Hm. That's probably because of the Fanny Situation --- if you leave her the way she is, people complain that it's boring. If you give her even a little more vigor, people complain that they're modernizing her. They did make some changes to Fanny in this one, but I didn't think they went overboard. She's still shy, sweet, and moral --- but she also has a sense of fun and laughter.
My main problem with this one, at least on first viewing, is that it went so fast, it would have been hard to tell what was happening if I'd been unfamiliar with the story. For instance, it seemed like they had no sooner started the play, than Sir Thomas suddenly came home. Fanny's return to Portsmouth was also very confusing --- so much so that when Tom was sick, it seemed like they were delivering him to Portsmouth, rather than to Mansfield. Then they tried to make up for the fast pace by having the characters plainly state their motivations and character arcs, whereas in the book, it was the narrator who expressed them.
I think the good far outshone the bad, though. I liked that they clearly showed exactly why Edmund and Fanny were so opposed to the play, without making them seem like prudes. The final scene between Edmund and Mary was also very well-done.
It is hard to make the perfect adaptation, though. With this one, I give them credit for staying as close to the book as possible within a very limited time frame.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2007-03-24 05:16 pm (UTC)My main problem with this one, at least on first viewing, is that it went so fast, it would have been hard to tell what was happening if I'd been unfamiliar with the story. For instance, it seemed like they had no sooner started the play, than Sir Thomas suddenly came home. Fanny's return to Portsmouth was also very confusing --- so much so that when Tom was sick, it seemed like they were delivering him to Portsmouth, rather than to Mansfield. Then they tried to make up for the fast pace by having the characters plainly state their motivations and character arcs, whereas in the book, it was the narrator who expressed them.
I think the good far outshone the bad, though. I liked that they clearly showed exactly why Edmund and Fanny were so opposed to the play, without making them seem like prudes. The final scene between Edmund and Mary was also very well-done.
It is hard to make the perfect adaptation, though. With this one, I give them credit for staying as close to the book as possible within a very limited time frame.