Movie review: "Jane Eyre"

For those of you who are wondering about the new adaptation of the great Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, let me give you a quick rundown. For those of you who haven't read the book, you might not understand some of my references, so you could probably just skip to the final paragraph for my final word.

Many of you know the story. As a young girl, Jane, despised by her living relatives, is sent off to a cruel boarding school where she at least gains enough education to later become a governess. Governess to the ward of one Mr. Edward Fairfax Rochester, who is not the most handsome of men but dreamy in that broody moody Gothic lit way. Jane keeps all emotion out of her affairs with others, as they never seemed to help her before, until Rochester admits the unthinkable: he loves her! But a terrible secret is revealed, and Jane must make the biggest decisions of her life.

Okay, so I have to admit, when the movie started I looked over to my friend (who also loves the book) and said, "What the hell is going on?" We open with a clearly upset Jane who eventually ends up sobbing in the grayish British moors, for no apparent reason. What part are we on, I wondered? Is this supposed to e 12-year-old Jane running from the house of her awful cousins? No, it's not—it is 17-year-old Jane, surprise! And she is running away from Thornfield. Far too early.

You see, the people of Focus Features decided to kind of tell the story in flashbacks. Jane is telling parts of her story to the Rivers (you'll find out who they are, sort of, by the end of the movie/book). But after my initial confusion on this front, I started to get into the movie a bit more.

I loved the casting they did. Sure, Rochester might have been a bit too pretty, but he wasn't too good-looking or too old. And Mia Wasikowska is lovely. I thought she did an excellent job in her portrayal, and her looks fall right into one would expect for Jane. At least they did for me. And Dame Judi Dench!!! Score right there. Also, Amelia Clarkson, who was little Jane, did a great job. I hope she has a career ahead of her, she's got some talent.

I know it's hard to do justice to a tome like Jane Eyre, but a one-and-a-half hour movie just doesn't cut it. The movie felt too condensed; Jane's childhood was glossed over, with parts completely cut. And and IMPORTANT scene with a VEIL was cut too!! I was a little upset about that.

But again, considering they couldn't make this five hours long, I thought this was a good adaptation of the novel, though of course it is no substitute for reading the book itself. So much is missed with just the movie.

Final word: If you have read and loved the book, this is worth seeing, though you could probably just wait to get it on Netflix or the library instead of dropping $10. If you haven't and are too lazy to read it, at least you'll get the gist of the story. But if you have the time to read it, do it—it's a much more fulfilling experience.

Villette Readalong: Done!

Aaaaaand DONE. I did it! I finished Villette after 2 whole months of reading! Thanks again to Wallace at Unputdownables for hosting this—I don't think I would have been able to finish it without the discussions and the others who were right there with me.

My thoughts on the last 7 chapters of Villette contain **spoilers**, just a warning!

So as most of you who've read this, I'm sure, I was not surprised about Polly or Dr. John/Graham. Graham's a good guy, and he ended up with a good, intelligent lady who is not too intelligent. They're pretty much perfect for each other and they love each other, so that's that. It was sweet how Polly's dad was so sad about how she wasn't a little girl anymore and would be leaving him, sort of. But that's just the way it is!

As for Ginevra, yikes. Talk about selfish and self-absorbed. At least she was fairly happy in the end, or seemed to be from Lucy's recounting her letters from the following years. And I have to say, I'm pretty disappointed the NUN (was anyone else amused by how Bronte always put that in ALL CAPS?) wasn't actually a ghost, but stupid suitor boy that stole away with Ginevra.

And Madame Beck and Pere Silas? Mean mean mean. I have to say I wasn't surprised about Madame; I don't think I ever really liked her. Tolerated, maybe, since she wasn't going through MY things, but boy was she nasty. And Pere Silas was right up there with her, unwilling for his "student" to fraternize with a *shudder* Protestant. How un-Christian. He is a bad priest! What with sending M. Paul off and all.

That second-to-last chapter was lovely. I was so happy for Lucy, and I got a flavor of Jane Eyre and the romance bit from that. It really shows how much love there was from M. Paul, how much he cared for Lucy. And Lucy's reaction was great. I loved that she couldn't remember what she said, because honestly I have no idea how she remembered the rest of the dialogue (unrealistic, but necessary). It gives the two of them a bit more privacy.

