I haven't seen the film, but I have found the people saying Dakota Johnson has "a face that knows what email is" quite funny

2 жыл бұрын

i think it's the way they styled her bangs for me... i wish they'd kept it more period accurate and let her forehead shine

@CM-pf1xc

2 жыл бұрын

It’s so true!!! 😂

@melnatalks

2 жыл бұрын

It’s the hair and makeup. Side fringe, hair clearly styled with a flat iron and the weird, modern makeup.. The costuming did her dirty

@zeinabfarjoo2345

2 жыл бұрын

i saw someone say "Dakota Johnson's face looks like it knows who Elon Musk is" and I haven't heard anything more true

@dovestone_

2 жыл бұрын

That’s so accurate tho 😱

The book: “Now they were as strangers; nay, worse than strangers, for they could never become acquainted. It was a perpetual estrangement,” The Netflix bastardisation: “Now we’re strangers. No, worse than strangers. We’re exes.” Nuff said.

@D1nk13

2 жыл бұрын

That physically hurt…

@nancymcclymont2858

2 жыл бұрын

Actually, it ISN'T enough said. These exes talk throughout the film in ways that completely erase the entire tone of the novel. In the book she doesn't dare admit to being exes, Charlotte certainly never gives her a chance to call dibs, and PINING/longsuffering is the order of the day.

@Carolinagirl1028

2 жыл бұрын

@@nancymcclymont2858 Agreed! The way the characters interacted with each other, especially in the case of Anne and Captain Wentworth, was completely out of context. There was no need for pining, they were opening conversing without any real issue for the majority of the film. Their biggest obstacle to overcome seemed to be as simple as clearing up the misunderstanding that he wasn't engaged to Louisa Musgrove and she wasn't engaged to Mr. Elliot. She seemed entirely able and willing to speak for herself so the reason she had previously turned him down 8 years prior never rang true. Outside of a few throw away mentions his heartbreak over that rejection likewise fell flat. Thus the basis for the novel of their second chance romance wasn't there. Modernizing an Austen novel is one thing but this film missed the entire crux of the novel and it's characters.

@_MsKiwi_

2 жыл бұрын

Wasn't it, "we're worse than stranges, now we're friends"

@randomlyswatching9481

2 жыл бұрын

You forgot that he's a ten dialogue 😂

“Just a bunch of people going to each other’s houses” is just another way of saying what the playwright W. Somerset Maugham wrote years ago about Austen: “Nothing very much happens in her books, and yet, when you come to the bottom of a page, you eagerly turn it to learn what will happen next. Nothing very much does and again you eagerly turn the page. The novelist who has the power to achieve this has the most precious gift a novelist can possess.”

@ArnicaMachado

Жыл бұрын

That is so true. Her books can get a bit tedious, but I still find myself turning the pages 😂

To me, the entire problem with this movie came down to *tone.* Emma 2020 worked because Emma IS a comedy. P&P 2005 is beloved by so many because it's the ultimate romance, and it's all about longing and yearning. There's humor in all Austen novels, but this just felt completely detached from anything resembling the story we know. But my main gripe with the movie is this: you can't make a good adaptation all the while telling your audience you think the original characters suck. Whatever you do to the story, the characters HAVE to feel like themselves, because *that's* how we connect to the story. Jane Austen novels have always been more about characters than plot. If you don't have the characters, you don't have the story. Final complaint, I'm still not over THE SMOKEY EYES.

@nancymcclymont2858

2 жыл бұрын

Unblended smoky eyes, dark to the crease, IN BED! I heartily agree. This is NOT a comedy but Austen's signature wit does leak out here and there. We did not need the stand up comedy version of Anne, thanks. This Wentworth was shlumpy, sweaty, unshaven, & far from the charismatic brave soul Anne is still so taken by in the book. Like you, I was ready to defend this one, but I really wonder what the screenwriters (& director in particular) were thinking. Modernize? Go for it! Be creative? Yes, please! Change the characters down to their souls? No, thanks! Why call it Persuasion? If they were so pleased with themselves for "improving" upon one of the greatest novels in the English language (!) then by all means be inspired by it, do your own thing, and CALL IT SOMETHING ELSE. They did not invent breaking the fourth wall in an Austen film or even in a Persuasion adaptation... they just didn't bother to honor the central characters and what made them unique- AT ALL.

@DizzyBusy

Жыл бұрын

The 2005 P&P is also quite funny. It trusted the audience that it didn't need to punctuate every snarky remark with clown music. This Persuasion doesn't have the same belief in its audience.

@AW-uv3cb

3 ай бұрын

@@DizzyBusy "What an excellent room and what excellent boiled potatoes" always has me chuckle out loud. Every acting choice made by Tom Hollander in his delivery and physicality was comedic genius, even though he took Mr Collins in a much more sympathetic and less smarmy direction that is canonic (but then I may be biased, I think Tom Hollander steals every movie that he's in)

Um, the point about Anne isn't that she is supposed to be shy in the novel. She is just very self contained. All her thoughts contradicting anything the people around her do are internalised. She isn't outspoken. She most certainly isn't sarcastic vocally towards those around her. She also goes out of her way to be kind to everyone around her. She isn't a Lizzy Bennet or a Marianne Dashwood or an Emma Woodhouse. She is far closer to characters like Eleanor Dashwood and Fanny Price. Her strength is in her consistency. Which is why the fact that she was persuaded initially to reject Wentworth hurt him so much. I hated that they tried to turn Anne into another period piece Manic Pixie Dream girl. Not all heroines need to be outspoken. And "strength" doesn't need to look the same everytime. They did both Anne Elliot and Dakota Johnson dirty. I think she is an amazing actress who should just stay clear of doing popular book adaptations from now on 😂

Its a missed opportunity, they've made a shallow film trying to ride the Bridgerton train. Persuasion is unique because Anne is 27, a 'spinster' in Austen's times, and gets just as romantic an ending as Emma woodhouse and Lizzy Bennett. She's quiet but strong, supports everyone around her... the film was pretty and had nice music but there's just no depth. Where is the Anne we deserved.

@tristantries9211

2 жыл бұрын

So in Jane Eyre the girl that was gunning for the main guy that wasn't Jane was 27 and everyone in the books kept on about how hot she was and how she could have the pick of the litter being such a catch. I'm honestly just confused I know it's Charlotte Bronte and not Jane Austen but isn't that the same time period ?

She had more chemistry with her cousin than Wentworth.

