If I want to watch an adaptation I want to revel in the clothes and beautiful manor houses in England, the beauty of the time on display visually in a movie. I do not want to watch a movie set in modern times and in high school (I'm looking at you Clueless). Unless it's doing something more, telling a different story, I don't want my adaptations to be set in modern times. I don't mind the "not quite Austen's" that are set in modern times if they are telling a slightly different story, like Austenland, or The Jane Austen Book Club.
These movies have their own list because I couldn't quite place these in the other list. But here is my ranking of the Not Quite Austen's and retellings.
1. Lost in Austen 2008
My favorite "not quite Austen". In this story, Amanda, an avid fan of Pride and Prejudice ends up inside the Pride and Prejudice story and has to figure out how to not ruin it or her own happy ending. It's cute, it's interesting. It explores the original characters as they deal with life in very new situations. All of them involving a very modern Amanda who does not fit in no matter how hard she tries.
It is not faithful to the book, obviously. I find it delightful. I like that we learn things about Caroline Bingley and George Wickham that feel appropriate and are still fun and new. I like that we learn Mr. Bennet's first name. I like the way she has to come to grips with living in a story and how desperately she tries to keep the story together as it falls apart ever faster.
I like that we briefly see some Pride and Prejudice characters in modern London, but not so much so that it overtakes the story.
I do love Pride and Prejudice enough to really worry about the characters as the story goes painfully sideways. I had moments of real concern and that's what makes this such a lovely story. This story, like Austen's work, has real circumstances and obstacles that pose true challenges for the characters. Like Austen's work those characters who deserve it also end up with happy endings, even if they are nontraditional.
2. Austenland 2013
Simply fun. An obsessive Pride and Prejudice fan goes on an expensive holiday to a Jane Austen immersive experience. She arrives at a magnificent mansion is immediately told she is the least important guest and has the "basic copper package" while everyone else has the platinum elite packages. She is dubbed Miss Erstwhile and things don't seem to be going as planned.
It's charming. There is both romance and silliness. The characters are over the top fans, hired actors to "romance" the guests, and airheads. Yes, it's totally silly, but I think it's just fun. It doesn't take itself too seriously. The movie contains terrible sewing projects, beautifully terrible music and plays, and romance. It is sort of a Pride and Prejudice retelling. It's a feel-good movie. And Kerri Russell and J.J. Field are utterly charming.
This is actually based on a book called Austenland by Shannon Hale. It's a satisfying tribute to Jane Austen and subtly skewers the ridiculous while telling a lovely story. It's not quite like the movie. It's better, and I would highly recommend it.
Also based on a book, this story follows a group of women who form a book club to support each other through the problems of modern life. Together they face death, divorce, relationships, and love with the help of their friendship and the "Jane Austen Book Club". It is a charming story about friends and book lovers that both shows real-life experiences and explores the ways that reading can liberate you, inspire you, and help teach you to grow as a person. A good book can help you through a crisis and bring you back to the world as a more thoughtful individual. Part of this movie's charm is in the real friendships it displays and how they help each other through this book club that, as Grig says is "the all Jane Austen all the time" book club.
It is a story that is mostly about the women and their friendships and relationships. However, I do love the way that the men have a part to play in this story. It's mostly from the women's point of view but we see the men getting influenced and drawn into this book club as the story progresses. I love the way different parts of their lives mirror different parts of Jane Austen's books. This allows us to have a teachable moment at the end where one of the men realizes that all the Austen men get a chance to explain themselves. He is encouraged to try to repair his relationship with a well-written letter.
What makes this story fun is that it's all the Jane Austen stories rolled into one. It has its rough moments, its tears, but it's also a celebration of endurance, humanity, friendship, and literature. It's a better film than Austenland, but it's also slightly more about modern life than actual Austen stories, so it's third for me.
This is a lovely movie about Jane Austen's younger life before she is a known author. It's romantic, moving and beautifully filmed. This movie makes me cry. It more or less broke my heart for Jane. This is a movie that weaves fact and fiction into a realistic and heartbreaking portrayal of Jane Austen's romance with Tom Lefroy. Tom Lefroy is completely charming in this movie. The movie is a moving portrayal of the facts that we know, with a story in between them that is fictional, yes, but could have been real. It really was well done, but it was hard to watch. I'm a softy, I like my movies to end well.
If you're interested in more on this story, a good place to start is with this article from the Jane Austen Society of North America, "Becoming Jane: Sorting Fact from Fiction".
Well, it's Pride and Prejudice. And it's not. And it's good actually. Surprising as that may be.
It is a well-done movie with funny moments and beautiful cinematography. It has zombies so it's also gruesome and strange. But it has a certain appeal.
