled all over the place. When sir Thomas said his line about William finding his sister at 18 too little changed from his sister at 10, I remarked, "Yes, she still hasn't learnt to use a hairbrush." I don't think she had her hair (which mysterious didn't match her eyebrows) tidy or a bonnet on her head throughout. Speaking of costuming, could we ever have an Austen adaptation that knows the difference between and evening and a morning dress, or doesn't have the heroine running and even riding without coat or hat? And the Bertram boys seemed to have a bit of difficulty in getting fully dressed before they left their rooms, too. And what on earth was up with that waltz at the end? Fanny and Edmund waltzing, WHAT?
Mansfield Park is a great long book; squashing it down to less than two hours was never going to be satisfying. I could see why they removed Mr Yeats, and thus Julia's elopement, and the trip to Rushworth's house, but I can't see why Fanny's coming-out ball was changed to a picnic, or why she was left alone at Mansfield instead of being sent back to Portsmouth in disgrace. I know that's it's an irresistible temptation to expand on the book's conclusion and how Edmund noticed the giant anvils dropping all round him, but it did make him look even more gormless than when he was in love with Mary.
The Crawfords were pretty good, though, and Maria, and Lady Bertram before she inexplicably woke up and played matchmaker at the end. And Edmund and Fanny managed to have chemistry while still being believable that he was in love with Mary.
Northanger Abbey: As this is the shortest of the books, it suffered the last from the compression, IMO. Catherine was played by an age-appropriate actress, and was very sweet and convincing. Henry was really quite fanciable, too. The one thing I didn't like was having Isabella sleep with Captain Tilney—she had much to good an eye for the main chance to do that. It made her seem a victim, as well, and Captain Tilney much worse than in the book. I hadn't realised those novels that Catherine was reading were quite so dodgy, either.
Persuasion: This is my favourite of the novels, and I don't think that any adaptation could satisfy me. This one was definitely too short, giving me the impression of a mad rush. For instance, Anne's little nephew has his fall while they are dressing for dinner, and Charles and Mary go off before the surgeon is fairly out of the door. The conclusion was a sort of hybrid of the cancelled and final ending of the book (Jane Austen changed it for a reason, you know), and takes place while all the characters seem to be running all over Bath (hatless, of course) only to end up back where they started. I liked Anne, though—and Captain Spooks was most attractive. I thought they did the explaining the backstory—most necessary in Persuasion—pretty well, too. I can't help wishing, though, that it had been twice the length, the Bath part especially.
I also sat down and watched the tapes of the ITV Austen adaptations.
Mansfield Park: First mistake was casting Billie Piper as Fanny. Emma Woodhouse, certainly, Elizabeth Bennett, perhaps, Fanny Price, definitely not. Once you have Billie Piper, playing her as shy and delicate becomes difficult. So instead she ran and skipped and giggled all over the place. When sir Thomas said his line about William finding his sister at 18 too little changed from his sister at 10, I remarked, "Yes, she still hasn't learnt to use a hairbrush." I don't think she had her hair (which mysterious didn't match her eyebrows) tidy or a bonnet on her head throughout. Speaking of costuming, could we ever have an Austen adaptation that knows the difference between and evening and a morning dress, or doesn't have the heroine running and even riding without coat or hat? And the Bertram boys seemed to have a bit of difficulty in getting fully dressed before they left their rooms, too. And what on earth was up with that waltz at the end? Fanny and Edmund waltzing, WHAT?
Mansfield Park is a great long book; squashing it down to less than two hours was never going to be satisfying. I could see why they removed Mr Yeats, and thus Julia's elopement, and the trip to Rushworth's house, but I can't see why Fanny's coming-out ball was changed to a picnic, or why she was left alone at Mansfield instead of being sent back to Portsmouth in disgrace. I know that's it's an irresistible temptation to expand on the book's conclusion and how Edmund noticed the giant anvils dropping all round him, but it did make him look even more gormless than when he was in love with Mary.
The Crawfords were pretty good, though, and Maria, and Lady Bertram before she inexplicably woke up and played matchmaker at the end. And Edmund and Fanny managed to have chemistry while still being believable that he was in love with Mary.
Northanger Abbey: As this is the shortest of the books, it suffered the last from the compression, IMO. Catherine was played by an age-appropriate actress, and was very sweet and convincing. Henry was really quite fanciable, too. The one thing I didn't like was having Isabella sleep with Captain Tilney—she had much to good an eye for the main chance to do that. It made her seem a victim, as well, and Captain Tilney much worse than in the book. I hadn't realised those novels that Catherine was reading were quite so dodgy, either.
Persuasion: This is my favourite of the novels, and I don't think that any adaptation could satisfy me. This one was definitely too short, giving me the impression of a mad rush. For instance, Anne's little nephew has his fall while they are dressing for dinner, and Charles and Mary go off before the surgeon is fairly out of the door. The conclusion was a sort of hybrid of the cancelled and final ending of the book (Jane Austen changed it for a reason, you know), and takes place while all the characters seem to be running all over Bath (hatless, of course) only to end up back where they started. I liked Anne, though—and Captain Spooks was most attractive. I thought they did the explaining the backstory—most necessary in Persuasion—pretty well, too. I can't help wishing, though, that it had been twice the length, the Bath part especially.
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no subject
Date: 2007-04-10 08:44 pm (UTC)When I read this part, I was about to go on a tirade about how that was a terribly painful thing to do and, really, could one have TOO many books.
Then, you decided you just needed more book shelves and all was right with the world. :)
no subject
Date: 2007-04-11 09:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-11 02:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-11 08:52 pm (UTC)I'm certain Isabella would never have slept with anyone before the ring was on her finger and the money was settled on her.
no subject
Date: 2007-04-11 10:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-11 02:36 pm (UTC)On the other hand, I am willing to forgive almost anything that brings The Monk to the attention of a mass audience :-) Why doesn't Davies adapt that - all the sex, nudity and violence he could wish for.
no subject
Date: 2007-04-11 09:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-21 10:24 pm (UTC)Northanger Abbey was the best of the three, but Persuasion came a close second for me, although that kiss in Bath was kind of painful to watch.