Review: Jane Eyre (1943)

As you may or may not know, I have said before that Jane Eyre is not my favorite book. I don't dislike it either. I remembered watching this version a long time ago and remembered that it wasn't very close to the book. I saw that it was on Netflix and I thought I would watch it and review it.

Box Art

Synopsis
Taken from my review of Jane Eyre (1996)
Young Jane Eyre was sent away from her cruel Aunt Reed to go to school at Lowood school. Ten years later, she gets a job as a governess at Thornfield Hall, which holds many secrets.


Characters
A couple of old Hollywood actors are in this movie. Famous actor Orson Wells played the part of Mr. Rochester. Also, in an uncredited role was Elizabeth Taylor as Helen Burns.

The way that they set up this Jane Eyre is that there is a book that is being written by Jane. The problem that I have with this is that it isn't Jane Eyre written by Charlotte Bronte. The famous line "There was no possibility of taking a walk that day" is nonexistent. Instead, it starts off with, "My name is Jane Eyre. I was born in 1820, a harsh time of change in England..." etc., etc. Throughout the movie, the book reappears with more quote that are not from Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. Now, I think that if you're going to do that approach with the book, you should actually have the original book that the original author wrote and not a made-up book of the same story.

Jane and Mr. Rochester's Wedding

Some characters were accurate, but others were not. Because of this, some scenes either had to be cut short or out all together in order to have the story make sense (and to fit the time allotted). One of the major changes was Jane's cousin, St. John Rivers, becomes a doctor that Jane knew since she was at Lowood. I got to say, Dr. Rivers was a lot more likable than the St. John Rivers in the book. Spoiler Because of this change, Jane finds out about her fortune at Gateshead when she is visiting the ill Mrs. Reed (after she left Mr. Rochester after discovering about Bertha). End of Spoiler


Joan Fontaine and Orson Wells were okay as Jane and Mr. Rochester, though I thought Joan Fontaine lacked some emotion. Margaret O'Brien as Adele was a little annoying (she had a weird, high voice). Blanche Ingram was, yet again, blond (but they weren't using the same book, anyways). I guess most of the actors/actresses were okay at best, but I wasn't incredibly impressed with any of the cast (okay, maybe Elizabeth Taylor as Helen, but she had such a small part).

Scenery
Well, since it is a black and white movie, don't expect colorful scenery. The overall scenery was dark, which would go with the tone of Jane Eyre, whose tone is on the darker side.

Costuming

Jane's wedding dress

Since it's in black and white, we really don't get to see how the film-makers used color. The costumes looked like they were out of the 1840s, leading me to assume that Jane was an adult in the 1840s. The film states that she was born in 1820, and in the book she was supposed to be 18 when she starts work at Thornfield, which would make the year about 1838... Still off by two years, but not horribly off... Unless they made Jane a couple of years older for the role...

Overall: 2/5
Well, in most cases this movie isn't Jane Eyre. I know it had a similar plot, but the book that they were reading/reenacting certainly wasn't the Jane Eyre I read in high school. There were a bunch of parts changed or deleted for time constraints and altered characters. If you like old-time Hollywood movies, you might enjoy this, but if you're looking for an accurate portrayal of Jane Eyre, keep looking.

Jane Eyre is available on DVD or Netflix. It runs for 97 minutes and has an approved rating.

More Banners!

I finally made a couple of more banners. These banners are for Downton Abbey and The King's Speech.

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Memorial Day

In remembrance of the veterans who gave their lives for our freedom.

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Won a Couple of Awards!

I've been a little behind on this, but I've won two awards recently, so I'm going to cover both of them in one post.

My first award came to me from Somersaulting Through Life -- The Kreativ Blogger Award. Thanks for the award!

Now, I have to say 10 random things about myself:

1. I've recently upgraded parts of my computer. My brother helped me add more memory chips to the computer, but I replaced the CD Drive and Graphics Card all by myself! :-D
2. I've been thinking about changing my layout (nothing official yet, just merely thinking about it).
3. I've got a couple of sewing projects that I'm planning out/working on. And now that I'm on summer break, I'll be able to work on them!
4. Recently, I've grown a fondness of cameo necklaces.
5. Over the summer, I'll be guest posting on other blogs.
6. I'm also planning some events over at this blog.
7. After taking a couple of programming classes, I can program (though not extremely complicated stuff, but complex programs) in three programming languages (not counting HTML).
8. I've been drinking a lot of tea lately.
9. I believe that a new Austen adaptation is long over-due (I vote for Mansfield Park! And make it good!)
10. After doing so many 10 random things posts, it's becoming more difficult to say 10 new random things    :-p

And now (at least) 6 Nominations:

• Charity from Austenitis
• Melody from Regency Delight ~Jane Austen, etc.~
• Miss Woodhouse from Elinor, Elizabeth, and Emma
• Miss Amy Dashwood from Yet Another Period Drama Blog
• Miss Laurie from Old-Fashioned Charm
• The Editrix from Ribbons of Light

I also received the "Your blog is great!" award from Miss Woodhouse at Elinor, Elizabeth, and Emma.

