Netflix adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion

[StrychnineInTheSandwiches]

Persuasion is my favourite Austen novel. All that longing, those disappointed dreams, the lost bloom of youth. And Captain Wentworth smouldering about the place.

Well Netflix have produced an adaptation featuring Dakota Johnson acting all giggly and Fleabag-ish. Wearing lipstick! Calling Wentworth her ‘ex’.

I will no doubt watch it as soon as soon it’s released next month but I suspect I’ll snort my way through it.

Amanda Root and Ciaran Hinds will always be the perfect Anne and Wentworth so I’ll try not to get too precious about this reinterpretation.

But watching the trailer made all ‘u wot mate?’ (as eloquent as Jane herself I’m sure you’ll agree).

I wonder if you have watched the 1971 Persuasion by now. I watched it last year when I realised it was on Youtube. Different times. Bryan Marshall played more than one hero in those days. He was also Captain Dobbin once.
In the 1971 version Anne and Captain Wentworth walked on the gravel path in Bath. There wasn't any kissing in the street, no circuses passing by or her running around the place, just the walking and talking, as in one version in the book. It was right. I was there, 3 weeks ago, with my old copy of Persuasion in my tote bag!

Watched it this morning.

Oh dear.

It felt like it was made by a load of marketing bods.

'okay, you guyzz, Jane Austen rates high with audiences, they also love Bridgerton. How about we Bridgertonize Persuasion and add a dollop of Fleabag and some insta quotes like 'I'm a total empath', 'he's a 10'. OMG you guyzzz it'll be such a hit'.

Pros:

Good cinematography, with some gorgeous interiors with lovely colour palettes, and great outdoor shots.

Nicely lit.

Mary made a great peevish little doll

Cons:

First and foremost Anne just was not Anne. She wasn't even a pale imitation. She was a completely different character. So arch, so full of herself, so winky flirty with every man. So vapid. And as for getting pissed and bellowing 'Frederick' out the window and the next night announcing that Charles had proposed to her first. Ugh. And as for Dakota Johnson's copper eyeshadow and pink lipstick and lack of bonnet and generally modern look. Non. Non. Non.

Wentworth came across as a big gormless lump. Maybe he'd fallen from the crow's nest one too many times. As if you'd spend 8 years mooning over that dolt.

Sir Walter wasn't cruel and waspish enough.

Where was Mrs Smith?

There was no yearning, no longing! What is Persuasion without the longing and yearning?

Gah

(I did giggle at Cousin Elliott and plumptious Mrs Clay snogging with gusto in the street at the end)

I've just remembered her octopus dream anecdote.

Wtf was that?

It’s very much adapted in a ‘style’, and I don’t think it’s mumsnet’s 🤣

After the hideous Netflix version of Rebecca there is no chance I'll be watching it. I'm clearly not their target demographic.

I think the scriptwriter randomly latched on to a reference to eating octopus from the novel - nautical nostalgia at the Harvilles in Lyme, and decided to lob it in for the shits and giggles.

Honestly? I enjoyed it. I have read Persuasion but so long ago I had forgotten most of it. So this was enjoyable to me. I suspect the market for this is people who THINK they should read classics, but actually won't ever bother. It's "Classics lite"....

But then I don't see the problem with changing it up a bit. I have watched both the BBC and the Keira Knightly Pride and Prejudice versions several times, and enjoy them both for what they are. I've read the book numerous times, and have even watched it in a foreign language when studying it.

Oh lord.. I had forgotten that. What a horror show that was. Armie Hammer FFS. Didn't make it all the way through. What a waste of Kristin Scott Thomas.

It was OK. It was a nice looking film and had some fun bits and I did like Mary, what a horror she was.
Agree Wentworth was terrible, he looked like he’d been dug up for most of the film, sort of Zombiesq.

