Book #27 – Jane Eyre (the movie)

After finishing Jane Eyre in August (wow, was it really that long ago?), I knew I wanted to watch at least one film adaptation of it. Of course, there have been so many different ones made I wasn’t sure where to start. I finally settled on the 1983 BBC miniseries because a) I heard it was one of the better ones and b) it was the only version my local library had.

So, almost a month ago, I settled down one evening and watched the first half of this 4 hour miniseries. My first thought was “This sure isn’t one of those polished Hollywood films.” And my second thought: “This is so good!”

Zelah Clarke was fantastic as the tiny, strong willed, passionate Jane Eyre. I thought Timothy Dalton was a little too good looking and not snarly enough as Mr. Rochester, although definitely moody. However, the two of them together, during their brief moments of happiness, were so wonderful they made me all tingly and smiley. I would watch this again just because of the chemistry between those two.

Another great casting choice was Andrew Bicknell as St. John. He played St. John’s pompousness perfectly, and from now on I will picture Bicknell whenever I re-read Jane Eyre.

Even being four hours long, some aspects of the book had to be cut short, but it still felt like the story flowed well. I liked that quite a bit of the beginning was devoted to Jane’s childhood, since those experiences not only formed her, but also showed the consistency of her character as she grew up. I did, however, think that her time post-Thornfield was too short. You didn’t get to see as much of her suffering and how determined she was to move on with her life.

Overall, it was a very enjoyable adaptation. Enough that I wanted to start reading to book again as soon as the tape ended.

Are there any other adaptations you would recommend? I don’t think I’m going to stop with this one after all :)