I won't lie, I wanted to hate it. But I did not hate it. Much to my shock (and possibly my regret? I mean I'm glad I didn't feel my time was a waste but do I feel as though I've betrayed my own taste in liking the movie - if that makes any sense). I really don't like zombie movies. Yet, I liked this movie. It was good.
It is a retelling of Pride and Prejudice with some obvious alterations. I love that it's still set in the Regency era. I don't love zombies, so I was never going to love this movie with my whole heart. However, I found it surprisingly well-done and I do, in fact, mean to watch it again some day. Though perhaps as a Halloween movie.
It seems to also have a second title, called "Becoming Ms. Bennet: Pride & Prejudice". Everywhere it is listed online under this title except for IMDb which has it listed as "Pride and Prejudice, Cut." Go figure. Well, whatever you call it, this was a cute little movie where an American internet star named Kate is cast as Lizzy in a British film production of Pride and Prejudice. It's about acting, getting dialogues right, learning parts, navigating the film production drama and all the while they act lines from Pride and Prejudice, the characters are all experiencing the Pride and Prejudice story off screen as well.
Technically this is an adaptation of Emma, though I personally consider it a "not quite Austen". It's a modern retelling so it's set in Beverly Hills High School. It does poke fun at the "in-crowd" which I appreciate. But I didn't love this movie when I first saw it and I feel like I'm far too old to love it now.
Personally, I don't think it aged well. The writers did an excellent job of setting the dialogue so firmly in the slang of 90's teens that it feels really cringe to me at this point. Admittedly, I have not once ever been cool, so what do I know?
I do actually think it's a better and more consistent story than the Emma with Gwyneth Paltrow from 1996. However, I consider this movie a "not quite Austen" because it's set in modern L.A. in high school. It's my list, and I didn't like it, so I've made it last. I know that this may not align with popular opinion.
Clueless does have its charming moments. I like the father even though he has a rather minor role. He is a busy lawyer, not a hypochondriac in this version, but nobody is perfect. He is still a really cute father in this movie. I appreciate that while he spoils Cher he sits her down to tell her that he doesn't want her dating some boy who can't see her merits. It's a timelessly great message. I also appreciate watching him smile as he sees his step-son falling for Cher. Saying nothing about his protective behavior and then seeing that knowing smile, it's pretty cute.
Perhaps my favorite scene is when Dionne is learning how to drive and accidentally gets on the highway in LA. I laughed hysterically as they all screamed, convinced they were going to die. I'm quite sure that this has nothing to do with my personal feelings about driving in LA. How dare you even suggest it? Ok, it does, but it's still a great scene.
Another thing I appreciate about this film is what it does with the character of Frank Churchill. In this movie, his name is Christian and he's gay. I appreciate this so much more. He has complex realities to deal with, he's not intentionally trying to lead Cher on. Once he realizes that she's a little too into him, he backs off. I appreciate that. I never enjoy watching characters be total jerks, even when they have good reasons for it. I have never been a fan of how Frank Churchill used Emma to hide his engagement to Jane Fairfax (who he is awful to throughout the story until the very end). He doesn't deserve any of the women in my opinion. In this version, Christian just becomes Cher's really good friend, and I prefer it this way.
Maybe I'm just an old soul. I don't think I've ever really enjoyed stories set in high school, with all the antics and drama that come with them. Even though this film is making fun of the high school dynamics, it's still not my favorite thing to watch. Yes, the drama does make a bit more sense when it's with high-schoolers. Emma would have been 21 according to the book, but in some ways, her more juvenile antics make more sense as a 16-year-old character. But watching a very drama-filled high school rendition of Emma sort of made me cringe. Emma is not my favorite story to begin with, and setting it in high school was too much for me. Perhaps I'm just too old. Or maybe I've always been too old.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Pride and Prejudice adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Persuasion Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Emma Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Sense and Sensibility Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Mansfield Park Adaptations, you can go here.
3. Jane Austen Book Club 2007
Also based on a book, this story follows a group of women who form a book club to support each other through the problems of modern life. Together they face death, divorce, relationships, and love with the help of their friendship and the "Jane Austen Book Club". It is a charming story about friends and book lovers that both shows real-life experiences and explores the ways that reading can liberate you, inspire you, and help teach you to grow as a person. A good book can help you through a crisis and bring you back to the world as a more thoughtful individual. Part of this movie's charm is in the real friendships it displays and how they help each other through this book club that, as Grig says is "the all Jane Austen all the time" book club.
It is a story that is mostly about the women and their friendships and relationships. However, I do love the way that the men have a part to play in this story. It's mostly from the women's point of view but we see the men getting influenced and drawn into this book club as the story progresses. I love the way different parts of their lives mirror different parts of Jane Austen's books. This allows us to have a teachable moment at the end where one of the men realizes that all the Austen men get a chance to explain themselves. He is encouraged to try to repair his relationship with a well-written letter.
