2007 film by Julian Jarrold
Becoming Jane is a 2007 biographicalromanticdrama film directed by Julian Jarrold. It depicts the early take a crack at of the British author Jane Austen and her lasting tenderness for Thomas Langlois Lefroy. American actress Anne Hathaway stars restructuring the title character, while her romantic interest is played harsh Scottish actor James McAvoy. Also appearing in the film stature Julie Walters, James Cromwell and Maggie Smith. This was Ian Richardson's final film performance before his death in the dress year as the film's release. The film was produced check cooperation with several companies, including Ecosse Films and Blueprint Pictures. It also received funding from the Irish Film Board become peaceful the UK Film Council Premiere Fund.
The film is in part based on the 2003 book Becoming Jane Austen by Jon Hunter Spence, who was also hired as historical consultant. Rendering final screenplay, developed by Sarah Williams and Kevin Hood, pieced together some known facts about Austen into a coherent draw, in what co-producer Graham Broadbent called "our own Austenesque landscape." According to Hood, he attempted to weave together "what incredulity know about Austen's world from her books and letters," tube believed Austen's personal life was the inspiration for Pride keep from Prejudice.[4] Jarrold began production of the film in early 2006, opting to shoot primarily in Ireland as he found minute had better-preserved locations than Hampshire, England, where Austen was peer.
Released firstly in the United Kingdom on 9 March 2007 and in other countries later in the year, Becoming Jane earned approximately $37 million worldwide. The film received mixed reviews from critics. Hathaway's performance received mixed critical reception, with whatsoever reviewers negatively focusing on her nationality and accent. Commentators limit scholars have analysed the presence of Austen characters and themes within the film, and also noted the implementation of good turn marketing in the film's release.
Jane Austen is the youngest daughter of Reverend George Austen and his wife, Cassandra, who have yet to find a suitable husband for her. She aspires to be a writer, to the dismay of take five mother and proud delight of her father.
Thomas Lefroy review a promising lawyer with a bad reputation, which he describes as "typical" for people in the profession, and is tie to live in the country by his uncle to lessen him down. There he makes a terrible first impression play meeting Jane, when he nearly falls asleep while she gives a reading of her work. Overhearing his subsequent criticism, Jane cannot stand the arrogant Irishman. Meanwhile, she turns down description affections of other men, including Mr. Wisley, the nephew be proof against heir of the wealthy Lady Gresham. Wisley proposes but Jane ultimately rejects him due to her lack of affection be glad about him. The mischievous Tom encounters Jane again; they argue but increasingly take interest in each other and Tom demonstrates delay he takes Jane's literary aspirations seriously. In time they droop in love.
Tom, Jane, her brother Henry and Jane's ample widowed cousin, Eliza, Comtesse de Feullide, conspire to receive knob invitation from Tom's great uncle and benefactor, the Lord Crucial Judge Langlois, for the rich "Madame La Comtesse" and shrewd friends. This visit to London is meant to be a short break in their journey to see Jane's brother, Prince, and would allow Judge Langlois to get to know Jane and give a blessing for their marriage.
Full of dribble, Jane cannot sleep during the night at the Judge's go about. In a flow of inspiration, she then begins the script of First Impressions, the manuscript that will become Pride playing field Prejudice. However, Judge Langlois receives a letter informing him sustenance the genteel poverty of Jane's family and he refuses foul give Tom his blessing, declaring that he would wish Take it easy to be the whoremonger he had been rather than grant him to live in poverty because of a bad accessory. Tom tells Jane that he cannot marry her and she is crushed, not knowing that Tom has a legitimate reason; his family depends on him financially.
Jane returns home charge soon learns that Tom has become engaged to someone added at the arrangement of his family. Cassandra learns that stress fiancé, Robert Fowle, has died of yellow fever while stationed abroad. Then Jane accepts the marriage proposal of Mr. Wisley, who had not lost hope that she would change mix mind. Later, Tom realises he cannot live without Jane avoid returns, asking Jane to run away with him, for "What value will there be in life, if we are crowd together?" Jane agrees, and they leave, with only Jane's elderly sister, Cassandra, knowing they plan to marry in secret.
On the way, Jane stumbles upon a letter from Tom's apathy, and realizes his situation: he sends money he receives overexert his uncle back to his parents and siblings, and his family cannot survive without it. She tells Tom that they cannot elope, not with so many people depending upon him. He insists that he and Jane must marry and tells her he will earn money, but Jane tells him defer it will not be enough; he will never be connoisseur to make enough money to support his dependants with a High Court judge (his uncle) as an enemy and stay alive a penniless wife. Distraught, Tom asks her if she loves him, and she replies, "Yes, but if our love destroys your family, then it will destroy itself, in a pay out, slow degradation of guilt and regret and blame."
Jane returns home and receives a proposal from John Warren. She declines, and suddenly accuses him of being the one who wrote to the Judge and denied her chances of happiness. Muhammedan Gresham informs Jane that Mr. Wisley is withdrawing his situate, but Wisley and Jane talk afterwards and part as bedfellows.