@bethanygreenwood8259

2 жыл бұрын

I thought for a long time they might fully rewrite it 😅

@mollyp7559

2 жыл бұрын

Who wouldn’t have chemistry with Henry Golding though? 😻

@TheLittleLottiee

2 жыл бұрын

Right? Like how could you expect me not to root for Henry Golding?

@c.p.1014

2 жыл бұрын

She had more chemistry with her rabbit too

@katherinealvarez9216

2 жыл бұрын

She had chemistry with her sister in laws

"I think Austen knew how to laugh at herself, she had a good sense of humor" I mean I agree, I do. Being too precious about Austen is definitely not what Austen herself would want. Still, I feel kind of weird turning Persuasion into a comedy considering it was written on Austen's deathbed. It was bitter, regretful, reflective for a reason. Not to mention, the creators of this are apparently planning to tackle Sense & Sensibility and Pride & Prejudice next. I'd like to think some of the criticism could maybe help them tackle those next projects with a little more forethought? Maybe?

@gabriellamorrison7567

2 жыл бұрын

oh god nooooo 😭😭😭

@lainey6234

2 жыл бұрын

personally, i don’t think we need another pride and prejudice. like, what could they possibly think they could improve upon?

@liv97497

2 жыл бұрын

Remaking P&P would be such a dumb move, though. Every Austen fan I've ever met either loves the 1995 or the 2005 version. I've never met anyone who thinks neither one is a good enough adaptation. Either do a Bridget Jones and do something entirely different, or don't touch it at all..

@beanbagbooks

2 жыл бұрын

​@@liv97497 let me be your first who doesn't love either the 1995 or the 2005, haha. I think both have their merits, but I truly like The Lizzie Bennet Diaries better than either. My perfect P&P adaptation would be one a bit more like the Ang Lee S&S from 1995, which I adore, but I strongly believe the makers of this movie would completely mess it up.

@barbarafrings9231

2 жыл бұрын

@@liv97497 Jane Austen fan since I was 17 (now 57). Been to Bath, Chawton, and Winchester, where she is buried in the cathedral. I liked both the 1995 and 2005 versions of Pride and Prejudice, but also really enjoyed the mini series from 1980. This Mr.Darcy is the most nearest to how I imagined him.

My biggest problem with this film was the extra conversations that Anne and Wentworth had at Uppercross and Lyme. For me, the entire plot hinges on their "perpetual estrangement" - the difficulty that they both have in speaking to each other and their complex emotions about each other. It is utterly absurd to me that Wentworth would ask Anne to be friends, at any point in the story, but especially where he's at emotionally during the trip to Lyme. He's still mad at her! He's trying to pretend to himself that she isn't the one that got away! That chat on the beach had me yelling at my screen. There are absolutely challenges to bringing this story to the screen, mostly because of how internal it is and how much the original relies on the narrative voice. But in terms of plot and pacing, I feel like Austen kind of served it up on a platter! Compared to Mansfield Park, for example, which is pretty meandering, the original plot of Persuasion is very tight and well constructed. You don't really need to add anything, and it's not so complex that you need to cut extraneous details or events. But the script took so many liberties with the plot and pacing that serve no narrative function.

@jenniferdewoody644

2 жыл бұрын

You hit it right on for me. This and then Mr. Elliot’s exposition scene where he basically lays out his entire plan to Anne really just blew it for me.

@corinnemcclelland2978

2 жыл бұрын

this!! all the extra conversations took all of the tension out of the romance/their relationship... which made the movie feel quite pointless and made the ending fall flat for me

@mckellcreates1692

2 жыл бұрын

Yes! That beach scene was all wrong in some really important ways! I was so mad they were communicating like that at that point and it made the ending feel so much less euphoric.

@sophieschmaltz4206

2 жыл бұрын

challenges "because of how internal it is" makes me so sad... her talking to the screen a la fleabag would have been a good solution but they fucked up anyway...

@redstar7292

2 жыл бұрын

They wouldn't have been able to speak directly what was on their minds in that era, that is the point of the book. The social mores of the time dictated, a love story that hides in plain site. It hinges on the repressed pain at their long separation, which they can't express, and but is in small gestures, and glances, and messages to each other via conversations with other people, but it's what makes the ending so deeply felt. The only way Wentworth can speak his mind directly is finally to write a letter. They didn't have to take Austen's novel word for word to capture this.

That last speech frustrated me as well. Like, the point of Wentworth and Louisa was that at first he admires her uncompromising attitude, and the firmness of her values, because he was still bitter that Anne was persuaded to give him up, but after the accident, he learns to appreciate Anne's mind more. The whole point is that sometimes is ok to change your mind and they ended with a whole paragraph about "don't let anybody say who you can love"! Like, excuse me? Did you even read the book?

One of the lines that me going ‘huh’ was Wentworth telling Anne she’d always been so sure of her own opinion. The point of the book is that eight years before she had been persuaded not to marry him, if she was that bloody sure then they would be married. It’s interesting what you say about Anne not being shy, in the 1995 movie, which I love, Anne is fairly quiet throughout yet near the end there’s a bit where she sees Wentworth’s sister and her husband across a room and rushes excitedly over to them. To me it suggested that Anne doesn’t say much until she’s sure of people and their opinion of her (and with her family it makes sense), she knows Wentworth’s sister and the Admiral like her and that they’re generally a nice people, so they get to see more of Anne.

For me, the biggest problem of the film wasn't anything to do with Jane Austen or the book. I just thought it was a mediocre film--I didn't like the dialogue, I thought the pacing was off, it felt like the script writers thought I was a bit stupid, and I thought some of Anne's talking to the camera would have been better shown than told. I've changed my mind about adaptations over the past few years--I think there's a lot more room for interpretation and deviation from source material because a film and a book are two different media with entirely different purposes and abilities when it comes to storytelling. But it must be a good story, above all else. And I don't think this film succeeded in telling a good story.

@throughcolouredglasses9300

2 жыл бұрын

Oooh I like your point about how you changed your mind about adaptations. I feel the same! As a kid and teen I used to believe the book was the only valid story and if movies changed stuff I was instantly unhappy because "that's not how it is in the book, so that's not the Real Story!". But my stance has changed over the last years as I've learned a lot more about movies in general and writing for different mediums specifically. You've put it into words so nicely, it IS a very different medium with very different limitations, abilities and therefore purpose.

