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There's a new adaptation of Emma starting tonight - a few points . . .

84 replies

bran · 04/10/2009 18:30

Firstly, don't we already have enough versions of Emma? There's the Gwynnie Paltrow film, which I quite liked to my surprise, and the TV version with the stuck-up pretty girl (Kate something, her dad was in Porridge). It's a bit soon for another version isn't it?

On the other hand, this one has Jonny Lee Miller in it, whom I have quite fancied for a while now. Tamsin Grieg is in it too, and I find her hypnotically watchable, she's just fantastic and I think will be amazing as Miss Bates.

Lastly, why has there been so much fuss about the BBC not doing any more costume dramas when they are obviously still churning them out? Is this the last one in the pipeline?

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janeite · 04/10/2009 18:35

I LOATHE the Gynnie version. Will give this one a go tonight but am not expecting much. Never heard of any of the actors you mention.

LadyGlencoraPalliser · 04/10/2009 18:35

Never too soon for another JA adaptation if you ask me. I don't think they have done the definitive one yet though - as you might claim for most of the others - even if you disagree on which one that is.
They should do another Mansfield Park though and try and get it right this time - the Billie Piper version was beyond awful.

janeite · 04/10/2009 18:38

The Kate Beckinsale Emma is pretty fabbo.

Mansfield Park with BP and the film version are both dire.

MirandaBailey · 04/10/2009 18:42

I think it's that they are sticking to such obvious ones, whereas things like the mooted Trollope adaptation get the chop.

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bran · 04/10/2009 18:45

You must know Tamsin Grieg janeite, she was in Black Books and Green Wing (I wonder if she has a thing for series with a colour in the title).

I think with the Gwynnie version I was expecting to hate it but didn't. It's not that I found it good, but it wasn't awful, so much better than expected IYSWIM. The supporting characters were good I thought, Toni Colette, the actor who played Miss Bates and the Scottish guy who played the parson.

Emma is an odd one for me as I found her to be extremely irritating in the book, so much so that I didn't really want her to get together with Mr Knightly. I thought she should have been made to stay single and grow into a bitter old lady. What the film did was to pay more attention to the sub-plots which were much more interesting IMO. I suppose also that Gwynnie was a good choice for lead from my point of view as she is also extremely irritating, so hardly needed to act at all.

I agree Mansfield Park was dire, but I never quite got into the original written version of that either so I found it hard to judge what it should have been like.

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HumphreyCobbler · 04/10/2009 18:45

the sense and sensibility was pretty dire too

they moved to a cottage, not a slum

have just read Emma again, miss bates is SO funny

MirandaBailey · 04/10/2009 18:47

I love the book of MP - the aunt is a hoot, although Fanny and Edmund are a tad dull. Never seen a good adaptation of it though.

janeite · 04/10/2009 18:47

Never heard of Black Boots or Green Wing either, sorry.

Yes - the most recent TV S&S was absolutely appalling.

janeite · 04/10/2009 18:48

Have just read Sense And Sensibility And Seamonsters - v funny.

janeite · 04/10/2009 18:48

Black BooKs even - never heard of that either!

HumphreyCobbler · 04/10/2009 18:49

Tamsin Grieg is Debbie in The Archers.

Alibabaandthe40nappies · 04/10/2009 18:59

I quite like the Gwynnie version, although I am looking forward to tonight.

LGP - I think you are right that there hasn't been a definitive Emma yet in the way that the Ehle/Firth P&P is.

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bran · 04/10/2009 19:02

Actually, my favourite version of Emma is still Clueless.

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janeite · 04/10/2009 19:03

Clueless is indeed a work of genius!

The Kate B 'Emma' is vastly superior to the Firth P&P imho.

TeamAlesha · 04/10/2009 19:08

Oh I love Tamsin Grieg - she was also in Love Soup and the recent version of Diary of Anne Frank.

I also really like Romola Garai who is playing Emma. I think this may be a good one

smallwhitecat · 04/10/2009 19:10

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

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bran · 04/10/2009 19:12

I found the Kate Beckinsale version a bit ernest and humourless. It was better than the Gwynnie version overall, but the Gwynnie film was a bit lighter. I always find Kate Beckinsale a bit dreary, I'm not sure why. I think she doesn't have enough facial expression or something. Everything she does seems so serious.

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Babieseverywhere · 04/10/2009 19:13

I have hope for this one as it is a decent length 4 hours rather than the short adaptions to date. I find it hard to watch a book squashed into a two or less hours of viewing.

If it is rubbish I will get the P&P DVD out and wallow in Mr F. Darcy for a while

ceres · 04/10/2009 19:28

i'm looking forward to this too. i quite like the version with gwyneth paltrow, although also quite liked the kate beckinsale one too.

billie piper in mansfield park was dire - terrible adaptation, the character portrayed was sooooooooooooooo not fanny price-like.

pride and prejudice is my favourite austen and i love the bbc colin firth and jennifer ehle version. hated the one with keira knightley - i don't think i managed to watch the whole film despite buying the dvd. i know i gave the dvd away!

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bran · 04/10/2009 19:39

Jonny Lee Miller was married to Angelina Jolie (for those who have never heard of him), he was her first husband I think. He's been in a lots of things but hardly ever in a big role. I like him as an actor, he has a very expressive face.

I've just looked him up on IMDB and interestingly he's been in Mansfield Park twice. Once in 1983 as Charles Price in a BBC version and once in 1999 as Edmund Bertram in a film version. I haven't seen either of them. I hadn't really thought of him as a period actor I associate him more with modern stuff like Hackers and Trainspotting.

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janeite · 04/10/2009 19:42

Thanks Bran. Google-imaged him but I don't recognise him even though I have seen that film version of MP (tis rubbish).

RustyBear · 04/10/2009 19:46

I still think the BBC version with Doran Godwin & John Carson hasn't been bettered yet - especially Fiona Walker as Mrs Elton

Clary · 04/10/2009 19:51

lol @ you Janeite.

You surely listen to the Archers even if you don't watch Green Wing (hilarious dry spoof hospital drama)

I rather liked Keira K version of P&P actually.

RustyBear · 04/10/2009 20:00

I enjoyed Sandy Welch's version of North and South, so I'm fairly optimistic about this one.

HerBeatitude · 04/10/2009 20:01

I don't think that there has been a definitive version of Emma yet.

Whereas it's hard to believe that the Firth/ Ehle P&P will ever be matched. I thought it really captured the atmosphere of the book. Also wotsername's version of S&S with Kate Winslet as Marianne. I couldn't envision Marianne not being an annyoing idiot you would want to slap until I saw her do it and I hardly wanted to slap her at all.