Fine for what it is, although I didn’t realise what it was until 5 minutes in and was a bit disappointed as I love the full, true to the book adaptations (hadn’t seen any of the threads, just popped up so I went for it)

I've just watched the 1971 version and it was sweet, although it felt like a stage play more than a tv production. They all kept lining up to exit stage right etc. I have definitely seen it before but I can't have seen it in 1971 as I was a pre-schooler then and wouldn't have had the slightest interest.

I was quite surprised at the Mrs Clay subplot, I have read the book a couple of times but as a teenager so I probably didn't pay any attention to anyone other than the main characters.

I'm going to give the 1995 version a go, I'm pretty sure I've seen that before too. Then I'll risk the new version.

I tried to watch this today and admittedly I wasn't really in the right mood but I turned it off after 10 mins when she said playlist. I'm sure it's supposed to be a bit tongue in cheek, but it's one of my favourite books so I thought I probably wouldn't be able to tolerate it.

Watching 1995 now - 10/10 so far

Finally watched it. Persuasion is my absolute favourite book and the 96 version is my die hard favourite but I also enjoy the Rupert penny Jones versions

I feel so let down by Netflix. I was so excited when they announced a new adaptation but this wasn’t Anne Elliot it was a weird hybrid of Jane Austen, Lizzie Bennett and Emma wood house

the modernisations just didn’t work. I hated that they made her some kind of Bridget Jones always drinking wine?! That’s not Anne she’s so dignified dealing with her loss and mistake in rejecting wentworth. I hated the talk of ex’s and modern things like wentworth making her a playlist

also it annoyed me that everyone seemed to know anna and wentworth were previously attached! It take away from the whole idea that everyone one is just so unaware of Anne and her pain.

i actually did enjoy Mary I think they captured that character very well but Lady Russell wasn’t right. I didn’t enjoy how she seemed to recognise she made a mistake and kept apologising to Anne.

also Wendy a fan of Louisa trying to set up Anne and wentworth at the start and then asking Anne permission to try for him. It just didn’t work for me.

i actually think Mr Elliot was well cast but the writing and directing was just awful I hated how he seemed to openly admit his plans and also was outright a dick not scheming enough. Didn’t like that they made Anne seem genuinely interested in him.

there have been lots of really well done “modernisations” of Austen works like clueless but this just was terrible they should have committed either to be faithful to the book or go for a modern remake

it reminded me of one of those awful hallmark movies that are so cringe to watch but still enjoyable if you forget the source material it’s based on

God that was awful. Richard E Grant is great and Mary is brilliantly vile but the rest is dire.
What bothers me is not that it wanders off from the novel, but that it ends up being a shite film in its own right because it can't commit. The relationship between Anne and Wentworth is unconvincing and thin because there's no build up. And, because everyone is being modern half the time, it's totally unbelievable when they comply to restrictions of the time the other half.

Anne was a sassy pain in the ass, plastered in eyeshadow and lipstick. Wentworth seemed barely sentient.

I cannot believe that the shades of Persuasion have been thus polluted.

I love in the 1995 version where Elizabeth tells Mary to stop monopolizing Captain W and then her look of fury and jealousy when the Captain arrives at the cards party and asks for Anne's hand in marriage in front of everyone. And her father is all 'Anne? You want to marry Anne? But why?'

“I cannot believe that the shades of Persuasion have been thus polluted.” 😂😂😂

I cannot believe that the shades of Persuasion have been thus polluted.
Love it

Still wish I could watch this abomination though!

The 1995 version is uplifting.

still loving that “everyone involved should be sent to prison review”

It's my favourite novel too. I love the Amanda Root adaptation. I regret that I watched the latest offering. I spent lots of time criticising the modernisation of the novel. The Musgroves mixed race,? How ridiculous. I say thos as a mixed race person myself. I have not bothered with Bridgerton because I think it woukd wind me up too. Enjoyed the novels with their feisty females🤣

The first scene in which we saw Wentworth he was winsomely weeping. Which was a bit much. Especially in an adaptation of a novel about emotional restraint.

I watched it with two Austen scholars, and we spent much of the time admiring Anne’s metallic eyeshadow.