@sleepingroses761

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah, the need for "show, not tell" felt pretty obvious to me, too. Breaking the fourth wall worked fairly well in some places, but moreso in the middle of scenes than just long-winded scenes of explainations.

@TheMemoryPolice

2 жыл бұрын

The book is a beautiful story of love and yearning. Its been done perfectly in 1995 and 2007 movie adaptations. The problem with this movie is they butchered Anne Elliot to the point where she is completely unrecognizable.

I don’t think this “Anne” ever looked at Wentworth in a truly loving way. I don’t think this should ever have been described as adapted from Persuasion. It was a modern rom-com dressed in period costumes.

Kinda feel like Anne Elliot was Lizzie Bennet/Emma Woodhouse-ified in this adaption. Bit disappointing since it's nice having a quiet and introverted Austen heroine every now and again.

@TheLittleLottiee

2 жыл бұрын

YES! We love Lizzie and Emma but we don’t need more of them.

@Guguchina

2 жыл бұрын

Yes. This is why it didnt work because Persuasion has a very different vibe to Emma and P&P in general. It missed the mark on what Persuasion means to people who love it (saying this as someone who did not enjoy the book Persuasion as much as Emma or P&P)

The professor at my college who taught my Jane Austen and Adaptation class must be salivating to put this in her syllabus today. I think I saw a lot less redeeming this than you, but I am maybe a snob. Though yes, this is beautifully shot. In my mind, Anne is introspective and incredibly restrained; shy may not be the right word, but I cannot imagine her being as flirtatious or direct as she comes off in this film. It feels like the two characters know there is something still between them and the other still cares for them. This cuts the agony and tension that makes Persuasion...well, Persuasion. A lot of these tactics might work in a version of Emma or Northanger Abbey, which feel...goofier, for lack of a better work. But Persuasion needs to feel forlorn, in my mind, not like a Parks and Rec episode. Also, I have a physical aversion to the "Now we're worse than exes, we're friends" line; I'd think that was bad writing, even if this were a YA rom-com. Feels insultingly dumbed down for us, but also for the character.

@Carolll9

2 жыл бұрын

Yes! Absolutely agree Anne’s character was the most problematic for me. It just doesn’t feel right.

@minj.k

2 жыл бұрын

this!! agreed. they changed her character, which really goes against the entire plot of the story

@ZaydaFleming

2 жыл бұрын

YES! Thank you! The Anne we saw on screen didn’t seem to have any of the restraint I remember from reading the book like 10 years ago. I can see this character treatment working so much better in Northanger Abbey, but for a book that I remember being full of longing and Anne being held back by everyone else’s expectations it came off flippant. And I agree on the “worse than exes” line - too weird.

@jenniferdewoody644

2 жыл бұрын

This wasn’t Anne, this was Emma or Lizzie play acting as Anne.

@CM-pf1xc

2 жыл бұрын

Omygosh yes. I saw it in the trailer and was disgusted. But when I saw whole thing twice in film I practically threw up in my mouth

I agree that the book's Anne Elliot isn't "shy," but she is reserved in the sense that she tries to keep the peace and doesn't feel like she needs to be the center of attention. This Anne's smirks at the audience and snarky comments made her very unlike the character in the novel for those reasons. Also you can tell from the book that she is someone who feels stable and reliable to others, because she thinks before she speaks and can be counted upon to be rational. Her yelling out the window and announcing her past proposal and things like that may seem subtle, but they completely change her character in that way. I think Dakota Johnson could have been an amazing Anne, but the direction the writers and directer wanted her to go with the character was all wrong and she played right into it. Also her hair and makeup were distracting. And yes on lack of chemistry, but great casting in general. The sets and locations and filming were beautiful! But that made it even harder in a way because things looked so right but felt so wrong! It certainly isn't a comfort film for me because of the unnecessary amount of cringy and awkward moments. Jane had a wonderful sense of humor, but I didn't find any of the film's attempts at humor funny or relatable. It was all just uncomfortable and wrong in the ways that really matter.

@kahkah1986

2 жыл бұрын

Yup, she is a proper adult heroine. She has enough experience to know how to not make basic mistakes like a teenager, as most romantic leads usually are teenagers - early 20s.

in defense of clueless, i actually think it's a fairly good modernization of emma. so much of the novel is preserved and translated to the 90s setting, and i think a lot of the discrepancies can be excused because the movie never claims to be an adaptation

@warholcow

2 жыл бұрын

Clueless works! Cult classic for sure.

@luannnelson2825

2 жыл бұрын

Clueless doesn’t need any defense, because it’s wonderful. This pseudo-Persuasion needs to be put out its misery.

I lost my mind when they showed a Jane Austen heroine peeing behind a tree and eavesdropping on the hero… I’m sorry but absolutely not! Lydia Bennet wouldn’t even have been that crass 😳

@pompng

2 жыл бұрын

Same reaction. I gasped in horror.

I read Persuasion for the first time this January and loved it so much I thought “wtf why don’t more people talk about Persuasion?” and when I heard there was a film coming out this very same year I was so excited for it. I think part of my problem was that I went into it *wanting* it to be my new comfort film but I just hated it. 😂 For me, it doesn’t capture any of the feelings or commentary of the book that made it so great. Mary was my favourite part of the film for sure.

@saritshull3909

2 жыл бұрын

Mary was m favourite character by far

@CM-pf1xc

2 жыл бұрын

Yes Mary was the only part of this that was on point

@rixatrix

2 жыл бұрын

If you haven’t seen the version with Amanda Root and Ciaran Hinds, seek it out. It’s my favorite and yet somehow is totally buried in IMDb, even when you go in searching for it.

@saritshull3909

2 жыл бұрын

@@rixatrix it’s on KZread

@etheplant

2 жыл бұрын

oh big same here, i read persuasion for the first time thwis wingter as well and were so exticed for this film. and then i heard the infamous "worse than exes, we're friends" line and I immidiatly realized that it woldn't be for me, so I haen't seen it. Fingers crossed for a Persuasion adaption that does the book justice in the future!

About the language. I'm not a native speaker and my English had been absolutely awful up until I was 14 and decided to do something about it. However, now I read Austen and listen to audio versions of her books and the language is easy to understand, very precise and simply beautiful. The point of my comment is, if a non-native speaker can appreciate and fall in love with Austen, why do such a disservice to the native audience and chance her amazing language this much? Kids read classics in school as far as I'm aware, and those who are interested in costume period dramas are probably perfectly capable to understand the language. And if not - isn't it better to help them expand the horizons? I remember a somewhat recent controversy about a modern Romeo and Juliet adaptation with "updated" language. It was criticized and some british actors said it best: when you have the right director, performers, and tone, even Shakespearean language becomes more understandable for any audience, with all its heavy metaphors and somewhat archaic words, so it's a bit disrespectful to the audience to dumb it down. Which is true, because Shakespeare is far harder for me to grasp in English, but even his language is more accessible in great productions. Anyway, I don't see a reason to change Austen's language this much. It's okay to do it, I just see no reasons to, and they always give ones!

