Jane Eyre (2011 film)

Based on Charlotte Bronte’s novel, Jane Eyre is the story of a young woman who had endured a life of cruelty as a child and later as an adult until she becomes the governess of a mysterious man she falls for. Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and adapted into script by Moira Buffini, the film explores a young woman’s plight as she goes from being in an unloving environment and then yearn for love in this mysterious man as Mia Wasikowska plays the titular role. Also starring Michael Fassbender, Sally Hawkins, Jamie Bell, Imogen Poots, Tamzin Merchant, and Judi Dench. The 2011 film version of Jane Eyre is an exquisite yet haunting film from Cary Joji Fukunaga.

Wandering around the moors and land, Jane Eyre arrives at a small cottage as she is under the care of St. John Rivers (Jamie Bell) and his two sisters Mary (Tamzin Merchant) and Diana (Holly Grainger). Staying temporarily at the Rivers home, Jane recalls her life as a child (Amelia Clarkson) as she had lived a life of cruelty in the hands of her aunt Mrs. Reed (Sally Hawkins). Taken to the very strict Lowood Institution under the supervision of the very abusive Mr. Brocklehurst (Simon McBurney), Jane befriends Helen Burns (Freya Parks) who helps Jane deal with her situation. More than a decade later, Jane leaves Lowood to become the governess for a house called Thornfield Hall. Meeting with its housekeeper Mrs. Fairfax (Judi Dench), Jane’s job is to teach the young French girl named Adele (Romy Settbon Moore) while helping out Mrs. Fairfax.

Walking to send a letter, a horse nearly runs over Jane as it’s rider is revealed to Thornfield Hall’s master Edward Rochester (Michael Fassbender). After meeting him later in the day, Jane deals with Rochester’s mysterious yet brooding persona as well as his questions about her life and such. When his room is on fire due to something mysterious as Jane saved him, the two forge a friendship as she asks Mrs. Fairfax about Rochester as she admits, she has no idea what he’s hiding. At a party held in Thornfield Hall where Rochester brings his fiancee` Blance Ingram (Imogen Poots), Jane observes what is happening as she has hard time contending with her feelings for Rochester. The unexpected visit of a man named Richard Mason (Harry Lloyd) appears where Jane assists Rochester in this ordeal.

After taking a break to visit her ailing aunt, Jane returns to Thornfield as she hears some news about Rochester and Ingram as Rochester reveals his feelings for Jane. Yet, their courtship ends due to the secret that Rochester has been hiding leaving Jane in despair over everything she’s endured in her life.

In this adaptation of Charlotte Bronte’s Gothic novel, it is a film told largely from the perspective of the titular character as she reflects on her time with this strange yet enigmatic man who would disappear for days and then come back unexpectedly. Notably as she has to deal with other weird things in this house and parts of her past where she endured abuse, neglect, and the idea of not being loved. Moira Buffini’s screenplay does follow the book faithfully while she does create a narrative that is more of a reflective one as it starts off near the end as Jane leaves a house and eventually arrives at the home of a young clergyman and his sisters. The script also allows the characters to be fleshed out more like the maternal Mrs. Fairfax as well as the kind but religious St. John Rivers. Yet, it is the relationship between Jane and Rochester that is the heart of the film as Buffini explores the emotional tension between the two as well as their own dark secrets.

The direction of Cary Joji Fukunaga is extraordinarily magical for the imagery he presents as well as the tension and atmosphere that surrounds the film. Wanting to be true to the Gothic tone of Bronte’s book, Fukunaga aims for a look where there aren’t a lot of direct colors as the palette goes for a very soft, naturalistic look with a bit of de-saturation as there’s no red or anything very bright that occurs. Shooting the film with some hand-held cameras and steady camera shots including some very wondrous movements to soak up the location and set pieces. Fukunaga also creates some striking compositions to capture the dramatic tension of the film such as the opening shot of Jane leaving while utilizing gorgeous wide shots to capture the beautiful yet stark images of the British countryside landscape. The overall work that Fukunaga does is truly enchanting in its look and tone.

Cinematographer Adriano Goldman does a tremendous job with the film‘s gorgeous yet ravishing cinematography filled with wonderful yet naturalistic interiors for some of the nighttime scenes in Thornfield Hall along with some beautiful exteriors of the British countryside including the skylines at it all plays to a certain color palette that emphasizes the film‘s Gothic tone. Editor Melanie Oliver does an excellent job with the film’s tight yet seamlessly fluid editing with the use of a few jump-cuts and straight transitions while playing up to the intensity of its suspenseful and dramatic moments.

Production designer Will Hughes-Jones, along with set decorator Tim Jones and art director Karl Probert, does an incredible job with the set pieces created such as the rooms in Thornfield Hall as well as drab yet oppressive dining hall at Lowood Institution. Costume designer Michael O’Connor does a fantastic job with the costumes from the very de-colored and dark clothes that Jane mostly wears to the more stately yet regal look of Rochester. Makeup and hair designer Daniel Phillips does a terrific job with the hair and makeup design for the characters from the braided hair of the women to the sideburns of the male characters.

