"The Jane Austen Book Club" directed by Robin Swicord [review]

Abstract

It’s been thirteen years since the public obsession with the works of Jane Austen was revived by the wonderful BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Ms Austen’s work has been well and truly put through the wringer since then, with some lovely adaptations and transformations coming along (like the delightful versions of Emma starring Gwynneth Paltrow and Kate Beckinsale) and some dreadful misfires too (witness 2005’s Pride and Prejudice starring the woefully miscast Keira Knightley). Now we’re seeing adaptations of books about people reading Jane Austen, and happily The Jane Austen Book Club fits in under the category of light, life-affirming and buoyant romantic drama.