@AW-uv3cb

3 ай бұрын

I'm in the same situation! Austen's language is simply beautiful and part of the reason why I even put so much effort into learning my English is so that I could enjoy my favourite books and movies in the original. If a foreigner who (at the time) didn't even know a single native speaker of English can do it, then there's no excuse for dumbing it down for native speakers. Engaging with different language is HOW we learn it.

My problem was the presentation of Anne Elliot. I think others here have mentioned it, but the screen writers wrote Anne as an Elizabeth or Emma or even a Catherine Morland type character. The father and younger sister in this were brilliant. But Anne is not written in the original like Jane Austen's previous heroines. She's slightly more stoic, is that the correct word to use? I think Elinore Dashwood is a better character comparison to Anne Elliot. And actually, I actually took a lot of issue of this Anne swigging from the wine bottle. I would never say that she was a teetotaler, but I think she would've had a bit more restraint. If anything, and this is not to mock those suffering from this disease, but I think Anne might've tried to have so much control over the little piece of world she did exist in that she might have had an eating disorder, in fact I think in the Amanda Root version it might've hinted at that. The fourth wall isn't an issue, the rolling of eyes and smirking and mean spiritedness is. Was Anna annoyed with her family, oh god of course, but she was never written as mean-spirited. Also......... it's not a Rom-com, the original I mean. This new film is, but the OG Persuasion, was NOT a rom-com, and I'm sad they didn't take the opportunity to show the subtleties of introspection from the original text As for the costumes, why the hell is it in productions like this the side characters are much better dressed, lol, I was like, Anne wouldn't have worn her hair down that often, and the outfit with the beret, 😂😂😂 the first thing that popped into my head was "is this the 1910s or the 1810s???!!!!??" Because nope!, lol

@mckellcreates1692

2 жыл бұрын

Exactly. The smirking, eye rolling, and wine chugging hugely change the entire character, because they are so in opposition to what she'd actually do. And it's frustrating that the writers didn't think Anne's original character was "worthy enough" of portraying. As if there's something wrong with people who are reserved, dependable, and think before they speak. Yes her people pleasing had gone too far when she had been persuaded away from Wentworth, but that's the whole title of the story!

@beanbagbooks

2 жыл бұрын

It's so interesting that you mention the eating disorder bit - I've occasionally thought about how one would adapt Persuasion as a modern-day retelling, and one thing I thought about was representing Anne's thinness and ill health as being in recovery from an ED. I think it could be excellent if done sensitively.

@cazzaj9134

2 жыл бұрын

@@beanbagbooks it would make sense, she would have felt so guilt ridden that she probably didn't eat and wouldn't want to attract another man to her.

I wish they had made this film as a modern set adaptation, it would have been so fun! But wanting to be both Clueless and a period film at the same time just made it so awkward and clunky.

the problems have been discussed exhaustively and can essentially be distilled into a) this isn't persuasion and b) the changes make the plot not function, but another issue is that in a story in which the leads don't interact much, they need to have zinging chemistry from glances alone. not only did they invent conversations that negated the pining, but they had the chemistry of damp cardboard and couldn't carry the interactions off. so the central relationship was twice violated

Wentworth was about as emotive as a wooden plank. It was hard to imagine they'd ever had any kind of relationship whatsoever, giving the viewers no reason to root for either of them

"A little bit of a soggy tea towel" is fabulous and I'm using it forever.

There should be an universal law that a character cannot wink to the camera when breaking the 4th wall. Absolutely despise it.

I am very protective of Jane Austen and her stories. I am a purist, you might say. Yes, I think Jane had a sense of humor and she may laugh or not at some of these adaptations of her books. I think she would like Clueless and she may even love Bridgett Jones Diary. But I don't think she would like changes to her characters to make them the opposite of who they really were. This film did change Anne. This was a bad script written by an eighty year old man who thought that this 20 year old clumsy heroine trope that once was rom com staples, would work for Persuasion. The whole film was cringey. But my first reaction was, I didn't hate it for what it was or wasn't. It wasn't Jane Austen!

I honestly think the writers/directors didn’t even like the original novel, and they said to themselves, “ I know what would be a good idea… Let’s redo the story and make it fun and funny and cute and modern.” The original novel is very much a story of it’s time, about a woman living in circumstances that were so constrained by her family and her social standing and her culture. And despite that, she was able to miraculously beat the odds and find happiness for herself. It’s a sad, bitter sweet and beautiful story. Which cannot be said about the movie.

One thing I would say about the visuals in particular is that for a couple of scenes they basically just ripped off the art direction of the 2020 Emma adaption wholesale. The way it was shot, the colours, the acting direction and even the camera movements were basically the same, and it was pretty blatant considering that Emma was quite an unusual take when it came to the visuals.

@cazzaj9134

2 жыл бұрын

I said outl oud "That's Mr Woodhouse's dress coat ! "

Eh. Never saw women who wanted to be thought of as having breeding swig from a wine bottle. It's a very class based act. My mom grew up dirt poor in West Virginia. Her family was always working class or working poor. We were at a wedding once with them in the mid-90s. Bride had a tattoo on her bicep, wore a sleeveless gown and drank tequila straight from the bottle at the reception. SHE WAS A HOOT! Loved her. But even then older folks in the family knew that this was not how they wanted other people to see their family behave and judge them for it. And these were all people who would be considered poor. I can't imagine that nearly 200 years before them, women swig from wine bottles drunkenly. Not if they had servants who could tell others about their behavior. There's too much to lose and very little way to redeem it. We really do tend to minimalize who little financial and political power women had.

it was anne's dream about tentacles that really did me in

@ItsmeKristieB

2 жыл бұрын

WHAT WAS THAT?!

@rosaliebanner5673

2 жыл бұрын

@@ItsmeKristieB SO STRANGE!!

