There are plenty of reasons to say that Jane Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility” did not need another adaptation. Jane Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility” is no stranger to adaptations. A story over two hundred years old has seen several mini-series adaptations as well as a beloved film from Ang Lee. Sure it has been made for the small and big screen many times, but when you consider the two hundred years it has existed it could almost be said that it has not been done enough. A beloved story of two sisters and their desires for a better life has become a blueprint for the longing and yearning men should be expected to hold, but more so just the beautiful portrayal of two women who no matter what will always be by each other’s side. It is a timeless story that deserves to be told and reminded to audiences of its power. If less than decades old franchises get rebooted all the time then we can sure find room for the new SENSE AND SENSIBILITY. And thank goodness we did because SENSE AND SENSIBILITY is not just a stunning take on the classic story it is also a perfect companion for its 1991 predecessor that proves that much like the Dashwood sisters, the only thing better than one great thing is another. Directed by Georgia Oakley (Blue Jean) with the vigor and grace needed to tell the story of the Dashwood sisters who battle between believing they deserve to be loved beautifully while also fearing the complicated class system of their world. Oakley’s film has everything you’d come to expect from regency era type films, the striking gowns, the poetic dialogue and of course the longing in the rain. But more so Oakley brings front and center a story of not just two sisters but the oh so important female family members and the community and strength built around all of them in order to navigate through the world of men. Men who the film understand can be as beautiful as they are manipulative. But make no mistake Oakley’s SENSE AND SENSIBILITY is not just a film about the damaging world these women it is a mesmerizing portrayal of how one can be rooted in nature and the world allowing themselves to feel a freedom beyond love, and in doing so gives them the strength to understand that love is everything and therefore one should settle for nothing less. SENSE AND SENSIBILITY may start off longing but by its end it is a film that will be desired and beloved by all.
The Dashwood family has hit a crisis. The family patriarch has passed. Left behind is his oldest daughter, the reserved Elinor (Daisy Edgar-Jones), the lively middle sister Marianne (Esmé Creed-Miles), as well as their rambunctious younger sister Margaret (Bodhi Rae Breathnach). Left to rope them all in is their mother Mrs. Dashwood (Caitriona Balfe) who already understands the chances of their family’s success is for her daughters to marry wealthy and with high status. But manners are worse when their stepbrother John and his cruel wife Fanny (John Brooke and Stacy Martin respectively) have chosen to leave them with a small allowance while also booting them out of their estate. But all things are not lost as Fanny’s brother has arrived in the form of the handsome and kind Edward Ferrars (George McKay). Like Austen’s novel there is a lot of ground to cover early on, and the delightful plot only thickens but Oakley is more than keen in understanding while there is much to portray it is her own cinematic decisions that move her adaptation far beyond just a page turner. Instantly we are met with handheld shots of the Dashwood sister’s enjoying the woods as cinematographer Arnaud Potier shoots each frame with the delicacy of the small doe deer running past them. Accompanying these moments is Roger Goula’s score that rises through like the morning sun permeating through every moment. Where other regency films rely on the higher pitched violin of ballroom dances, Goula brings in his instruments with the low tone before softly rising as it partners with the actor’s own portrayal of not knowing if things will ever get better.
But it is certainly hard to believe things are not looking up for the Dashwood’s especially Elinor as she and Edward’s attract to one another takes hold in a manner that is less will or won’t they and more enjoyable to watch them take their time both discovering this new world that has opened up to them. It helps too that MacKay and Edgar-Jones are a wonderful pairing both frustrated in their inability to fully express their words all while never wanting to seem anything less than smitten by the other. If one were to take a shot every time a swoon worthy moment arose you’d be passed out by the first twenty minutes. But again this is an Austen novel and things go wrong. SENSE AND SENSIBILITY makes a great case for why this story is timeless. On top of many reasons including beautiful sisterhood, Oakley wants to express that the romantic trials of the film play out like a roller coaster that many young people find themselves on today. Marianne a believer that love should be expressed through passion of the world finds herself in the eyesight of the stoic and older Colonel Brandon (Herbert Nordrum). Brandon to Marianne is a reminder that even the most attractive of men can be an utter bore. Its comical moments that Creed-Miles and Nordrum sell with ease. But underlying it is an important foundation of both Marianne and the film’s entirety, and that is words do need to be expressed. There can be a joke that people will watch this film and immediately settle for nothing less than someone longing for them through pain and desire from afar, but the film through Oakley and a script by Diana Reid expresses that words must be spoken. It does little to keep them private no matter the fear of rejection. It is not just a common idea throughout Austen’s work (and often the biggest obstacle in a story full of challenges), but also SENSE AND SENSIBILITY truly does boil down to the troubles of the unspoken.
