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Becoming Jane
Miramax, 2007
Jessica Cornish, 18
Australia
Jane Hathaway stars as the writer Jane Austen in Becoming Jane.
Photo: Colm Hogan/Courtesy of Miramax Films
The car stumbled to a halt as my newfound Israeli friends and I made our way to the chaotic cinema city. It seemed that fortune had finally smiled upon me as I was lucky enough to escape my mundane duties as "the summer camp shop lady" who sells fruit drinks. So, imagine my excitement and sheer relief of managing to score a night out at one of Israel's most prided cinemas located just outside of Tel Aviv to see Becoming Jane.
Not even having heard that a movie such as Becoming Jane was in existence, I had few expectations regarding the film. Free from any preconceived ideas fostered by cynical reviews, I eagerly sat in my little square seat with soda in hand as I was slowly absorbed into the world of Jane Austen.
Set in eighteenth-century England, we first meet the headstrong and talented young Jane (played by American Anne Hathaway) as she fails to conform to society's conduct for young women. Born into a poor but solid family, Jane constantly finds herself pressured to marry a financially well-off man as a gateway out of poverty and into financial security and comfort.
To Jane's dismay, and her family's delight, it seems that the conventional and seemingly emotionless nephew of the exceptionally wealthy Lady Gresham (Maggie Smith), Mr. Wisley (Laurence Fox), takes a liking to Jane. But she is seeking affection, not the cold comfort of cash. Instead, she has her heart set on the aspiring lawyer from Limerick with a 'reputation,' Mr. Lefroy (James McAvoy). Yet try as they might, it seems that life with the cheeky suitor is unobtainable time and time again.
Ann Hathaway as Jane Austen and James McAvoy as Tom LeFroy in Becoming Jane.
Photo: Colm Hogan/Courtesy of Miramax Films
Despite family circumstances and encounters with various men, through the good times and the bad, Jane continues to delve deep into her imagination and create her novels, including the future classic Pride and Prejudice. She is determined to live a "life by the pen" even after the harsh realization that to live such a life is not a socially acceptable choice for women in 18th century England.
Becoming Jane is a long movie in comparison to your regular 90-minute feature film. At times I felt a couple of scenes dragged on longer than necessary, and it was difficult to hear some of the dialogue. On the whole, though, it was well directed by Englishman Julian Jarrold, visually picturesque, musically pleasant, and well cast. Anne Hathaway proved herself as a serious actor with a lot of potential as she leads the strong supporting cast, including the incredible Maggie Smith, the appealing James McAvoy, and the charismatic Julie Walters.
At the end of the movie, I felt sympathy for Jane, but my admiration for her overrode those feelings because she dared to take a risk and live a life that was truthful to her nature, something she could have easily denied, as so many people do. For better or worse, she stuck by her passion and fought the confines of society, and eventually her hard work was rewarded.
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