I think it was literally the worst Austen adaptation to have ever been made. Pacing was garbage. Chemistry, non-existent. I enjoyed Mary (except when she said 21st century buzzwords like self-care), Sir Walter, and even William Elliot had more charisma than was ever needed. I think Dakota Johnson acted the part they wanted her to, but it was a terrible script and tone was so all over the place (and quite frankly offensively inaccurate-I've read the book 3 times and have a lit degree) so there wasn't much for her to work with.

@nikkiknack

2 жыл бұрын

CURTAIN BANGS WHY THO. WHERE THE F ARE THE BONNETS?

@nikkiknack

2 жыл бұрын

10:41 I agree it was rather pretty visually, perhaps the other redeeming quality than Mary

@barbarafrings9231

2 жыл бұрын

@@nikkiknack And the gloves...?

@nikkiknack

2 жыл бұрын

@@barbarafrings9231 Great point, where are the gloves???? Why is it so wrong??

@heeza12oclock39

2 жыл бұрын

Distorting a classic well written novel! If your going to do this name it a different title!!!

So happy you made this video! And so happy you were characteristically Leena and went into it with an open mind! I love Persuasion, it may be my fave Austen as an adult, so I don’t think I’m going to watch this version. But I’m glad to have your analysis :)

When I was watching the movie I couldn't quite put my finger on what was bothering me about Frederick but "wet blanket" somehow feels the more accurate 😆

I came into the film with an open mind (although already slightly disappointed because I love the yearning and unrequited love and tension that Austen brings to her novels, and it was clear that wasn't going to be very present here) but I was ready to have a fun time! However, this can't be a comfort film for me or one that I would ever want to watch again because... the end left me with no warm fuzzies. At all. There was no chemistry for me, and the changes that they made just didn't make much sense to me. And they not only completely changed Anne's character... they also completely changed Captain Wentworth's?? And I just didn't quite understand why, and I don't think it was pulled off well whatever they were trying to do. There were some funny scenes, and I LOVED that Henry Golding was in it... but that's about all I can say for it.

"don't change the whole point of the film!" As an LOTR book fan, we've been living here a while. I have some tea waiting for you, please have some. We have comfy blankets.

Persuasion is my favorite Austen book and the only one I enjoy is the 1995 version with Amanda Root. It is a more mature and somber take than the original story, but it adapts things without fundamentally changing the story! Also the mood of 1995 is very cozy and real and textural and relatable. As you can probably guess this new movie has not changed the fact that it is my one and only.

@judithrussell9162

2 жыл бұрын

I absolutely agree, but I would add melancholy to your list. It was a film without gimmicks and distractions.

@belorama8

2 жыл бұрын

@@judithrussell9162 agreed!

@tris5602

2 жыл бұрын

This is my favorite book as well, and I love the 1995 adaptation. Honestly, that's largely because of Ciaran Hinds as Captain Wentworth.

@belorama8

2 жыл бұрын

@@tris5602 oh my god yes! He's so great. He's not a glamorous male lead like they try to cast for Austen adaptations, but he's good and they have great chemistry.

@raddish4256

2 жыл бұрын

The 95 version is so good. I love the little details. The slightly lived-in messy rooms..the way the story is told through reactions and not dialogue..a glance...a brief touch...so good.

i haven't seen the movie and it's been a while since i read "persuasion" but imo a good adaptation recognizes why people like the original thing even if it goes in a different direction. the "howl's moving castle" movie has an entirely different ending from the book and miyazaki adds a bunch of anti-war plot and character stuff, but people who like the book generally still like the movie and vice versa bc both have the same strange, fun, fairytale vibe and make good use of the premise of sophie's curse. with all the changes described in this video, it seems like the new "persuasion" movie doesn't know what to keep! period-accurate (or near-accurate) costumes, modes of speech, etc. can feel alienating to some people, but they can also be exactly what the history lovers and genre escapism ppl are watching for! plus they cue the viewer on different social expectations of the different setting, and with unintentional historical fiction like austen, the drama of the story often hinges on the social stuff from that particular time and place. so you can't just water it down with sprinkles of modernity here and there, you have to be intentional and mindful of why the story worked originally.

@fuzzycatbutts

2 жыл бұрын

Strong disagree on Howls Moving Castle. Miyazaki did not care about the themes, plot, and characters of the original book. He took the most superficial aspects of the story, watered down all the characters, and jammed in a bunch of his own opinions. Like, I like the movie, but only if I view it as its own thing. It's incredibly shallow compared to the novel, despite hinting at deeper stuff.

@saffodils

2 жыл бұрын

@@fuzzycatbutts Fair enough, they are certainly very different despite sharing a name and part of a premise. I guess my point was that if you are going to pull something like that in the adaptation, it'd better be good!

my copy of bargain bin rom-com came in today!!! I can't believe you did the illustrations!! They look so good!!!! (the poetry is of course also very good)

My issue with this film is the script. It didn't feel like Austen. And the two most egregious point in the film were that they rearranged the letter instead of reading it verbatim and that by the end of the film I didn't hate Mr Elliot or Mrs Clay. They chopped out the two antagonists!

I don't disparage people the want of a fun little rom-com, but if i was going to make a jane austen one, persuasion would probably be last on my list, lol. I think the tone and language they went for would be better suited for emma or northanger abbey. there's a lot of emma adaptations so i know why they probably didn't go for it. Also, Dakota's makeup is what i think truly made her look out of a place in the period, and not just her face in general.

@allyson--

2 жыл бұрын

How was Dakota's makeup different?

@BearlyAwake13

2 жыл бұрын

Also her hair tbh

My beef with this film is that they tried too hard to make it funny when Persuasion is not meant to be funny. I can accept a more light-hearted Emma because the story naturally lends itself to this kind of more playful narrative. However, Persuasion's tone is so different! I cannot reconcile myself to find this movie the least bit enjoyable. I would have preferred it if they'd done a modern version of Persuasion rather than try to pretend this was a Regency Era movie. Overall, did not work and did not convince me :(.

This is my favorite book. Not just my favorite Austen, fully my favorite book ever that I read at least every year. I watched the trailer with horror and have been angry ever since. Have plans with a friend in a couple of weeks to hate-watch together.

@giuf175

2 жыл бұрын

People hate watching netflix films is why they keep making these shitty films..as long as people are takking about it and keep watching they'll put out mediocre/bad material

@mckellcreates1692

2 жыл бұрын

Yes it's a great hate-watch film for those of us in love with the book. It was painful to watch but left me feeling like I could write a dissertation on why I love the original!