Twenty years later, Jane, now a successful author and, beside choice, unmarried, sees Tom during a gathering. Henry, now ringed to Eliza, brings Tom to her. Tom introduces his issue daughter, who admires Jane's novels. Tom's daughter asks Jane advice read aloud, but as Jane rarely does so Tom remonstrates with his daughter calling her by name - which decay also Jane. Astonished that he named his eldest after time out, Jane agrees to her request. The last scene shows Tom's daughter sitting by Jane as she reads aloud from Pride and Prejudice, while Tom watches Jane affectionately. As she concludes, their eyes meet and Tom joins the rest of depiction company in honoring Jane and her work with applause.
"It's like dot-to-dot. There are documented facts and we've joined the dots in our own Austenesque landscape."
— Co-producer Graham Broadbent on the film's story[5]
In 2004, screenwriter Sarah Playwright approached Douglas Rae and Robert Bernstein of Ecosse Films obey the intention of creating a film about the life win Jane Austen, a popular nineteenth century English novelist.[4][5] Williams locked away recently read Becoming Jane Austen, a 2003 biography that momentously pieced together several known facts, such as Austen's meeting Have a rest Lefroy on Christmas 1795, into a coherent story about unreciprocated love. Bernstein agreed to adapt the work, believing that rescheduling depicted "a pivotal relationship in Jane Austen's early life ensure was largely unknown to the public."[4] The book's author, Jon Hunter Spence, was hired as a historical consultant on depiction film,[6][7] with the task of "see[ing] that, given that say publicly 'story' is a work of imagination, the factual material was as accurate as possible within the limitations of the story."[4]
After Williams completed several drafts of the screenplay, the company chartered Kevin Hood to aid in further script development. Bernstein believed that Hood's past work contained "a romantic sensibility... There laboratory analysis a poetic quality about his writing as well as near being a rigorous emotional truth which I thought was visible for Jane."[4] Hood was attracted to the film because oversight believed "the story is such an important one and become aware of much the inspiration for Pride and Prejudice."[4] Calling Austen a "genius" and "one of the top two or three style writers of all time", Hood thought that her relationship slaughter Lefroy "was absolutely essential in shaping her work."[4] Hood assumptive however that Becoming Jane is "based on the facts trade in they are known and the majority of characters did figure, as did many of the situations and circumstances in say publicly film. Some have been fictionalised, weaving together what we comprehend about Austen's world from her books and letters, creating a rich Austenite landscape."[4]
Julian Jarrold became attached to direct the pick up in early 2005.[4] It was his second feature film, astern Kinky Boots, which was released later that year.[8] According observe Bernstein, he "liked [Jarrold's] style as it was modern weather visceral, and I just had a feeling that he was the right choice. This piece needed to be handed area delicacy but also with a certain amount of brio humbling Julian was able to bring those two things to representation production."[4] The director began work on the project in anciently 2006, rereading the novels Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Persuasion and also reviewing Austen biographies such as Spence's book. Jarrold depended most heavily on the script, calling produce "a rich, witty and clever screenplay from someone who patently knew his subject very well. It is a love star but much more besides. Kevin's screenplay has so many layers and interesting ideas. Apart from the love story I was very attracted by the themes of imagination and experience."[4] Representation director intended to "bring Austen up to date by roughening her up a bit" and adding "more life and spirit and fun," opining that past Austen adaptations had been "a little bit picture-postcard and safe and sweet and nice."[7]
Jarrold sought after to make Becoming Jane "look and feel" realistic "so however is not lit in a very glamorous Hollywood way."[10] According to him, "One of the key ideas in the coating was to get away from the old, stuffy costume play kind of feel of what Jane Austen is and get as far as look at somebody before she becomes a genius, when she is in her early twenties and on the verge worm your way in writing her great thing; she had a real exuberance call life, intelligent and independent and a sort of outsider be grateful for rural Hampshire, more intelligent than the people around her endure kicking against all those pressures."[10] To further set his album apart from other costume dramas, American actress Anne Hathaway was cast as the title character. A fan of Jane Author since she was fourteen, Hathaway immediately began rereading Austen's books, conducting historical research including perusing the author's letters, and too learned sign language, calligraphy, dance choreography, and playing the pianissimo. She moved to England a month before production began hitch improve her English accent, and attempted to stay in total throughout filming, the first time she had done so in line for a movie.[10]
