I watched Masterpiece Theater's version of 'Northanger Abbey' last night, and I think I may actually like the movie better than the book, which is not something I ever say about Jane Austen! But there are so many painful scenes in the book where Miss Catherine is unwittingly annoying Mr. Tilney because of her awful friends that I can't help but blush for her, ugh! Happily in the movie, with time constraints, they only show one such scene. Another interesting subtext within this particular movie was the mention of vampires, or rather a form of vampirism. I've often noted the true-to-life narcissists in Austen's other works (both novels and movie versions) but this is the first actual discussion I've seen of the topic, though it wasn't spoken of in those terms, narcissists are often referred to as emotional vampires. Besides, Lady Catherine, General Tilney is certainly one of Austen's best depictions.
I bought a version of 'Persuasion' at the same time, hoping it would be better than the other one I saw, but still I was disappointed. The book is good, but the movies are rather tedious, perhaps it is impossible to make a good movie version of this particular novel? I now have an enjoyable version of each of Miss Austen's works save 'Persuasion,' even a 'Lady Susan' though it is called 'Love and Friendship.' Even with all our mastery of the computer arts and visual effects, no one has yet mastered this elusive work, for Austen's works are not about show and glitz or even the happy ending, but deal with humanity in all its shades of good, bad, beautiful, ugly, joy, and sorrow, which are the heart of any great and enduring story. And our modern movie making is moving ever further from just that, sufficing itself with grander and more epic battle scenes, more violence and nudity while the very reason we tell stories in the first place is forgotten, it is not to be entertained but rather to learn something about ourselves, our world, and our place in it.
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