I think all of the pandering-to-contemporary-audiences breaking 4th walls and slang and character modifications COULD have worked but with THE RIGHT SOURCE MATERIAL. The part that breaks my heart is that there is a perfect Austen to be modernised in this way - Northanger Abbey. They made one mistake that is the stem and root of all subsequent mistakes, they chose the wrong book to make in this style. Persuasion is all about sombre, self-restraint, hope-denying longing for the one that got away.

Just watched the movie and you make a lot of good points there! But I do disagree with the point about the Fleabag part. Obviousely breaking the forth wall isn't new in Fleabag and linking Persuasion with Fleabag just on basis of that probably is just a CEO thing. HOWEVER in my opinion the creators of Persuasion made a very consious choice to link the Fleabag and Anne Elliot characters. Here's how: 1. Both Anne and Fleabag are depicted as unsuccesful outcasts in their families, not taken seriousely and often taken advantage of and treated badly. 2. Family dynamics are one of the main themes of both films. 3. Both Anne and Fleabag make witty and often judgemental comments about the rest of the family. And in the same way - speaking to the viewer, usually not really confronting anybody. 4. Both have quite bad coping mechanisms which are depicted in such a way that the viewer might quite like their edginess - accessive drinking in Anne and sex addiction and loads of other sfuff in Fleabag. 5. In the commentary they often mix irony or sarcasm with humour. 6. The hamster/rabbit thing. One can question the purpose of this connection or if it makes Persuasion a better film or just superficially trendy one, but for me it's a fact that the reference is there.

@Ostkupa

2 жыл бұрын

I'm betting money that either a writer or the director was watching Fleabag and thought "Wouldn't it be fun to mix this and Jane Austen?" Obviously a bossman signed off at some point, but I really think this was in the pitch. They really thought they did something there.

Having watched the film, I do legitimately think the fourth wall-breaking is aping Fleabag's specific approach to breaking the fourth wall, even as there are obviously lots of other film and television shows that do the same thing - it's stuff like the intonation, and the way she directs her glances to camera. It felt more Fleabag than Idk, "The Emperor's New Groove", to pick the first alternative piece of media that does a lot of fourth wall breaking that I can think of.

I think your movie (and book) commentary videos enabled me to speak about these things with greater detail. I just had a 1,5h phone call with a friend on "Normal people" by Sally Rooney and I could make sense of our very different feelings and mediate between us. It was great (and I think you did your part, so credits to you).

New favorite turn of phrase: “He’s a bit of a soggy tea towel” 😂

I was today years old when I found out Clueless is based on Emma, thank you for this video Leenaaa

It felt like they skipped massive chunks out of the book, the narrative shuffled along so fast there was 0 pacing.

@maissak1039

2 жыл бұрын

Right???? Like where is Mrs. Smith???

@Magund1

2 жыл бұрын

It’s like no one read or appreciated Austin’s writing.

Leena, this review is f**king brilliant. You explained how I felt about it so well! Thank you

Thank you 💖 I feel like I now have my head properly screwed on to watch the latest take on my favourite book 🤩

I'm currently writing my master thesis on the representation of the British past in period dramas, so this was very interesting! Thanks, Leena!

Totally agree with a lot of what you said in that it’s great to have another adaptation that will bring younger audiences into maybe reading the original books, like I’m sure Little Women and the most recent Emma adaptations did. However, my major critique is the character of Anne in this. She may not be shy in the book but she is put upon and invisible to many. She is also one of classic literature’s most sensible female characters, so to have Dakota seeming a bit ditsy and pining out loud and being silly really really frustrated me!!! Anne Elliot is my favourite Austen heroine as I relate to her most and I would never behave like Anne did in this film. I think they wanted to make her more ‘cool’ and a stronger heroine for modern audiences, as that is what is popular (such as Bridget Jones, Fleabag etc.) However, this is even more sad for the actual character of Anne in my opinion, and those women in the world who perhaps associate with her, as it is kind of saying that they aren’t popular and don’t matter (which is what Austen recognised in the first place!) 😠 In the Rupert Penry-Jones adaptation, Anne’s pain is all internalised, but you can still see it through Sally Hawkins when she writes in her diary. She also breaks the fourth wall in that adaptation, so that’s not actually an entirely new “Fleabag ripoff” concept for this novel. Other than Anne’s character, I agree with everything else you said about the visuals being stunning and the music. I even wanted to watch the rest of the credits to finish watching that beautiful pan out to sea and listen to the music. And despite my dislike of the portrayal of Anne, I did feel the emotions at the end and it did make me cry, so I shall likely watch this again in the future. (Also, I must be the only person who thinks that Wentworth was hot in this 😍)

Also, they have written out JA's best disabled character. Mrs. Smith has a proper backstory, agency and choices, she can't walk but she is making the best of her life and she knows exactly what is going on, she is a genuine friend to Anne and is pivotal to the story. If the directors etc. wanted to be inclusive, why get rid of the actual inclusive characters that JA wrote? Why are they frightened of having a JA character in a wheel chair? 2007 does her dirty as well, suddenly she's able to walk, maybe even run in the last scene. This is why 1995 still wins

For anyone in the comments who was disappointed by Persuasion 2020 or is looking for another period piece comfort film I highly recommend Mr. Malcom's List. It's hilarious while still having those sweeping romantic moments and it's cast is outstanding. Zawe Ashton stole the show for me with her performance of the secondary female lead who is vain but loveable. Sope Dirisu also did a wonderful job as Mr. Malcom and I hope to see him in more romantic lead roles in the future. I think this film understood how to do a regency piece that is still clever without being cringe.

