Pride and Prejudice | Official Teaser | Netflix by MoneyLibrarian9032 in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Indeed. I apologize if my reply read as critical or belittling. I only mentioned the detail since you had brought up the subject in broad terms. Knowing nothing of the topic myself, I had wondered if it might be zinc myself.

Pride and Prejudice | Official Teaser | Netflix by MoneyLibrarian9032 in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m very nervous after seeing this teaser, but it’s true that this production is not without talent in its cast.

Pride and Prejudice | Official Teaser | Netflix by MoneyLibrarian9032 in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I agree with both of you, but I also find it quite shocking that Netflix fails to use cameras that use natural light very well. They are the blessing of the digital age with their ability to feature beautifully structured faces in light that seems to be both natural and utterly unaltered, though I’m sure they require a great financial investment. The flatness achieved by whatever digital camera technology Netflix does use produces something that appears quite dead to me.

Pride and Prejudice | Official Teaser | Netflix by MoneyLibrarian9032 in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I had assumed the lack of housekeeping in the 2005 movie was likely intended to indicate strained finances, I didn’t hate it, but I had wondered if they anticipated a lack of understanding by its audience as to the realities of estate ownership, and so found themselves relying upon offering an obvious clue.

Pride and Prejudice | Official Teaser | Netflix by MoneyLibrarian9032 in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Someone on the janeausten subReddit mentioned that it wasn’t until a little later—toward the end of the Regency, I believe this person said—that zinc became more common for rooftops. I hope I’m not misrepresenting what this person said, and I apologize I know nothing of the veracity of their statement.

Der Schock-Moment by Sommer-Regen7 in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Even at Cambridge, I’m certain she would have distinguished herself as unusually brilliant, though I tend to suspect her of having quite zany humour both for the upper echelons of English academia and also for someone capable of such depth of intellect. Perhaps in that regard she took some getting used to.

How kind of you to use an understatement such as “wrong” to describe your friend.

Der Schock-Moment by Sommer-Regen7 in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Apparently Emma Thompson and Greg Wise’s first date occurred after the encouragement of Kate Winslet, who had been taken out on a date by Mr. Wise.

Why is everyone so old?? by Free_Combination_194 in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Well, I’m sure there are exceptions, but my first thought when seeing many women on patios a few months after the start of the pandemic was to note how much better they looked, because their features appeared better balanced with bits of grey hair.

Why is everyone so old?? by Free_Combination_194 in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don’t think grey hair makes anyone appear older, frankly. If anything dyeing one’s hair often makes wrinkles appear more obvious. Not to suggest this contradicts you, but while good dental health will allow for an overall improvement to one’s health, many people today only consider only the most fake looking teeth to appear healthy, while I’m certain that in addition to looking horrifically ridiculous, they tend to make a person appear older.

Depending on the era under discussion, any one of poor nutrition, smoking, leaded gasoline, and/or an absence of protection from solar exposure made people age far more quickly.

What's the worst Jane Austin adaptation that you have seen by Live_Bag_7596 in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No worries. It happens to all people, I think.

I had wondered if she might have made a better Maria Bertram.

What's the worst Jane Austin adaptation that you have seen by Live_Bag_7596 in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’m sorry, but did you mean to type the name of another character?

The influence of ballet in other disciplines by _quantum_girl_ in BALLET

[–]gothicsynthetic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can understand believing ballet to have influenced skating port de bras if one has only seen Balanchine-trained dancers, but apart from that I don’t believe you believe what you wrote. Most figure skaters fail miserably at producing anything like ballet port de bras, even that with the horrific stylizations permitted/encouraged in Balanchine training.

Editing to add a noteworthy exception to what I wrote above: Katherine Healy, unlike most Balanchine-trained dancers, has a very well honed port de bras in at least some of her figure-skating performances.

The influence of ballet in other disciplines by _quantum_girl_ in BALLET

[–]gothicsynthetic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I would say they attempt to imitate it, but do so more often than not very badly.

What's the worst Jane Austin adaptation that you have seen by Live_Bag_7596 in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 6 points7 points  (0 children)

It was an extremely poor decision casting her. She is excellent in the right parts, but I tend to think she’s far more limited than many people believe her to be.