As SENSE AND SENSIBILITY progresses the young women’s difficulty with the men’s limited behaviors only increases. Anyone familiar with the story will both light up and be cautious when Frank Dillane’s Willoughby arrives on horseback. As well tense up when the sisters take a trip to the mecca of royalty in the form of London. The film never hides from the fact that many know the story going in making it all the more fun to allow the audience to be fearing those heartbreaking moments of defeat. It isn’t about watching these women suffer but it the opposite, it is about caring for them and wanting to protect them. And that is where Oakley’s film has her biggest strength. Her Dashwood sisters.
SENSE AND SENSIBILITY may be a modern adaptation, but it never is dismayed by its older century tendencies. And perhaps that is because of Austen’s timeless writing, but it is also due to the fact that both Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles know how to hold every moment of the bond that only sisters can create. And in doing so it escalates towards everything that happens to these women. Even the men in their lives are recognized through the eyes of the sisters and equally as much when these men arise to the occasion and fail. And while the film is met with conflict between Marianne and Elinor it always seems to be done with the same love that can cause you to become infuriated with someone. The film never takes a modern route of making Elinor (the book’s main protagonist if you must) the straightforward thinking while Elinor is left as the more erratic. Quite the opposite in that Oakley and her two leads allow both sister to carry an intelligence that both pushes them forward while still giving them plenty to discover. Elinor needs Marianne to remember that unspoken words gets you nowhere and Marianne needs Elinor to be there when they curious heart is harmed by those unappreciative of her passion. In doing so it also allows Bodhi Rae Breathnach’s Margaret to never be just a passerby or witness to the events. Instead Margaret, who was always a well-rounded character, continues to be an embodiment of where the world is headed or more so where it should be headed for brave and thoughtful young women.
The film’s most beautiful moments come when Creed-Miles and Edgar-Jones share screentime that feels as natural as any two sisters how have shared a lifetime together. Esmé Creed-Miles is a revelation herself balancing the curiosity of a young woman while also the maturity of knowing she will settle for no man who cannot understand and live through passion. Creed-Miles delivers a star in the making performance that is far too often seen these days. But even with this companionship the film hits hard when the two are separate and we can see the pain that comes from the fear of having to do this world alone. The film gets its heartbroken rain sequence but as much as it is played about losing the man you love it is elevated by the fear that you are feeling this pain without your best friend.
SENSE AND SENSIBILITY comes out at time when regency has had a resurgence in the few years or so that began with “Bridgerton” but has surpassed more than just the consumption of media. The success certainly comes from the understanding that there is no need to allow the men of the world to torment hearts as well and more importantly so is that sisterhood can survive anything. SENSE AND SENSIBILITY of course finds its way to a dashing finale but in doing so always keeps the heart that Elinor and Marianne and eventually Margaret will grow up into women that have not changed for the world but rather grown into their own person allowing the world to navigate for them. It is a strength that permeates through Oakley’s film that draws back to Marianne always feel connected in nature. She understands there is more to life in store for her but when the world surrounding you is so beautiful and full of love while settle for anything less. As a film SENSE AND SENSIBILITY takes this sentiment and knows it too is worthy of love, a love that is passionate and yes one that requires a good amount of yearning.
A
SENSE AND SENSIBILITY WILL BE RELEASED IN THEATERS FROM FOCUS FEATURES ON OCTOBER 16
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