Sound editors Matthew Collinge and Catherine Hodgson do an amazing job with the sound work from the intensity of the locations to the more sparse intimacy of Thornfield Hall that includes some chilly moments and layers of dialogue that occurs in scenes where Jane pines for Rochester. The film’s score by Dario Marianelli is definitely spectacular for its array of pieces ranging from somber piano themes to play up the romance to more low-key orchestral cuts to play up the drama in the film as it’s definitely one of Marianelli’s best scores.

The casting by Nina Gold is brilliant for the ensemble that is created as it includes notable small roles from Craig Roberts as Jane’s cruel cousin John, Eglatine Rembauville-Nicolle as Adele’s nanny Sophie, Valentina Cervi as a mysterious woman at Thornfield Hall, Imogen Poots as Rochester’s fiancee` Blanche, Simon McBurney as the very abusive Mr. Brocklehurst, Harry Lloyd as the mysterious Mr. Mason, Holly Grainger and Tamzin Merchant as St. John’s kind sisters, and Freya Parks as Jane’s old school friend Helen Burns. Other outstanding supporting roles include Sally Hawkins as Jane’s neglectful and uncaring aunt Mrs. Reed, Romy Settbon Moore as the lively French girl Adele, and Amelia Clarkson in a very chilling performance as the young Jane Eyre.

Jamie Bell is wonderful as St. John Rivers, a clergyman who takes Jane in and becomes a friend while having hopes to become more than just her friend. Judi Dench is superb as Mrs. Fairfax, a sympathetic housekeeper who helps Jane with the things about Thornfield while being the one person who keeps Jane and Rochester grounded. Michael Fassbender gives a truly haunting performance as Edward Rochester with his calm yet brooding persona as well displaying a sense of torment that adds to everything that he’s trying to hide as it’s truly some of Fassbender’s best work as an actor.

Finally, there’s Mia Wasikowska in a truly divine performance as the titular character. Not afraid to display humility and anguish, Wasikowska brings a truly mesmerizing approach to the character who tries to maintain a sense of duty while dealing with her feelings for Rochester. The chemistry between Wasikowska and Fassbender is extraordinary for the tension they bring as Fassbender would often dominate with Wasikowska being very quiet. In more emotional scenes, the two restrain themselves from being very dramatic as it is about the anguish and love these two characters have for each other. Notably as Wasikowska maintains the restraint more than Fassbender as it is definitely the best performance she’s given so far in her young career.

The 2011 adaptation of Jane Eyre is a truly magnificent yet entrancing film from Cary Joji Fukunaga that features outstanding lead performances from Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender. Along with great technical work, a fabulous score, and wonderful supporting work from Judi Dench, Jamie Bell, and Sally Hawkins. It is definitely a film that gives Charlotte Bronte’s famed novel a very unique yet visually-dazzling take that does more than what some adaptations of the story has done. In the end, the 2011 adaptation of Jane Eyre is a truly enchanting yet mesmerizing film from Cary Joji Fukunaga.

Related: Jane Eyre (1943 film)

Cary Joji Fukunaga Films: Sin Nombre - (Beasts of No Nation) - No Time to Die

© thevoid99 2012

Jane Eyre (1943 film)

Based on Charlotte Bronte’s novel, Jane Eyre is the story of an orphaned girl who goes through abuse as a child and delve into lots of turmoil in her life until she meets and falls for a man while serving as a governess at mansion. Directed by Robert Stevenson and adapted by Robert Stevenson, Aldous Huxley, John Houseman, and un-credited work from Henry Koster. The film explores a girl’s life into womanhood as she grows into different periods of her life being loveless and mistreated. Starring Orson Welles, Joan Fontaine, Margaret O’Brien, Peggy Ann Garner, John Sutton, Sara Allgood, Henry Daniell, Agnes Moorehead, and an early appearance from Elizabeth Taylor. Jane Eyre is mesmerizing and intoxicating film from Robert Stevenson.

Losing her parents at an early age and living with her cruel aunt Reed (Agnes Moorehead) and cousin John (Ronald Harris), Jane Eyre (Peggy Ann Garner) is sent to Lowood Institution where she endures more cruelty from its headmaster Mr. Brocklehurst (Henry Daniell). Finding friendship in a young girl named Helen Burns (Elizabeth Taylor) and sympathy from Dr. Rivers (John Sutton), Jane eventually becomes educated as she leaves the institution 10 years later as an adult (Joan Fontaine). Taking a job as a governess for a mansion called Thornfield Hall, she meets its housekeeper Alice Fairfax (Edith Barrett) as she would care for a young French girl named Adele (Margaret O’Brien). Walking outside of the house, Jane sees a horse coming by as a man falls off the horse as he is revealed to the house’s owner in Edward Rochester (Orson Welles).