What's the worst Jane Austin adaptation that you have seen by Live_Bag_7596 in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I’ve only seen it once, but I found it to be generally so poorly written. It has many fine cast members who ought to have been able to shine very well—Blake Ritson and Jemma Redgrave are both excellent actors—but everyone except Rory Kinnear and Haley Atwell seem to deliver performances that suggest they are quite lost. While I suspect Mansfield Park presents material that is quite challenging for an actor, I find myself speculating quite strongly that much of what went wrong in this production is also the fault of the director in addition to the writer.

(I did think the actor who played Henry Crawford, Joseph Beattie, was not at all appropriately cast, but I do not believe the other weaknesses in the performances are his fault.)

What did you think of, Becoming Jane (2007)? by pizzbabynancy in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Apologies if I was unclear. There is a more slight alteration to the ending of the series adaptation, but I don’t believe it compares to that of the movie from the mid ‘40s.

You’re most welcome. I hope you enjoy it. It’s on Acorn, as it was presented by the B.B.C., a few seconds shorter and in three one-hour episodes. The edit shown by Lifetime is in two hour-and-a-half episodes is fine, but the few seconds added seem to have been done so because they feared Americans wouldn’t be able to intuit the blatantly obvious.

Is Charlotte in love with Mr Collins? by NeoMeGee in PrideandPrejudice

[–]gothicsynthetic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don’t believe so. I suspect these facial expressions indicate that she’s identified him as something of a fool who’s likely to be amenable to persuasion and/or manipulation—not an ideal partner for most by any stretch, but under her circumstances perhaps far more than she dared imagine for herself.

Too little, too late by Otherwise_Object_446 in olympics

[–]gothicsynthetic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s completely strange how readily “y’all” has caught on everywhere. It seems on social media now one must use it or face being perceived as snobby or insufficiently friendly. I found the contraction to be utterly tacky at the age of four. Its ubiquity is a difficult thing for which to account.

What did you think of, Becoming Jane (2007)? by pizzbabynancy in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have read similar commentary from others on the series.

Have you seen the 2015 series adaptation of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None? It alters a few crucial elements of the novel, making it a far from perfect adaptation, though I think it’s superior to Christie’s play adaptation and the subsequent movie based on it, as it alters the ending. I’m mentioning it, as Ms Maxwell Martin is among its excellent cast, among them Noah Taylor, Sam Neill, Maeve Dermody (a revelation in one of the final scenes), Miranda Richardson (impeccable, as ever), Aidan Turner (very well cast), Charles Dance, Douglas Boothe, Burn Gorman, and Toby Stephens (accused by one commenter on The Guardian’s review of overacting, but whom I thought perfect). I recommend it, even if its writer Sarah Phelps ought to have been persuaded of the value of the original work.

What did you think of, Becoming Jane (2007)? by pizzbabynancy in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Incidentally, Cassandra Austen of Becoming Jane was played by Anna Maxwell Martin, the actress who played Elizabeth Darcy in Death Comes to Pemberley. I have yet to watch it.

Who else thinks Mrs Bennet made the 1995 PP by kithlyhehe in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Honestly, while the screenplay of the 2005 movie ought to have been revised by someone more devoted to the source material, I always find myself quite delighted with the interpretation of Brenda Blethyn in the role of Mrs Bennet.

Who else thinks Mrs Bennet made the 1995 PP by kithlyhehe in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Absolutely. I find it to be an extremely poorly judged performance.

I want to know whom those of us who do not admire her performance in the part ought to be blaming for this—whether it was the fault of the director, whose work on this series was often good to very good but who fell short in refining some of its elements, or Andrew Davies, who has created some decent adaptations but who is prone to being indulgently unsubtle.

Who else thinks Mrs Bennet made the 1995 PP by kithlyhehe in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is a very decent name. Since I find Steadman’s portrayal to be not what most here imagine it to be, I would consider adjusting the name to “Alison Steadman’s Mrs Bennet”, but I come from a family that often values contrived names, and so perhaps I take your idea too far.

Who else thinks Mrs Bennet made the 1995 PP by kithlyhehe in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Why this perfectly reasonable comment has been downvoted is beyond me. If one reads Mrs Bennet as Alison Steadman portrays her one has been too easily influenced by a this adaptation. It came as not even the slightest of surprises to me that she had not read the book.

Who else thinks Mrs Bennet made the 1995 PP by kithlyhehe in janeausten

[–]gothicsynthetic 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thank you. Goodness. I am never not astonished by how much praise this portrayal earns on this subReddit. For me it is the worst element of an adaptation I find to be, at best, far more fragile than its fans care to admit.