And then of course comes the tragedy in the last chapter. M. Paul is lost at sea, and Lucy never sees him again. I wasn't surprised by this either; I was fully expecting something terrible on the horizon, since Lucy keeps talking about how unhappy she is throughout the entire narrative. I do have to say, though, I didn't expect it to end like that. It certainly harkens back to Mrs. Marchmont and the tragedy that changed her life. The final two sentences showed the injustice of it all; the three who sent M. Paul away to the West Indies lived long and fruitful lives. So unfair. Lucy must be one sad old lady.

Thanks for sticking through to the end to those of you who did! I think I'm going to take a break from readalongs for now, though I might pick them back up when I find one I'd like to jump into.

Villette Readalong: Week 6

After six weeks, we're getting there. Not too far from the end now!

I'm starting to like Polly more. Kudos to her for getting back at Ginevra by getting Dr. John's attention and getting him to ignore her! Serve G right. Oh, and Lucy's ripping Ginevra a new one was awesome too.

But most of this section dealt with M. Paul Emmanuel, the most unpredictable dude of the lot of them. Poor Lucy never has any idea what to expect, though honestly I don't find her helping matters much. I got really annoyed when she didn't give him her present at his fete.

I'm finding M. Paul growing on me, oddly enough. I was not a big fan of him at first, and I don't think I'm a big fan of him now, but I can see why Lucy is fond of him. He can be pretty generous, though I don't think he handles some social situations very well. I wish he would just be more patient and less mean.

In any case, I'm sure this relationship is going somewhere. Where is the real question, and honestly it probably won't end too well if present-day Lucy's musings are any indication.

Villette Readalong: Week 5

**Warning! Spoilers, through chapter 25!**

Well, FINALLY. I was hoping for some crazy things to happen and my wish was granted. Not only does one crazy thing happen, a few do. First off, there might be a real ghost in the attic (or maybe Lucy's just insane). THEN Lucy goes to the theater with Dr. John/Graham and sees this great actress in some play, only to have the climax interrupted by a FIRE. And in the ensuing confusion and stampeding, Graham and Lucy witness a girl get thrown under the crowd. Graham, of course, saves her, and it turns out to be no one other than (surprise!) creepy little Polly, who is no longer little but still creepy.

Okay, so Polly's a little obsessive about her dad, and it weirds me out. I'm sensing some serious Electra complex going on here. Though she's also once again getting attached to Graham, who obviously likes her a great deal and they will probably end up a couple. (Sorry, Lucy.)

As for Lucy, she's got some issues to deal with. If that ghost isn't real, she's hallucinating, and it's not good. Plus she has this unhealthy obsession with Graham (lots of obsessing going on here). She's driving herself to some sort of edge, and if she's not careful she's gonna fly off it, sobbing her way all the way down.

Did anyone else think it was kind of on purpose that Lucy saw this spectre in the attic, like Bronte was giving a shout-out to Jane Eyre and that other madwoman in the attic? I thought that was interesting and too coincidental to be an accident.

Can we also talk about how COMPLETELY convenient it is that Lucy and Graham run into Polly and her father at the theater, almost literally? Well, Polly gets trampled sort of and Graham saves her sort of. It all seems way too contrived. This whole thing seems very contrived. "Oh, how odd that ALL OF US just HAPPEN to be in Villette at the same time! Oh, and you're cousins with Ginevra Fanshawe?! IMAGINE!" I mean, come on.

I'm guessing we'll be seeing a lot more of Polly in the next few chapters; you know she's going to end up at Villette so we can get the plot rolling along with some drama and whatever weird love trapezoid (pentagon?) will happen as a result.

Villette Readalong: Week 4

I am still struggling to get through this a bit, but I'm getting more interested now that stuff is actually happening. Lucy obviously is starting to like Dr. John/Graham, and is starting to get more involved in her own life. Good for her for sticking up for herself in that art gallery. She can look at whatever she damn well pleases, M. Paul. THAT annoyed me. Who does that guy think he is, her dad? Geez. I guess it's nice that he is concerned for her well-being, but come on.