What makes this story fun is that it's all the Jane Austen stories rolled into one. It has its rough moments, its tears, but it's also a celebration of endurance, humanity, friendship, and literature. It's a better film than Austenland, but it's also slightly more about modern life than actual Austen stories, so it's third for me.
4. Becoming Jane 2007
This is a lovely movie about Jane Austen's younger life before she is a known author. It's romantic, moving and beautifully filmed. This movie makes me cry. It more or less broke my heart for Jane. This is a movie that weaves fact and fiction into a realistic and heartbreaking portrayal of Jane Austen's romance with Tom Lefroy. Tom Lefroy is completely charming in this movie. The movie is a moving portrayal of the facts that we know, with a story in between them that is fictional, yes, but could have been real. It really was well done, but it was hard to watch. I'm a softy, I like my movies to end well.
If you're interested in more on this story, a good place to start is with this article from the Jane Austen Society of North America, "Becoming Jane: Sorting Fact from Fiction".
5. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies 2016
Well, it's Pride and Prejudice. And it's not. And it's good actually. Surprising as that may be.
It is a well-done movie with funny moments and beautiful cinematography. It has zombies so it's also gruesome and strange. But it has a certain appeal.
I won't lie, I wanted to hate it. But I did not hate it. Much to my shock (and possibly my regret? I mean I'm glad I didn't feel my time was a waste but do I feel as though I've betrayed my own taste in liking the movie - if that makes any sense). I really don't like zombie movies. Yet, I liked this movie. It was good.
It is a retelling of Pride and Prejudice with some obvious alterations. I love that it's still set in the Regency era. I don't love zombies, so I was never going to love this movie with my whole heart. However, I found it surprisingly well-done and I do, in fact, mean to watch it again some day. Though perhaps as a Halloween movie.
6. Miss Austen Regrets 2007
This is a movie about Jane Austen's life. As one might suspect from the title this is not a light-hearted movie. The story examines Jane Austen's life as she reaches her later years. Through the eyes of Jane's niece Fanny, we see Jane Austen's choices and regrets in life.
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| Fanny, Jane Austen's niece grounds much of the story |
Olivia Williams is a fantastic Jane Austen, but the portrayal of Jane in this movie is a little sharp and difficult. Since we are seeing Jane mostly through Fanny's story, we jump around a fair amount and it can be a bit difficult to follow who all the players are and what the story is for a few moments. Much is obscure if one is not already familiar with Jane's life. For instance, we know that Jane's sister Cassandra persuades her not to marry Harris Bigg and we know that she had her own reasons for it. You have to know about Cassandra's life to know what's going on because this movie never tells you. So, knowing, as I do that Cassandra's fiance died abroad leaving her heart-broken, the scene where "Cass" tells Jane she had her own reasons for not wanting Jane to marry makes sense. If you don't know the history, you're left to wonder if Cass was jealous, or worried about her own future. It leaves you asking lots of questions.
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| Olivia Williams is such a lovely multi-faceted Jane in this film |
It's a beautifully filmed movie and it is entirely believable. I love that we see beautifully put together scenes of daily life, with Cassandra and Mrs. Austen doing chores along with the servants while Jane reads to them. I love that we see a real difference in the cost of different character's clothes, without it being taken to an excessive degree. The sets, the scenes, the landscapes, they're all just beautiful. I love seeing the adorable scenes where Fanny is falling for Mr. Plumbtree. Chasing each other about in the garden with a crimson ribbon was beautiful, romantic, lavish, and tender.
I'm just not sure that I love this movie. I don't love this particular interpretation of Jane Austen's personality. I like to imagine that Jane Austen was a combination of some of her heroines, the wit and ability of Lizzy, the self-assured confidence of Emma. It's all speculation, of course, so it's hard to draw firm lines. And it may very well be that Jane had many regrets, but it was difficult to watch a deeply regretful, self-pitying, spiky Jane. I don't mind seeing Jane proud of her work and at odds with conventional society. I don't mind her being portrayed as a shameless flirt or a cynic. I do not, however, like to see her being cruel to people not sharp enough to keep up with her wit.
It was definitely a good movie, but I had a hard time watching it. It was difficult for me to have an unvarnished look at hard choices and realities of the time without any comedy or pleasant twists to soften them. Thinking about Jane reviewing her life and trying to pretend she's happy while being lonely is just difficult. Anyone who loves Austen novels feels a little bit like they know and love the real Jane Austen behind them all. And we none of us like to think of our beloved friends suffering (even if we only imagine them to be our friends).
