Martyn reviews: Jane Eyre
A classic.
Jane Eyre is a classic story, written by Charlotte Brontë in 1847, and brought to life in the stunning film adaption by Cary Fukanaga.
The film follows the principles of the book, making it fresh, and in an age of cynicism towards remakes and studio rehashes, it actually comes together as a beautiful, and relevant tale.
The story follows our protagonist, Jane Eyre, as she runs away, from what and where is unclear, but there's fear and desperation in her lungs. Throughout the film we're given the flashbacks of how she has come to be, from her youth with an overruling Aunt, to her school years, and to her first job. It's a tale of woe, and one with a dark nature.
Even with the story's age and probable dissection in English classes throughout the world, I don't want to spoil the tale. It's a film which takes a young girl through the steps until she is a woman. It takes fear, desire, depression, and youth, corrupting them and pushing us through the journey.
I was surprised with the believable nature of the story, (even more so than 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes') as the characters just felt real. It had the depth you'd expect from a novel and took us on the same journey, with all the details on the way. The film really does hit home the emotion when it needs to, the character's and their individual plights don't feel forced, naturally finding themselves within their predicaments, dealing with the hand they've got.
It is both a credit to Brontë's realism in writing, and Fukanaga's direction that the film literally feels like its happened, and that it is happening for the first time in front of your eyes.
Overall, the film oozes beauty, the opening is one of the most stunning in recent memory, and haunts with its grace. The soundtrack is fantastic, going with the classic aesthetic, whilst retaining the needed emotion and most of all, unease.
The acting is fantastic, Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender come off as revelations, and their chemistry is at times unbearably unsettling, with the deep stares, lips poised and rearing.
In all respects, its a fantastic tale, brilliantly told, and beautifully brought to life. Even with my dislike of period dramas, Jane Eyre is my film of the year. A haunting and fascinating look into the past, and one I shall not soon forget.
9/10
The Myth of the American Sleepover Synopsis - Four young people navigate the suburban wonderland of metro-Detroit looking for love and adventure on the last weekend of summer. It took me one whole year for me to finally watch this film. When I first saw the trailer to this film I was instantly hooked on the story the characters and the idea. It annoys me when small independent films with great stories don’t get an international release. But before I get off on a tangent ranting about the Hollywood monopoly system, let me get back to reviewing this film. I like to think we live in a world where everything is not black or white, you know everything is not as it seems, and good people can do bad things and vice versa. Life is complicated and growing up is the most difficult time for any teenager, especially in this day and age where everything you say and do can be scrutinised. The film follows a bunch of different teenagers as they come to the close of the summer holidays. The film spans across a day and tells the story of how both the male and female teens spend their night at sleepovers and parties. The story is told at a wonderful pace and the characters are likeable; you can sympathise with them and the emotions they go through when trying to find love. The director does a beautiful job in capturing the raw beauty of teenage suburban life. This is the first feature film by director David Robert Mitchell, and he's done a decent job in telling a story, which a lot of mainstream Hollywood films fail to do. At times the film does go off topic but quickly finds its way back and tells a good story. What really works for the film is the cast, the actors are superbly casted and bring something to their individual characters. They are believable and a lot of teenagers will easily relate to one or more characters. The attraction of this film is definitely the idea of how teenagers find love and define relationships; it gives a message of hope and promise. It’s a real shame that this film won’t be watched by many (as with a lot of indie films) because of its limited release. But if you ever get a chance to watch this film or want to legally download it and watch it I’d say go for it. It’s a coming of age tale of teens, hope, love and life. The film also has an impressive soundtrack to it, which definitely helps in capturing the emotions and the sentimental-ness of the heart. A thoroughly well written and directed film and a tremendous cast that will take you on a journey. 7/10 Muni
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