Rules:

• Put a link to who gave you the award.
• Put the award on your post.
• Choose 5 blogs to receive the award.
• Let them know you awarded them.

And now 5 Blogs:

• Hayden from Story Girl
• Anne-girl from Scribblings of my pen and tappings of my keyboard
• Mel from But when a young lady is to be a heroine
• Jemimah C. from Beautiful Blank Pages
• Alexandra from Of Trims and Frills and Furbelows

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 God Bless,

Review: Upstairs, Downstairs - Series 3 (1973)

So, continuing on my watching Upstairs Downstairs, here is my review for Series 3.


Note: This review of Upstairs, Downstairs will contain spoilers from Series 1 and Series 2. If you have not seen Series 1 or 2 and do not want to run into spoilers, you may want to wait before you read this review. I suggest that you read my Series 1 and Series 2 reviews first before watching.

DVD Box Art

Synopsis
With under house parlor maid Sarah and chauffeur Thomas Watkins married, the staff of 165 Eaton Place is understaffed. Lady Marjorie Bellamy plans to visit her daughter Elizabeth in America and Richard Bellamy hires a new secretary who catches the eye of Richard and Lady Marjorie's son, Captain James Bellamy.


Characters
Poor Lady Marjorie. Early in the series, she takes a trip on the Titanic to see her daughter Elizabeth in America (yes, Elizabeth was written out of the series) and (as you may guess) did not return. From what I heard, the actress who played Lady Marjorie, Rachel Gurney, hated her character and wanted to call it quits on Upstairs Downstairs. They wrote her out by using the Titanic. I liked her character (though she did have that secret she was keeping in Series 1), so I was sorry to see her go. Her character was essentially replaced by Hazel Forrest, Richard Bellamy's secretary Spoiler and later Captain James's wife End of Spoiler.

Hazel Forrest, the new secretary.

For the most part, I liked Hazel. Or in other words, I had no reason to dislike her. And I started to like Captain James a little bit more; I even thought that he became decent thanks to Hazel. But alas! such things never last, do they? Spoiler Soon after they are married and take a trip to visit James's friend, Bunny Newbury, and his wife/James's former love, Diana, things began to get rocky. Suddenly, James was controlling over Hazel and he looked like a jerk part of the time. James also had an eye for Georgina, his step-cousin. I felt sorry for Hazel and started to dislike James like I did before. End of Spoiler

Speaking of Georgina (which if you didn't read the spoiler section, then I'm bringing her up), she comes later in the series: she arrives at 165 Eaton Place because both her mother and step-father (who was Lady Marjorie's brother) died in the sinking of the Titanic, leaving her an orphan. The first episode she was in, I liked her: she wanted to help people, and seemed like an overall good person. But after that, I started to not like her anymore Spoiler since she seems to be getting involved with Captain James End of Spoiler.

Daisy the maid with the newly arrived Georgina.

Downstairs there are few changes to the staff. Since underhouse parlor maid Sarah from Series 1 and 2 had married chauffeur Thomas, there was a time where the staff of 165 Eaton Place was understaffed. Enter new maid Daisy. Daisy is a sweet character and likes footman Edward and they grow close. Alfred from Series 1 returns for one episode (WHY?! We were doing fine without him!), but his is permanently written out of the series. Spoiler Rose also gets briefly engaged, but it didn't work out in the end. End of Spoiler Other than those main events and some episodes sprinkled here and there about the staff, it's all business as usual downstairs.

Scenery
The scenery is pretty much the same as in Series 1 and 2. Most of the stories take place in 165 Eaton Place, the home of the Bellamys. The major difference there is that James becomes the master of the house after he inherits Lady Marjorie's money; Richard Bellamy still lives there, but now he's a dependent on James. We do get to see a little bit of Hazel's home, a nice, middle class house. And we also get a glimpse of James's friend, Bunny Newbury's, home (fancy!).

Costumes
The costuming is a little bit different in this series than Series 1 and 2. The Edwardian Era has ended, so there are some new fashions of the 1910s. Hazel mainly wears the more fashionable clothing since she is fairly young, however her clothes are pretty plain (but this fits her character). The servants uniforms are pretty much the sames as last series.

