I wrote a half hearted review about this movie, based largely on the somber tone of the film, which sometimes belied the beautiful words Olivia Williams as Jane spoke.
But not everyone felt as I did. Kay Daycus wrote a beautiful response to the film just after she saw it. And Laurel Ann on Remotely Connected also thought it was wonderful, saying:
“When she dies tragically at age forty-one, we feel the incredible loss of a dear daughter, sister, aunt and friend, whose ultimate writing potential will never be known.”
Arti wonders if the title should have been changed to “Miss Austen Regrets?” Like me, she thought Jane would have felt more fulfillment than the movie depicted.
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The film had a somber tone and the level of regret shown in Jane was one of the reasons why you didn’t enjoy the film as much as you might have liked to. But I believe (and just stick with me on this) that there is a level of contentment to be achieved through regret. Not saying that we choose to be content wallowing in regret—i.e., remorse—but that acknowledging past choices with hindsight, with the knowledge that life may have turned out differently had different choices been made, can bring about contentment in the situation we find ourselves in. Because once we allow ourselves the vulnerability of regret—not remorse, but regret—we open ourselves to the ability to find closure. And that, to me, was the theme of “regret” in this movie. She looked back with regret on several choices she made in the past because she knew if she’d chosen differently, it could have brought comfort to her family. But by looking back on those choices, I believe (in the film) that rather than sending her into the doldrums of remorse, it gave her a sense of closure by bringing her to the realization that had she made any other choice, she wouldn’t have been as happy, as content—as free—as she was because of the choices she did make.
And that was my favorite line in the film—that she chose freedom for herself by the choices she made. And I’m getting choked up again just thinking about it, darn it!
I don’t know if that explanation makes sense to anyone but me, but that’s my interpretation.
Kaye, you make such excellent points and I so agree with your assessment. Indeed, had the director chosen to show enlightened regret (and not layered in such somber scenes) I would have adored this movie. Please see my screen shots on Jane Austen Today and you will see what I mean. From the stills, Jane seems as if she is in the throes of remorse.
However, your argument is so persuasive, I shall keep an open mind when I view the movie again. Thank you for a thought-provoking conversation!
One of my favorite lines from Jane Austen Regrets is when she is advising her niece Fanny, she says, and I paraphrase: in finding the right one for marriage there should be “friendship, passion, and a shared purpose.”
What a beautiful way to describe the reasons to marry another. I am enjoying the film.