The Book Club approaches
Lots of press and reviews for The Jane Austen Book Club film adaptation, opening later this month.
As we reported a few days ago, the Dietrich Theater in Tunkhannock, PA, will feature TJABC as one of the selections for its fall Film Festival. The Scranton Times-Tribune* reports that the screening, on September 14, will be the unofficial U.S. premiere of the film.
Cinematical has a thoughtful review of the film that whets our appetite.
Swicord’s past is in screenwriting (Memoirs of a Geisha, Little Women), and her directorial debut isn’t a technical tour-de-force of composition and composition; it’s primarily a light, performance-driven mix of comedy and drama where the dialogue glimmers with light even among the deeper shades in the tone.
And, thankfully, the performances themselves are good. Bello’s strong even when conflicted, and open to possibility even when she’s certain; Brenneman captures the shock and sorrow of an unexpected separation; Grace’s Allegra is all heart, no head in her youthful pursuit of love. Blunt (most memorable from The Devil Wears Prada) is initially laughable, but lets us see behind the façade of Prudie’s manner, and shows us how it’s necessary. And Dancy is fairly charming as Grigg — Jocelyn meets him at a hotel when she’s there for a dog show and he’s there for a Sci-Fi convention, but he dives into Austen with dedication and commitment, if not insight. (Grigg buys all of Austen’s novels in one volume: “In case they were sequels. …”) Baker seems left out, but she’s given some nice one-liners and pulls off a nicely-executed epilogue.
Thanks to Alert Janeite Franka who sent in this review, as featured on another site.
The Onion A.V. Club are still hung up on the “chick movie” thing.
The Jane Austen Book Club (dir: Robin Swicord): In a nutshell: “Let me tell you how this Jane Austen novel relates to the banal goings-on in my own love life.” Repeat six times. Fin.
Stay tuned to AustenBlog for some TJABC swag and fun over the next couple of weeks.
*Ain’t no party like a Scranton party ’cause a Scranton party don’t stop!
September 10th, 2007 at 11:11 pm
Nice to know that Mags is an Office fan too…