I’m not a fan of Jane Austin. So, when I met my sister-in-law for the first time and she mentioned that Austin was her favourite writer, I wondered loudly about the general fascination of helpless and weeping female characters.
Yet, out of inquisitiveness I’d watched many films based on Austin’s stories (‘Emma’ is my favourite while ‘Pride and Prejudice’ is the least. Don’t get me started on Mr Darcey’s attitude!) When Netflix streamed ‘Sense and Sensibility’ (1995), I decided to watch it too as I knew that it was directed by Ang Lee, the director of great movies such as ‘Crouching Tiger’, ‘Hidden Dragon’ and ‘The Life of Pi’.
‘Sense and Sensibility’ was no less as it had his usual magic touch: the picturesque scenes that are worth being framed and sold for classic paintings. Not to mention the flow of the movie where there was not a boring moment (even with the presence of the usual helpless weeping ladies!). The story of ‘Sense and Sensibility’ was published in 1811 and talks about the Dashwood sisters (Elinor, Marianne and Margret) and their widow mother who suddenly finds themselves on the brinks of poverty after the death of their father, as their greedy sister-in-law persuades their half-brother John to take over the house and to pay them a little amount of income that barely suffice.
The ladies move to a cottage owned by the mother’s cousin in the country side, where the sisters meet many amusing characters and love interests in the form of Edward Ferrars and Colonel Brandon.
There is the usual love triangles, misunderstandings and quirky female characters that distinguish Austin’s work (and a happy ending of course!). What’s more fascinating than the movie itself is the making of it.
According to Wikipedia, the script was written by Emma Thompson (who plays Elinor in the movie) and took five years to finish. It was her first attempt in script writing yet producer Lindsy Doran insisted on hiring her after working together in a movie in 1991. When Columbia Pictures agreed on co-production and distribution, it was time to look for a director and who was better for the job than Taiwanese director Ang Lee after the success of his movie ‘The Wedding Banquet’ (1993)?
Ang Lee was not familiar with English culture nor with Jane Austin’s work and spent six months in England to learn both. When casting started, Emma Thompson was hired for the role of Elinor although she objected at first as she was 36 at the time while the character was supposed to be 19. Thompson had Hugh Grant in mind when writing the character of Edward Ferras and he was hired for a lower pay (and later criticised by the American Jane Austin Society for being too handsome for the role!).
As for Kate Winslet, she wasn’t Lee’s first choice to play the role of Marianne but won the part after the first reading. She was 19 then while her character was 17, which made sense. Alan Rickman played Colonel Brandon and Greg Wise (Thompson’s future husband) was John Willoughby, Marianne’s love interest.
The movie was a success and won BAFTA awards for Best Actress (Emma Thompson) and Best Supporting Actress (Kate Winslet). It was also nominated for seven Oscars of which Emma Thompson won Best Screenplay, making her the only actress to win the award for Best Actress and Best Screenplay.
Ang Lee won Best Director in Berlin’s Film Festival and was the first director to win it twice. ‘Sense and Sensibility’ is a timeless classic that’s worth watching for its actors’ exceptional skills and director’s craftsmanship.
RASHA Al RAISI
The writer is an author of The World According to Bahja.
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