And FINALLY Dr. John realizes Ginevra is a jerk. Though why Lucy swoops in to defend her like she does I have no idea. I know she feels a loyalty to her and find her a harmless flirt, but man, when someone is hurting about his crush like that, you agree with them. Though I suppose Ginevra is her only friend at Villette, which kind of sucks honestly.

I think my favorite part of this section was when Lucy saw that pink dress. I could just imagine her thinking, "Oh hell no." But I bet it looked great with the black lace overlay.

I'm sort of worried about M. Paul getting upset with Lucy at the concert. He does not seem to be someone Lucy wants to have as an enemy, and he seemed genuinely upset at her trying to avoid him. I think he's overreacting honestly, but still, he's going to treat her differently from now on.

One thing that's really annoying me is Lucy's constant interjections from her present-day self like "THAT WAS WHEN I WAS HAPPY" and whatnot. Obviously she's not happy anymore; that's something I would like to see through foreshadow, not "hintity hint hint" from old lady Lucy.

Anyway, on to the next five chapters. I could use some real crazy crap going on in here.

Villette Readalong: Week 3

Whew! JUST finished the part assigned for week 3, and all I have to say is I KNEW IT I TOTALLY CALLED THAT IN YOUR FACE.

**WARNING: Spoilers for Villette up to chapter 18 follow.**

Holy crap I TOTALLY called Dr. John being Graham. I super excited that I was totally right. The hair! The name! As to how it all played out, well, I'm glad Lucy FINALLY had a reason to say something to him. Honestly though, how could he have not recognized her? For real. She spent large amounts of time at his house. I know he was all preoccupied with Ginevra being a huge bee-yotch, but come on now. I'd have been upset if he hadn't recognized me too, which is (I'm guessing) the reason Lucy didn't say a damn word. Kids!

And how completely bizarre must it have been for Lucy to wake up with so many familiar objects around her like that? It's like when you wake up and you can't remember where you are, but times 10. She thought she was crazy, she said so herself. I'd have freaked.

**SPOILERS DONE**

As for everything else going on, I'm wanting some more action. I'm starting to lose a little interest in the characters, though the last couple chapters got me into it a little more. Lucy is clearly grappling with the tragedies of her past, and I'm hoping we get to see what that's all about. I want to know what happened.

Villette Readalong: Week 2

Just to warn you all, if you haven't read through the first 10 chapters of Villette, there might be some minor spoilers following. But nothing too revealing.

All right, so Lucy is proving herself to be pretty awesome by week two. She's begun her journey sans any sort of plan or funding besides her original 15 pounds and has somehow managed to land a teaching job after a few bumps along the way. Sweet stuff.

Let's take a look at the new characters we've come across, shall we? I kind of like Ginevra, despite her complete flakiness and selfishness. Not sure why. I mean, I don't love her and wouldn't want to hang out with her or anything, but I would rather be her superficial friend than someone she targets. I could live with having her as my gossip buddy that I can't trust (we've all had those, amiright?). And Madame Beck is... interesting. Another one I'd keep on my good side. I love how Lucy manages to admire pretty much everyone and know how to work with them, instead of thinking she's better or too good for someone. Even if the person is kind of weird or not someone very likable. Because personally, I don't like Madame Beck, but from Lucy's perspective I can see how she doesn't mind her so much.

Lucy has shown again and again that she can totally take care of herself without too many hitches. She's seen some luck so far, but I think her survival is mostly because of her quick thinking and management of all the resources she's got. Props to her.

And honestly? I think we all know who this Dr. John is. I'm fully expecting my suspicions to be confirmed in the next chapters. Onward!

"Villette" Readalong: Week One

Here's my first post for the Villette readalong, hosted by Unputdownables.

After reading the first five chapters, I can tell I will like this book. Though it's not Jane Eyre (one of my favorite books ever), it has a similar tone. I know the story is going to be different and that's fine with me; I'm interested to see what Bronte does with it, and where she will take our heroine, Lucy Snowe.

