Becoming Jane

[rhienelleth]

L and I went and saw this last night. In front of it were trailers to August Rush and Elizabeth: The Golden Age, both of which I've seen before, but it doesn't matter. They both still give me goosebumps, though for different reasons. I can tell August Rush is going to make me cry when I see it. And as for Elizabeth - just hand Cate Blanchett the Oscar now, Hollywood, cause there is no competition for that performance, and that's just from watching the trailer! Fitting, since I believe she won her first Oscar from the first Elizabeth - and this one looks about ten times more powerful. The two lines that give me chills every single time:

"I, too can command the wind, sir! I have a hurricane in me that will strip Spain bare if you dare to try me!" and "My God, England will not fall while I am Queen."

But really, her very presence is powerful, and every line rings perfect. I doubt seeing the movie will change my opinion of her performance, other than to awe me even more.

But this post is supposed to be about Becoming Jane, not the trailers attached to it. Without spoiling any of you who are going to see it, I really, really liked it. Was it an accurate portrayal of her life? Probably not. Was it beautiful and sad and a wonderful homage to her works? Absolutely. I will own it when it comes out on DVD. James McAvoy has some serious freaking charisma, y'all. I remember watching Narnia, and thinking it was a little bit disturbing, how much chemistry he had with Lucy (being she was a little girl and all), but seriously, I don't think the man can help it. I think he's just got that much natural charisma, and that much intensity as a person -- it comes across with whoever he's acting with. Which means he is one actor to really watch. He's very, very good. Anne Hathaway was also very good, and they had (obviously! Heh.) good chemistry together. I highly recommend seeing it to any Austen fans on my f-list. There are little tributes to her books sprinkled throughout the movie, too, particularly to P&P.

Also, I never realized it until this movie, but McAvoy reminds me very strongly of one of my best friends in high school. I still see Sean about once a year, just running into him around town. His look, body language, and mannerisms are strikingly similar. His eyes, especially are the same. And he was into acting in and after high school, but didn't pursue it after his son was born. But when he did it, he was one of the two best actors we had. I often wonder if Justin (the other one) ever pursued it in/after college. Hmm. Anyway, it was sort of surreal watching the movie last night, because I kept being reminded of Sean. Who was also stunningly charismatic, though we were always just really good friends. In fact, I was sort of a haven for him, because I was one of the only girls he knew in high school that wasn't secretly in love with him. Mostly because I was secretly in love with someone else, and Sean had some bipolar issues - sometimes he was just a complete a**hole, and I didn't put up with it. I used to tell him "Come talk to me when you're ready to act like a human being," and walk away when he'd act like that.

Now I miss him. He and Mark were pretty inseparable in high school. Best friends. We have his number somewhere. I should call him and invite him over for dinner.

Comments

[amphetamine-47.livejournal.com]

OOh, so excited about Golden Age...I may have to go see Becoming Jane this weekend just for that trailer!

[rhienelleth.livejournal.com]

Pride & Prejudice is without a doubt her best book - IMO. It's also her most popular. Just be aware that the writing style is definitely from an older time. :)

[kistha.livejournal.com]

I've never gotten in to Jane Austen - I've never managed to read any of her books. Thinking on it, I've never even tried.

Maybe I'll add her to my list for the next library run. What do you think I should I try first?

PS - I cannot WAIT for Q.E-tGA. While Elisabeth was good - it wasn't very historically accurate - the whole first half of her reign happened in the first weeks. And it looks like they are re-using the assassination plot that they crammed into the first half of her life. But, this one looks much, much better. And Sir Francis Drake...the pirate! He'd better be mentioned! (blah,blah,blah I'll shut up now.)

[rhienelleth.livejournal.com]

Hmm, in the preview, it makes it sound like Clive Owen is playing Sir Walter Raleigh - and they can him a pirate....

[the-grynne.livejournal.com]

Cate was first nominated for Elizabeth; that was the same year I believe they gave the Oscar to Gwyneth Paltrow for Shakespeare in Love (which just shows how much the Academy knows). She won in 2005 for The Aviator.

[kistha.livejournal.com]

Sir Drake was the "pirate" who preyed almost exclusively on the Spanish, not quite at the Queen's order. He brought her back jewels as presents, and gifted her with half the wealth he brought back. She couldn't politically afford to knight him in a public ceremony, so she did it on his boat, during a "visit". Drake is a pretty fun historical character. I actually was sired by him in my first WW game. :)