While Rochester maintains a very brooding yet mysterious persona as he treats Jane coldly at first. He starts to confide in her in the way she takes care of Adele as well as dealing with some of the mysterious things at home. Particularly when a fire happens in Rochester’s room where Jane heard a laugh and footsteps happening. The two forge a friendship as Jane still ponders about what Rochester might be hiding as she and Fairfax organize a party that is to be attended by many guests including Rochester’s fiancee Blance Ingram (Hillary Brooke). Jane watches from afar at the party as she tries to cope with her feelings towards Rochester while a surprise visit from a man named Mr. Mason (John Abbott) appears. Rochester tries to deal with Mason, who is later injured by an attack, while Jane wonders what Rochester is hiding.

After helping Rochester deal with Mason, Jane considers leaving as Rochester pleas for her to stay. Just as things between the two go well, Rochester’s secret is unveiled forcing Jane to make a heartbreaking decision of her own.

In this adaptation of Charlotte Bronte’s novel about a poor, mistreated plain woman who falls for this mysterious man whose house she runs as she tries to discover what is he hiding and why he is often away from this house. Throughout the film, the story explores this young girl’s journey into seeking love and companionship as she would endure loss and abuse as a child and later deal with a form of indifference as an adult. Yet, there would be people who would care for this young girl that would shape her into becoming this woman who can run things and be this observer to a man who is quite enigmatic and often very cold at times. The screenplay explores the relationship between Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester as well as being this very dramatic mystery. It is told largely from Jane’s perspective as if she is reading the actual book which includes an intro made for the film. While some scenes are changed from the book to add more dramatic punch to the film, the script does work in maintaining the tension and longing between Eyre and Rochester.

Robert Stevenson’s direction is very stylish for the way the Thornfield Hall manor and its exteriors are presented to maintain that Gothic look and tone of the book. While a lot of the compositions for the conversations and dramatic portions of the film are straightforward. There is an element of style to the look of those shots while Stevenson does create some amazing close-ups to express the emotions and drama. For the suspenseful moments, Stevenson slowly builds things up while keeping this ambiguous as he doesn’t reveal Rochester’s secret except in little hints and through conversation. The overall work that Stevenson does is pretty remarkable as well as spellbinding for maintaining a look that is true to Bronte’s vision of the story.

Cinematographer George Barnes does an incredible job with the film‘s black-and-white photography from the chilly exteriors of the moors to the more entrancing shades and ominous look for the dark interiors at the Thornfield Hall manor. Editor Walter Thompson does an excellent job with the editing as a lot of it is straightforward with dissolves and transitional fade-outs to help maintain a leisured pace for the film. Art directors James Basevi and Wiard Ihnen, along with set decorator Thomas Little, do fantastic work with the set pieces created such as the eerie manor as well as the spacious yet oppressive Lowood dining hall.

Costume designer Rene Hubert does a nice job with the costumes from the black dress and bonnet that Jane Eyre wears to the more regal look of Rochester. The sound work of W.D. Flick and Roger Heman Sr is terrific for the intimacy it provides in the conversation scenes along with the more terrifying moments involving thunderstorms and winds that occur in a few scenes. The film’s score by Bernard Herrmann is brilliant for its sweeping yet suspenseful score that also swells into dramatic arrangements led by a big orchestra as it’s the film’s technical highlight.

The film’s cast is definitely outstanding for the ensemble created that includes small roles from John Abbot as Mr. Mason, Ronald Harris as Jane’s young cousin John, Hillary Brooke as Rochester’s outgoing fiancee Blanche, Aubrey Mather as Rochester’s party guest Colonel Dent, Sara Allgood as Jane’s old kind maid Bessie, and a young Elizabeth Taylor in a splendid performance as young Jane’s best friend Helen Burns. Other notable supporting roles include Edith Barrett as the helpful Mrs. Fairfax, Henry Daniell as the abusive Brocklehurst, Anges Moorehead as the cruel Mrs. Reed, and John Sutton as the very kind Dr. Rivers. Margaret O’Brien is very good as the lively Adele while Peggy Ann Garner is superb in the role of the young Jane Eyre.

Orson Welles is great in the role of Edward Rochester with his imposing physique and brooding persona. While Welles’ approach to the character is theatrical in its tone, he does maintain the dramatic tropes needed for the character as he delves into despair. Finally, there’s Joan Fontaine in a fantastic performance as the titular character. Armed with a great sense of restraint to the melodrama as well as being a woman who endures all sorts of tribulations as well as refusing to be pinned down for who she is. It’s a very entrancing yet spellbinding performance from Fontaine.

The 1943 film version of Jane Eyre is a wonderful yet eerie film from Robert Stevenson featuring outstanding performances from Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine. The film is definitely an interesting take on Charlotte Bronte’s novel as well as playing to the dramatic style of the 1940s. Notably as it features some amazing technical work to help play to the Gothic mood of the film. In the end, Robert Stevenson’s adaptation of Jane Eyre is a chilling yet rapturous film.

Jane Eyre (2011 film)

© thevoid99 2012