To me, the beginning is really just setting up Lucy's character in comparison to those around her who have incredibly strong feelings of love and sorrow. We see little Paulina, a girl who has incredible sensibility (I use that term in the 19th-century meaning, or great emotion). She is passionate about nearly everything, and takes everything seriously, especially for such a young girl. Next to her Lucy is practically an automaton; we see nothing of her character here, only her great calm.

Then she is put up against Miss Marchmont, an elderly woman for whom she works for a short while. Miss Marchmont has known great love, and has lost it; thus she has suffered every day since. Lucy hasn't known that sort of love yet, not even love for her family. The family she mentions she seems only fond of.

Finally in the fifth chapter we see some of who Lucy is as a character. She decides to embark upon a new adventure: to London! Without any sort of income and just 15 pounds in her pocket, she goes on a journey to find a means to provide for herself. She shows remarkable courage and strength, especially for the time; not many women traveled alone, and if they did they had a destination and object in mind. I look forward to seeing how she changes, and how she reacts when she falls in love (which we know she will).

Woman in White Readalong: Post #1 (Halfway!)

The Woman In White Readalong: Halfway Point

Hooray, I've made it halfway through this novel! I am quite liking it so far, though I'm waiting for the real action to begin again. I was riveted by Anne Catherick's encounters with our narrators, though I am sorry that there haven't been more.

I like most of the characters, especially Marian Halcombe, who is a strong and worthy opponent to all the evil men she finds herself around. Plus she's one smart cookie. Walter Hartright is a nice man too, though he is pretty sexist (as I think Collins was, if this text is to give any clue). I liked reading his narrative, as he seems to be the most proactive of the bunch of "good guys," being the only young man of the group—Marian can only do so much, as a woman. The biggest annoyance I had was Hartright's 2-page(ish) description of Laura's loveliness. SNORE. I get it, she's pretty and you pretty much love her. MOVING ON.

I don't particularly care for Laura, unfortunately, as most of the story revolves around her situation. She's pretty weak and not very intelligent, but I suppose I should give her a little slack since she can't be expected to be able to stand up for herself very well (the times, you know). I just wish she had more of a backbone. Her husband, Sir Percival, is a terrible bully and abusive, which disturbs me. I'm hoping he will get what he deserves, but we shall see I suppose. He's truly awful.

And Count Fosco? Super creepy. He seems to be a genius, knowing exactly how to appeal to everyone and getting them in his grasp. He is a master manipulator, holding all the cards, and he knows it.

All in all, I'm eagerly looking forward to where this is going. I hope to see more of Hartright, and I can't wait for the real action to start. I want to know what Sir Percival's secret is, and what will become of everyone, especially Anne Catherick, the woman in white.

My very first readalongs!

A third post in one day! How crazy! I just wanted to share with you all another development in my reading life today.

I've decided to participate in two readalongs, both hosted by Allie at A Literary Odyssey, and both starting in January. These are my first readalongs ever, so I'm kind of excited about it.

The first is a January readalong of Wilkie Collins' The Woman in White, a book I've been wanting to read for at least a couple of years. Finally I have a reason to get started on it, and I'll be able to talk about it with others.

The second is a readalong that will span January and February, thank goodness. That's because we'll be reading the very large and very long War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. This will be my second book by him, and I'm looking forward to it. I just hope I can finish it without falling (too far) behind!

Do you have any desire to read either of these? Join us! C'mon, it'll be fun. :)

Review: "Seventeenth Summer" by Maureen Daly

Title: Seventeenth Summer
Author: Maureen Daly
Publisher: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1942
Where I got it: I took this out of my local library.

It is the summer Angie is 17 years old, the summer before she goes to college in Chicago. The summer she falls in love with Jack. Angie tells her story, starting off when she first meets Jack, the local baker's son, and the progression of their relationship over the next three months.

This might have been one of the most boring books I've ever read. That's not to say it has no merit; I'm sure it was quite popular in the 1940s, when it was published, as it's a romance that many girls would have related to, or at least understood. For today's readership, it falls very flat. The plot is pretty much "Angie likes Jack, and she is surprised he likes her too. They go out on dates and fall in love." The end. I'm not a violent person or a sadist, but I kept hoping something completely unexpected and dramatic would happen, like someone would die in a horrible accident or Angie's sister would get pregnant or something crazy.