Overall: 3.5/5
The series is getting better. The story lines are more interesting now. There are still some suggestive themes, but again, this series is still probably PG in content. I am continuing to watch this series and will hopefully have reviews for the last two series soon. Keep an eye out for them!

Upstairs Downstairs: Series 3 is available on DVD on its own or as apart of the Complete Collection. It has 13 hour long episodes.

Some Guest Posts in the Past Months

The last couple of months were busy for me, but I did happen to do a couple of guest posts here and there at other blogs. If you're interested, here they are. Check them out!

Jane Austen Heroine Week at Elinor and Emma (Old Site) - Defining the Austen Heroine

Austenitis - Period Drama Familes

Austenitis - Period Drama Connections - Part 1, Part 2

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Review: The Mystery of Edwin Drood

I first heard of The Mystery of Edwin Drood in one of my English classes -- that it was Charles Dickens's unfinished novel. I didn't know anything else about it, though, until this adaptation was announced. I finally got to watch it online through Masterpiece's website. Here are my thoughts.

DVD Box Art

Synopsis
John Jasper, a choir director, has been in love with Rosa Bud, the fiancee of his nephew, Edwin Drood. John Jasper is determined to get Rosa Bud, but he has to get Edwin Drood out of the way in order to do so.

Characters
Couple of familiar faces are present in The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Tamzin Merchant (Rosa Bud) is also seen in Pride and Prejudice (2005) as Georgiana Darcy. Julia Mckenzie (Mrs. Crisparkle) is also seen in Cranford as Mrs. Forrester. Alun Armstrong (Mr. Grewgious) is also seen in Little Dorrit as Mr. Flintwich.

I didn't like Edwin Drood at first. Spoiler During the first half of the movie, but once he came back at the very end, he was a little more likable. (The fact that he actually came back at the end and was not killed is one of the biggest twists in the whole story). End of Spoiler He was an arrogant, conceited man. Most of the time, you felt that Rosa was too good for him, but after a little while you see that he really loved Rosa, though she did not love him back.

John Jasper watching Rosa Bud with Edwin Drood.

John Jasper is one of the creepiest characters in any period drama I have watched or any book I have read. Seriously, he made Rigaud from Little Dorrit look normal (okay, not quite normal, but you get my point). The story follows him around for a good deal of the time, which isn't necessarily a good thing. Due to his frequent opium usage, we see many of his hallucinations (which are usually creepy and violent).

Twins Neville and Helena Landless play a role in the story and contribute to one of the plot twists. Both of them were likable and they were good friends to Rosa Spoiler Why didn't Neville and Rosa get married?! He cared so much for her, but she only saw him as a friend. Uggh! End of Spoiler

Rosa walking with her guardian, Mr. Grewgious.

Scenery
The story takes place in the town of Cloisterham. The scenery is very grey and has very few colors, which fits with the story since it is not a happy story. There are scenes that take place within a cathedral; the cathedral is very lovely to look at. Other scenes take place at the school that Rosa lives, around Cloisterham and a little bit near London.

Music
Much of the music of The Mystery of Edwin Drood has a very serious tone to it. Apart from the soundtrack music, we are treated to church choir music, which is very nice to hear (though it would be nicer if John Jasper wasn't conducting them).

John Jasper with Rosa (though she hated being near him).
I do like the lace that she is wearing in this picture.

Costumes
The costumes were pretty! Rosa and Helena had some very nice dresses. Judging from the look of their dresses, I would say that the story took place either in the 1840s or the early 1850s. I liked how Rosa's necklines were trimmed and filled in with lace: it was a very pretty look. I do question why the costumers left Rosa's hair down for most of the movie. It was during the last couple of scenes her hair was put up as ladies would put up their hair at the time. She was young, so her hair down would have given the impression that she was young, but at 17, she should have had her hair up. Edwin Drood had some fancy jackets on, which would fit with his character.

Overall: 1.5/5
Let me just say this: this was one messed up plot. I'm still trying to absorb what just happened. In ways, the story was interesting, but it had a very creepy tone to it (hence the low rating). There are a lot of twists and turns in the story that keeps you watching however (at some parts my jaw dropped for a good couple of minutes as I said "WHAT?!"); I do have to say that some of those plot twists were pretty bizarre (dare I say unrealistic?). I guess with me, I saw it once and was mildly entertained, but probably wouldn't watch it again (unless someone I knew really, really wanted to see it).
Content... There is violence (no blood, but the same couple of violent scenes are flashed back to). There is also some drug use (John Jasper frequently uses opium and we see the effects of it). That was pretty much it, but those two issues are in the plot frequently. If this was in the theaters, it probably would be rated PG-13.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood is available on DVD. It runs for 120 minutes.