I mean, the movie is titled Miss Austen Regrets. It's good, but it's definitely heavier. And it's fairly realistic which in this case is both intriguing and a bitter pill to swallow. What I don't understand is how the movie is based on what we know of Jane's life through letters and yet Cassandra plays such a minor role. We never read anything from Cassandra written to Jane. Considering that some of Jane's major regrets (at least in this film's telling) are tangled up with Cassandra's fate as well.
It's a beautiful film but it's so sad. It's hard to believe that I ranked it below Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. I'm not sure I believe it myself. But the leaps in the story, and the fact that this isn't how I'd like to imagine Jane Austen make this not as fun for me. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies was definitely fun. I can't believe it either. But I'll end with some more pretty photos from this beautiful film.
7. Pride and Prejudice, Cut 2019
The parallel Pride and Prejudice storylines were very cute and done in a naturalistic and believable way. Our Darcy is an accomplished and classically trained British actor who at first looks down on our Lizzy who is just an internet personality. He comes to admire her and her work ethic as we watch Wickham being a self-obsessed actor who meddles with too many people, including the woman holding the purse-strings on this venture. And of course, our Jane and Bingley and our Darcy and Elizabeth both end up together as couples in the end, as they should.
It's definitely more fun than Miss Austen Regrets, but it's not as well filmed. Miss Austen Regrets is a far superior production of a sad story. This is a cute little feel good movie, which I enjoyed more, but is definitely not on the same level. The costumes are mostly modern since the majority of this little movie is done pre filming of their little movie and they rehearse in modern clothes. The few Regency clothes we do see are really barely passable at all. Nothing is glaringly wrong with it, it's just not as high a production value. It's a little fluff piece, but it's worth a watch if you want something light and fluffy with a happy familiar ending.
8. Clueless 1995
Personally, I don't think it aged well. The writers did an excellent job of setting the dialogue so firmly in the slang of 90's teens that it feels really cringe to me at this point. Admittedly, I have not once ever been cool, so what do I know?
I do actually think it's a better and more consistent story than the Emma with Gwyneth Paltrow from 1996. However, I consider this movie a "not quite Austen" because it's set in modern L.A. in high school. It's my list, and I didn't like it, so I've made it last. I know that this may not align with popular opinion.
Clueless does have its charming moments. I like the father even though he has a rather minor role. He is a busy lawyer, not a hypochondriac in this version, but nobody is perfect. He is still a really cute father in this movie. I appreciate that while he spoils Cher he sits her down to tell her that he doesn't want her dating some boy who can't see her merits. It's a timelessly great message. I also appreciate watching him smile as he sees his step-son falling for Cher. Saying nothing about his protective behavior and then seeing that knowing smile, it's pretty cute.
Perhaps my favorite scene is when Dionne is learning how to drive and accidentally gets on the highway in LA. I laughed hysterically as they all screamed, convinced they were going to die. I'm quite sure that this has nothing to do with my personal feelings about driving in LA. How dare you even suggest it? Ok, it does, but it's still a great scene.
Another thing I appreciate about this film is what it does with the character of Frank Churchill. In this movie, his name is Christian and he's gay. I appreciate this so much more. He has complex realities to deal with, he's not intentionally trying to lead Cher on. Once he realizes that she's a little too into him, he backs off. I appreciate that. I never enjoy watching characters be total jerks, even when they have good reasons for it. I have never been a fan of how Frank Churchill used Emma to hide his engagement to Jane Fairfax (who he is awful to throughout the story until the very end). He doesn't deserve any of the women in my opinion. In this version, Christian just becomes Cher's really good friend, and I prefer it this way.
Maybe I'm just an old soul. I don't think I've ever really enjoyed stories set in high school, with all the antics and drama that come with them. Even though this film is making fun of the high school dynamics, it's still not my favorite thing to watch. Yes, the drama does make a bit more sense when it's with high-schoolers. Emma would have been 21 according to the book, but in some ways, her more juvenile antics make more sense as a 16-year-old character. But watching a very drama-filled high school rendition of Emma sort of made me cringe. Emma is not my favorite story to begin with, and setting it in high school was too much for me. Perhaps I'm just too old. Or maybe I've always been too old.
If there are other Jane Austen adjacent movies that are really good, I'd love to hear about them. Is there anything that I simply must watch?
Other Austen Adaptation Rankings To see my ranking of Every Jane Austen Adaptation, go here.For my discussion/ranking of all the Pride and Prejudice adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Persuasion Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Emma Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Sense and Sensibility Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Mansfield Park Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion of the Lady Susan Adaptation (Love and Friendship), you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Northanger Abbey Adaptations, you can go here.
For my discussion/ranking of all the Northanger Abbey Adaptations, you can go here.
I have a whole page dedicated to Jane Austen where you can find my rankings of different movie adaptations and essays etc.
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