Adaptations only work if you respect the source material. Like, if you are going to make Romeo and Juliette, we all know you are going to experiment with the staging and the direction, that you aren't going to show every line of the original play. But should you decide to rewrite the dialogue of the balcony scene? As in, instead of saying, 'wherefore art thou Romeo?' you just had them say 'I really love you! Our families are horrible! Let's go!' It means the same thing, kind of, but you have lost the poetry, and the point of classic literature, which is to broaden our horizons beyond our immediate moment and language. At what point would the audience decide that they had been conned? This happens all the way through Persuasion, like PP, it has the sharpest dialogue, and it is constantly trashed. And Persuasion is very cleverly plotted in conjunction with its dialogue, you can see the more the writers muck about with its cause and effect structure, the more they unravel the whole thing, the final letter scene, which is JA's balcony scene imo is entirely ruined as they have sabotaged all the subtext leading up to it, so it has no real sense of tension or surprise, we know full well what Wentworth really thinks. The scene when Louisa throws herself off the wall and nearly dies is so unemotional, like the writers don't understand how dramatic and important it is to see Wentworth panic and Anne take charge; *that* is the key feminist moment of the book, and it is entirely wasted, and it gets explained by the final letter scene, as Anne explains, women are told they are overly emotional and fickle by men, they are trapped in an overly domestic life that makes their emotions the only thing they have to obsess over; except this doesn't really happen in this adaptation, bc that would be too much hard work. They have sabotaged a lot of the famous lines to mean the exact opposite - Wentworth tells her in his letter 'You don't love me anymore' which again is part of the whole weirdly unsubtle approach to change the poetry of the words, but in this adaptation, he is right, she is a hypocrite. Wentworth actually confesses his love to Anne by the end of the first half, killing any sense of dramatic tension or irony. But then she goes swimming with her clothes on, and that strange giggling sound I heard was the ghost of JA, laughing at such unrealistic cliche heroine-ism unpredictability. She must be loveable, a la the beginning of Northanger Abbey, because she falls over her own feet and spills sauce all over her. She must be mature because she cries in the bath. She is wise, because she looks into the camera. She does nothing to prove herself any of these things, unlike in the book, so she is weirdly unlikeable.

thank you for making this video! I enjoyed it immensely as an Austen superfan

You slayed it, Leena! What an intelligent, articulate, thoughtful and super fun video, I loved it :)

really interesting video (as are all your videos) and I really hope you don't mind me saying this but the front twirly bits framing your face makes you look ethereal.

As someone who holds persuasion and pride and prejudice as their number one from Jane Austen I was really open minded into seeing this adaptation. Especially since persuasion has so many limited adaptations.However after the first 5-7 minutes it was super painful to continue watching through. I don’t mind the fact that it’s a more modern adaptation however they completely destroyed the characterization of Anne Elliot in order to make her more “bubbly and entertaining “to watch. It was giving me Bridget Jones and that’s not who Anne is. For me, I find anne to be a very relatable character in the fact that I feel most of us have had moments where we were persuaded to go against what we felt and have agonized over the decision ever since . It’s a part of what makes the book full of angst, tragedy, great conversations, and an underlying hope that her and captain wentworth get back together. I never felt for Dakota’s interpretation and I found her breaking the fourth wall annoying versus the 2007 version. I also felt that her and Captain wentworth had zero chemistry which is supposed to help carry us through the movie. On a more positive note, I did feel like the casting of everyone else besides the main two characters was really good.

Ahhh, lovely point about the sentiment portion. 💗you for everything , Leena, but especially the 👒 talk.

Thank you for this video Leena! I really like that you differentiate between categories! But still… I was kind of disappointed when I watched this adaption. After waiting so long for a new adaption I was really excited

I had to click away when she says at the dinner party that her sisters man tried to marry her first. Cringe 😬

@nikkiknack

2 жыл бұрын

That was not only painful but deeply out of character. WHY?

@jessicazarate6258

2 жыл бұрын

Omggg I cringe too like nooooo Anne would never say that 👎🏽👎🏽

I havent read the book yet and was very confused by the film. The first half was wonderful and then everything seemed to happen of screen and suddenly she got married. 😅

I feel like they were trying to make something fun like Lost in Austen but just weren't smart enough about it. My attitude was that there's other faithful adaptations so was ready for something new and spicy. But it never quite got there.

In Emma (2020) we got to see regency times through a modern lens which lead to a better understanding for the time while in Persuasion they made the regency times feel like modern times which is obviously terribly inaccurate

While this version of Persuasion may have dashed our period drama dreams, I recently watched Mr. Malcolm’s List, and it was PERFECTION!! If you need a new period drama pick-me-up after Persuasion, please go watch it because you won’t regret it.

Not related but I am so happy you got a microphone!!! Yeye

My expectations were so rock bottom that I was actually pleasantly surprised, I particularly liked the depiction of Louisa and Mary. However I thought this Wentworth was absolutely horrendous. Whether it was the direction or not, I was absolutely baffled by his acting and choices.

@pompng

2 жыл бұрын

Wentworth walked around like a zombie.

I would LOVE to see a Jane Austen adaption told through a reality dating show format. That would be incredible 😂

You are spot on about Dakota Johnson’s casting. She can portray someone who has a lot going on their head. From the trailer I though Mary was quite funny in this jarring anachronistic way. Maybe they should have gone the full absurd route, suspending any attempt to make it realistic, like the Baz Luhrmann Romeo Juliet, or Joe Wright’s Anna Karenina (not exactly the same, but in the sense of the fidelity to the original material and atmosphere)

Thanks Leena that was perfect!

I'm so sad with this adaptation. Persuasion is one of my favourite novels, and, although I love the 1995 and the 2007 adaptations (and have even seen the miniseries), none of them quite feel perfect for me. I've waited so long for a new movie that would maybe take full advantage of the source material, and this one doesn't honour creative approach nor faithfulness to the source material. It's overall disappointing. It's even sadder when I remember the Sarah Snook adaptation was cancelled because of this one.

I don't mind funny period pieces. For example, Gentleman Jack. It's genuinely funny, and it breaks the the 4th wall. Emma also is funny and good. I don't use this word so willingly but it's so CRINGE. I can't describe it any other way. I think it's about balance. Gentleman Jack have amazing accurate clothing and hair and it's also funny. Pride and Prejudice 2005 doesn't have the most accurate clothing but you can feel the Austen vibes and the romance is amazing but in here everything is a mess. It tries to make Anne into Elizabeth Bennet (look at the hair and color palette) but it doesn't work because the fabrics were ugly. The actors have no chemistry and the script is bad so they look like they can't act at all. I could go on but yeah... It just doesn't work. I didn't enjoy it, even if you separate it from the book. It's one of the worst period pieces out there and I've watched A LOT of them. But also can understand why someone could like it, but that's definitively not me.

@siiri8902

2 жыл бұрын

I'm here for the Gentleman Jack appreciation! Watched it recently and absolutely loved it

@gisawslonim9716

2 жыл бұрын

Gentleman Jack is fabulous and what a performance by Suranne Jones!!! A really good film and I was worried about it because it is not my kind of subject matter...but hey, "love is love" and with such an actress leading the way we follow gladly.