Grouping Some Animations

So, I noticed on Tumblr, people like to group animations together so it presents a full scene. I attempted this, but unfortunately they way Tumblr set it up did not allow the animations to work, so I'll post them here!

I Won The Keep Calm and Carry On Contest!

Miss Laurie of Old-Fashioned Charm hosted a contest about creating Keep Calm and Carry On posters that relate to Period Dramas. Well, mine was the favorite among the voters, so I recieved this lovely button!

Here was the poster that was entered:

I would like to thank Miss Laurie for hosting the Period Drama Keep Calm Contest and for awarding me this button. I would also like to thank everyone who voted for my poster. Thank you, everyone!

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 God Bless,

Review: The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982)

So, here is the long awaited review! Why did I watch The Scarlet Pimpernel? Well, I noticed a lot of my blogging friends really enjoyed The Scarlet Pimpernel. I didn't know very much about it (I did know that it was a precursor to Zorro -- by the way, I enjoyed the 50s Disney series of Zorro), but everyone that I had mentioned that I hadn't seen it to said that I would really enjoy it. So finally I got to watch it on Youtube. And now, my long awaited review.

UK DVD Box Art

Synopsis
During the Terror of Paris, many members of the aristocracy are sent to the guillotine, but a number of them are saved by someone called The Scarlet Pimpernel. The true identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel is Sir Percival Blakeney, a man who pretends to be a fop (or in other words, a dandy) in order to conceal his identity as the Scarlet Pimpernel. He falls in love with an actress named Marguerite St. Just, the sister of a man that he defended in a fight. Marguerite's "friend", Citizen Chauvelin, wants to become the head of national security and is certain that the capture of the Scarlet Pimpernel will get him the position.

Characters
There are some familiar faces in The Scarlet Pimpernel. Sir Percy is played by Anthony Andrews, who can be seen in a couple of episodes of the fifth series of Upstairs Downstairs, Ivanhoe (1982), and even in The King's Speech. Marguerite was played by Jane Seymour, a very well known actress and who can also be seen in Somewhere in Time. Citizen Chauvelin was played by Ian McKellen, who can be seen in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. And for the Downton Abbey fans, the Prince Regent was played by Downton creator Julian Fellowes.

Sir Percy Blakeney with his eye glass

The acting is very well done! Anthony Andrews played Sir Percy very well. The way he acted as a fop was perfect! He had the voice down very well and his mannerisms. He also held his eyeglass up a lot, which I thought added to his character. There are a number of quotes from him that are great!

• "You see, I'm a bit of a poet, and you did not know it!"
• "My dear chap, I never would have dreamt of depriving you of your moment of triumph. Alas, a moment was all I could spare."
• "Odd's fish, m'dear. The man cannot even tie his own cravet!"

These were only a few quotes, but he had a bunch of really good ones!

I had heard on the site IMDB that there were people who said that Jane Seymour couldn't act when she played Marguerite. Frankly, I don't know what they are talking about. I thought she did a great job! You felt sympathy for her when Sir Percy thought that she was the one who turned in Marquis de St. Cyr and his entire family (Spoiler Which, of course, she didn't do intentionally but was set up by Chauvelin End of Spoiler). She had a number of awesome gowns (which, of course, I will talk about later) and she looked very nice throughout the entire movie.

Citizen Chauvelin with his usual sour expression.

Citizen Chauvelin... The villain that tries to catch the Scarlet Pimpernel Spoiler and fails! End of Spoiler He was pretty much set up for Sir Percy to aim jokes at him. Chauvelin is the character that no one can like because he is so stiff (not to mention his morals by sending aristocrats to the guillotine; that's another issue all together), and Sir Percy is the loveable fop that everyone has to love! When Chauvelin and Sir Percy spar verbally, and Sir Percy has the perfect comeback for Chauvelin, you can't help but say "OOOH! Chauvelin just got told!"

I did have a small problem with some of the characters (don't hate me!). The French characters didn't sound French; they sounded English. I know there were a bunch that were French, but they didn't sound French. To me, they could have been all English. This is a very small issue and it wouldn't be enough to make me dislike the film, but it was something I noticed.

Sir Percy and Marguerite going on a picnic, but
being questioned.

Scenery
The scenery was very nice -- grand houses and some country side scenes that were nice to look at. However, some scenes featured prisons and the guillotine. But the prison scenes were not too gritty, so you need not worry about that.