That said, this does give a good idea of what life was like in small-town America back then. How people went about their daily business, what they did for fun, who was considered to be a "fast" boy or girl, etc. It's a completely different world than the one we are used to.

Daly's prose is smooth and descriptive, lilting and lazy all at once. She often uses lovely simile, if not completely original ("flows like honey," "floats like a dust mote"). However, the sentences seemed too long to me and aren't broken up by too much punctuation, which gives them a run-on feel to which I wasn't very partial.

Angie is not an unlikable character, but she isn't particularly likable either. She is pretty much just there feeling her feelings with no real outward displays of intelligence, interest, or anything resembling a dynamic personality. She's just there, quiet and polite without causing too much of a stir. That might have been appealing in the past, but I was quickly tired of it.

In fact, most of the regular characters were pretty one-dimensional and uninteresting, with the exception of Angie's older sister Lorraine. She was closer to irritating than interesting, though she did show some depth as well as adding to our understanding of the plight of women during that time—only attractive and housewife-y women were assigned any real value, by men or other women. Lorraine tended to try too hard to get attention from boys, one in particular, and the amount of attention she got directly affected her outlook on life.

This book is a classic among young adult coming-of-age stories, and I suppose it's because of its ability to allow readers to identify with Angie and her feelings of first love. But I'm surprised it was just reprinted in April with a new cover—I just don't think young adults today will be stimulated by a book in which almost nothing happens.

Throwback Thursday: "A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle

So I recently thought, wouldn't it be great if I used a day to review childhood favorites? I recently reread a bunch of books I loved when I was younger for a class, and I wanted to share my renewed love (or newly discovered disappointment). If you have a favorite from childhood that you want to revisit, please feel free to use this! Just link back to me, please.

For this, my first Throwback Thursday, I'm revisiting: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. Originally published in 1962 (not sure exactly by who; I've seen Yearling and Dell listed the most, and I've most often seen it as Laurel-Leaf book).

*Starred Review* (duh)

And yes, that's totally the cover from when I was little. It was the first one I ever saw, and will always be the best in my opinion. I don't know why I love it so much; it's incredibly creepy. Mrs. Whatsit looks terrifying, not to mention the Man with the Red Eyes. Floating in an orb. What's that all about?

ANYWAY.

Here's a brief synopsis for those of you who haven't read it: Meg Murry is an awkward and difficult teenage girl, and Charles Wallace is her precocious, intelligent 5-year-old brother. Along with Calvin O'Keefe, a kid Meg knows from school who gets caught up in the whole affair almost by accident, they go on a remarkable journey through space and universes trying to find and rescue their father, who disappeared the year before. But they soon find out they are battling much more than they originally thought.

I forgot how much I love this book. The entire time I was reading it, I felt like I was at home. Every time the children went to a new planet, met new people, I remembered and went into the safe spot in my head, even when they were in danger. Rereading this book is always a completely different experience from reading anything else. For some reason I get this completely unique feeling that's very hard to explain, but maybe you know what I'm talking about if you have a favorite book that's different from the rest.

I also did NOT remember the Christian messages sprinkled throughout the book. As an adult, I loved it, being a Christian myself, but I honestly don't remember it as being a Christian book. And I don't think L'Engle meant for it to be one, at least not like C.S. Lewis meant for his to be obviously Christian. The references are snuck in here and there, but it's not exclusive. And really, the overall message is about love—love is your greatest gift and protection, and it conquers all.

Some references are a little dated, but that's part of why I love it so much. It's got this completely different tone from stuff published today. I've heard someone suggest updating the language, but this would be a mistake. It would completely change the tone and feel of the language, something I would protect for the rest of my life. And it's not like you would update classic literature from centuries past into modern language.

If you haven't read this yet, you really should. It's completely different from anything else out there. I don't know if those of you who haven't read it would like it as much as those of use who read it as children, but that's up to each reader. I think it's fantastic, and it's gone through nearly 50 years of being in print with 69 printings (!) as a favorite.

What's one of your favorites from when you were little?