Ok, I watched this first and then went and watched the film and then came back with my opinions that no one asked for. 1) It is beautiful and I can see this becoming a comfort watch for a lot of people. Honestly probably me included, I felt like I didn’t have to pay attention most of the time to get the gist of what was happening - I was working on my sewing projects while watching. 2) I felt the script was really talking down to the viewer, a lot of the attempts to modernize the language fell flat and took me out of the moment. And while Anne is talking directly to the audience, I still don’t feel like I understood her motivations, her feelings when being communicated to the audience by her still felt glossed over. And the wink at the very end felt really weird - like you already acknowledged the audience in this scene, why are you interrupting what is a *moment* between the two lovers with a second one? I didn’t mind the 4th wall breaks for the most part but that one was weird to me. I don’t blame the actress for that, I think she played the part as she was told to quite well. 3) Wentworth felt so bland and awkward in this movie, I was having trouble understanding what recommended him so highly to everyone around him because I don’t feel like we actually saw it on screen. Basically, enjoyable but if I am in a Jane Austen mood I am going to stick with 2005 P&P or 2020 Emma if I don’t have time for the 90s P&P. I will probably put it on in the background while I do sewing projects again sometime.

@allyson--

2 жыл бұрын

I love this review!

I didn't find Anne shy in the book, I found her reserved, thoughtful and careful in her conversation, which is different to shy. Anne Elliot in the film is none of those things and therefore, she's not really Anne Elliot.

I thought it was a train wreck. And Richard E. Grant, a usual favorite of mine, played Sir Walter like the villain in a panto.

Thank you maam for this sparkling vivid review, I had a very similar feelings about this movie

Your review style and analysis is awesome.

"jane austen? dead." made me gasp so loud

Off topic - I love your style today! You look amazing !! The regency inspired hair looks very lovely on you and the make up is so fun ! Love it. 😍

Hi Leena I'm so happy to hear you point out the positives in this film, I was so surprised that how much I liked it, I wish I could just reach in and make some changes (how some modernisms are used, have Kathony level pinning and chemistry, and fix the Mr Elliot plot ) I truly think it had more to give. Maybe we need a Persuasion like the 1995 P&P miniseries were its literally the book on screen so versions like this don't get so much hate; I have watched three times there is something about it that's very comforting. My favorite joke was the one with the sexton at the end, very clever.

Totally agree! Thanks for putting into words

holy moly the fleabag guy from the bus thing had me rolling

Watching the movie now in anticipation to this video

"RIP, Thanx for the music, love ya Jane" 🤣🤣🤣

I saw the film a couple days ago, and found some parts a bit slow. So, I used the handy-dandy Netflix feature where you can change the playspeed of whatever you're watching (much like youtube). To me, it became a rather delightfully silly, beautifully shot comfort film when played on 1.25 speed.

the trailer broke my heart. i refuse to call this an adaptation. why. why. why; why.

It was a car crash. They did not even bother to make it a carriage crash.

You have made me realise that “shall we take a turn about the room” is the original “can I pull you for a chat”

I REALLY love the 2006 version!!! It has quite a few stupid things (which this version copied!!! 🤦🏼‍♀️ like the running after wentworth and the WAAAY overdramatized Louisa fall) but really capture the character and feeling of the book-the somber and held back feelings of both Anne and wentworth. (Another great KZreadr talks about the masterful use of indirect discourse in persuasion and it’s so effective in telling this pent up love story, Continuing in this vein, the script/dialogue and changed characters counteracted the feelings of tension that pervades the book! Everyone is made GOOD, no failings or imperfections. Louisa and Henrietta neve fight over wentworth, Louisa and Anne have an OPEN sister over my mister talk, Anne tells everyone she has a history with him!!, Anne and lady Russell have an open heart to heart where she apologizes!!, and the worst of all wentworth TELLS Anne openly his great opinion of her (before his character realizes he’s still in love with her and before he tries to win her!!!!) and that he wants to be friends ???!!? Literally anywhere in the book where there was tension imperfection or confusion, this movie LITTERALLY erases it by having the characters early on in the movies! Have open connotations fully solving any issues there might have been. But the poignancy and beauty of Austen’s books is that things DONT totally work out, people are evil, people don’t apologize or even own up to what they’re doing. The protagonist gets her happy husband but not everything especially in persuasion is solved (ie terrible family, mr Elliot, and lady Russell) I think it was an enjoyable movie, BUT it totally changed the themes and progression and feeling of the LOVE story. And yeah wentworth and Anne had no chemistry! And ironically that’s with WAAY more scenes and conversation together then is even in the book. (I think they wanted Henry Golding as wentworth and honestly that prob would have been better) Yes Mary’s character was honestly the one done the best, their own interpretation, and clever adaption of the book. Really the biggest thing is if they wanted to make a modernized adaption, they should have just done a MODERN REMAKE, in vein of Bridget Jones diary. Then the stupid modern dialog wouldn’t have bee sooo bad. But their changes are still bad bc it doesnt live in and celebrate the clever humor of Austen. Well of course clueless didn’t damage!!! It’s a masterpiece adaption!

@CM-pf1xc

2 жыл бұрын

Oh and fourth wall, they didn’t even use it well to tell the slow feelings and interpretations!! Bc they just put everything out there via dialogue anyway, so fourth wall was pointless

@mckellcreates1692

2 жыл бұрын

Yes, yes, yes! I agree with everything you said.

As a person who neither read the book, nor watched the movie, I find your analysis so fun to watch!! great video, Leena 👏🏻

Amen, love this take Leena

Dakota innocent and for all that's worth the movie is fun! It's not a good adaptation whatsoever and even in a bubble shut world where it's its own being the flaws are still there. But I had fun!

Love that you put this out on the anniversary of Jane Austen's death 💀♥️

I watched the film the other day, and really enjoyed it! I definitely went in knowing it would be a light hearted adaptation or retelling, so I think that’s why I just enjoyed it! And it was sooo pretty 😍 But knowing the poetry of Jane Austen’s writing was skimmed over, I would love to read Persuasion now! And I’ve never read Jane Austen, because I love the Pride & Prejudice film and other adaptations - why would I need to read a difficult classic! I adored Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet- so much that I started to read other Shakespeare, then study drama and now I work in theatre. Films and plays don’t need to be perfect but might be a step that people need to open up a world of art they thought was too tricky for them! 💛

Leena, you are so wonderful.

I feel that Anne is not shy, but she is withdrawn. She's used to being everyone else's sounding board, piano player (for dancing), and not standing out. But she is not shy.

found you because of your Emma video... kind of feels nostalgic.