Costuming
Lovely! Lovely costuming! I don't usually comment on men's costuming (since, let's face it, it all tends to be the same), but Sir Percy's outfits were perfect for his character; a lot of lace that would be perfect for a fop. Chauvelin were black throughout the entire movie and no decoration (perfect for a stiff character!). Marguerite had some particularly lovely dresses. Since the story takes place during the 1790s, the fashions were still Georgian, not yet Regency. I don't recall seeing women wearing side hoops that were popular earlier in the era; if that is the case, that would be accurate since side hoops went out of fashion later in the 1700s.

Overall: 4/5
Well sink me, I enjoyed it! It might not be my absolute favorite movie (don't get mad!), but I enjoyed it a lot. It was a very interesting storyline and the good characters were likable (definitely something you want to achieve in a movie or book). There is a number of great costumes (especially Marguerite's) to look at.

Content wise, the film is about PG I would say. There is some suggestive themes, but nothing is graphic. There is also talk of executions (since it was the Terror of Paris), and we do see the guillotine blade come down, but we don't see any blood or anything graphic like that.

The Scarlet Pimpernel is available on DVD (though I cannot seem to find it at a reasonable price on Amazon). It runs for 142 minutes and though unrated, I would say that the content is about PG equivalent.

Sink Me Submission #3

So, I submitted another caption to Miss Dashwood's blog Sink Me! Here it is!

Picture: Pride and Prejudice (1995)

Quote: Disney's Mulan -- A Girl Worth Fighting For

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American Idol Comes to Downton Abbey?

So a couple of days ago, I was on my Facebook page when one of the Downton Abbey pages I follow put up this article:

Simon Cowell to have cameo role in new series of Downton Abbey

Simon Cowell is swapping his trademark high-waisted trousers for white tie and tails, with a small part in the third series of Downton Abbey.
For his first acting role, the X Factor creator and music producer will appear as Baron de Wharffe, an industrialist and old schoolfriend of the Earl of Grantham (Hugh Bonneville). The Baron seeks refuge at Downton after falling on hard times when new laws force him to close down a number of
profitable meat factories. He puts his host in a difficult position, however, when he starts encouraging the servants to leave Downton and fulfil their childhood fantasies.“

Source

Not really sure how to feel about this. On the one hand, Julian Fellowes (hopefully) knows what he's doing, but on the other hand Simon Cowell? Really? And it's his first acting job? I hoping that this isn't the point where Downton "jumps the shark".

What do you think? How would you feel about Simon Cowell on Downton Abbey? Does he have a chance? Or do you think it's a disaster waiting to happen? Leave a comment!

Edit: As it turns out, this article was an April Fools joke.

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 God Bless,

Sink Me Submission from April

Sorry I didn't post about this sooner, but I submitted a caption to Miss Dashwood's blog Sink Me! a while ago. Here it is!

 

Picture: Pride and Prejudice (1995)

Quote: Toy Story 2 Outtakes

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Vote for my Keep Calm Poster!

So, the voting for the Keep Calm and Carry On Poster Contest at Old-Fashioned Charm has begun! The poster that I made that was selected to be in the voting is...

Don't Keep Calm, There is Lace at Stake!

So, head on over to Old-Fashioned Charm and vote for my poster! Well, vote for the posters you like best, but I would like it if you voted for mine :-)

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Keep Calm and Carry On Contest at Old-Fashioned Charm

First, let me tell you my good news! I finished my last final yesterday and will be free to update Elegance of Fashion at my leisure! Be prepared for the return of reviews on Monday!

Anyway, Miss Laurie from Old-Fashioned Charm is holding a contest to make "Keep Calm and Carry On" posters. I came up with two entries last night, so here they are!

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Picture Captions

And so here are the captions for the following picture:

"Lunch had started to repeat on Mr Collins." 

Mrs. Jenkinson: "My dear Mr. Collins, is something troubling you?"
Mr. Collins: "Charlie bit my finger."
Charlotte: "Get over it."
Mr. Collins: "And it's STILL HURTING."

Mrs. Jenkinson: Are you sure you are alright Mr Collins?
Charlotte: It's his indigestion again.
Mr. Collins: *hic* no no *hic* m'dear, I swallow*hic*ed a fly.

"Mr Collins suddenly wondered where his nose was"

Anne's Governess: "Do you bite your thumb at me, sir?"
Mr. Collins: "At you, sir? No, sir. But I do bite my thumb, sir."
Anne (in an aside to governess): "He bits at Lady Catherine DeBourgh, sir.

And our Facebook entries:

"Zip it."

Mrs. Jenkins wonders why Collins is smelling his fingers.

Thank you everyone for submitting a caption. I may post another caption sometime in the future, so keep a look out for another caption opportunity!

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 God Bless,