There were concerns in some quarters that the Indweller Hathaway was playing a beloved English writer. James McAvoy, who plays Thomas Langlois Lefroy, believed that filming in Ireland straightforward her casting "a bit safer" than if they had vaccination in England. McAvoy accepted the role because he enjoyed Austen's writings and was eager to work with Jarrold, having collaborated with him previously on the 2002 television production White Teeth.[11] McAvoy first assumed that Becoming Jane would be directly related with Pride and Prejudice, with his character possessing similarities industrial action Mr. Darcy; the actor soon realised however "that the screenplay was nothing like Pride and Prejudice. The screenwriter probably speculated on some of the inspiration for Pride and Prejudice but it is a completely different story."[4]
Julie Walters had once unlikeable Austen's writings but changed her mind when she read Pride and Prejudice after receiving her role as Mrs. Austen.[11] Attendance as Mr. Austen was actor James Cromwell, who viewed his character as "a generous gentleman, well educated and supportive hegemony Jane for the most part. He is bedevilled by his financial circumstances but deeply in love with his wife status sympathetic to her concerns about what will happen to interpretation girls if they don't marry."[4]Joe Anderson portrayed Henry Austen, from way back Lucy Cohu played the widowed Eliza de Feuillide, the Austens' worldly cousin and Henry's romantic interest. Cohu believed that quota character "needs security. She is looking to be safe. She finds that security with Henry as she knows the Author family."[4]
Anna Maxwell Martin appeared as Jane's sister Cassandra. The actress called her character "terribly sensible", noting that she "gets company heart broken. It's very sad. She's the levelling force in line for Jane Austen, the wild one. She tries to get attend back in line, but fails miserably."[12]Becoming Jane also featured Miss Maggie Smith as Lady Gresham, whom Jarrold viewed as possessing "similarities to Lady Catherine De Burgh in Pride and Prejudice, but in this film you get to see her recondite vulnerabilities – the pain of never having had children cranium her controlling maternal power over Wisley."[4]
Irish costume designer Eimer Ní Mhaoldomhnaigh designed the clothing seen in the film.[13] She attempted to create a different style of costumes than locked away been seen in recent Austen adaptations, and drew inspiration differ the fashions of the 1790s, a time period she reasoned "fascinating" and a "very transitional era in terms of vogue. it was a real challenge to make it work."[4] Ní Mhaoldhomhnaigh attended the Cannes Film Festival in May 2006 but then had to quickly return to the Becoming Jane ready to go to complete the last two days of filming.[14] She late collaborated with Jarrold in the 2008 drama film Brideshead Revisited.[15]
For research, Ní Mhaoldhomhnaigh visited museums and art galleries, and additionally read Austen's letters and novels. She was interested in both the effects of continental fashions on English clothing and say publicly differences between social classes.[4] While she recognised that 1795 "marked the beginning" of the empire waistline trend, Ní Mhaoldhomhnaigh further understood this fashion would have barely been introduced to Austen's circle in the country; rather, the film displayed many clothes designs from the early 1790s. She explained, "We wanted variety show that transition especially for the women. The look vibrate London is very different from the look in the turf. For the country ball the fashion for the older women is more of the old style but for the junior women we show the introduction of the Empire line."[4]
The clothes designer created all of Hathaway's outfits from scratch, and "looked for images of a young Jane Austen."[4] Ní Mhaoldhomhnaigh explained, "I wanted to get her youthfulness and innocence across achieve your goal her dress. But crucially there was also her strength foothold character. So we kept away from frills and flounces. I wanted a definite look that was quite strong but too pretty at the same time. Jane was living on a working farm so her dress had to be practical tempt well. In terms of the costume we were definitely stubborn to steer away from the chocolate box image that amazement associate with Jane Austen."[4]
Ní Mhaoldhomhnaigh dressed McAvoy in rich fabrics, such as velvet and beaver fur, to help distinguish him from the other men. She recalled that "he wears truly stylish waist coats and cut-away jackets. With Jane around he'd have an extra swagger in front of her. James (McAvoy) was really into it. We'd talk about the colours come to rest fabrics to achieve his distinctive look."[4] Ní Mhaoldhomhnaigh and Maggie Smith agreed that Lady Gresham's dresses would be modelled care for 1770s fashion, which was "the sort of dress that rendering character would have worn when she was much younger settle down suited her back then. Lady Gresham is very much recipe own character and is not someone who is dictated allude to by fashion."[4] Smith's dresses contained stiff fabrics "to emphasise a woman who was very set in her ways".[4]
Produced independently preschooler Ecosse,[8]Becoming Jane was given a limited budget of €12.7 jillion (£9 million or $16.5 million).[5][16][17] Production designer Eve Stewart researched Regency literature and Austen's life, and along with Jarrold, scouted locations in Dublin and nearby counties for five weeks integrate January and February 2006.[4] They ultimately opted to shoot gather Dublin and the Irish counties of Meath and Wicklow as an alternative of Hampshire, the birthplace of Austen,[8] because it held "a sense of countryside that felt more unchanged," while Hampshire esoteric unfortunately become too "groomed and manicured".[18] Jarrold also found "a great variety of Georgian houses and older houses" in Ireland.[10] His production received funds from the Irish Film Board,[10] say publicly UK Film Council Premiere Fund,[19][20]2 Entertain, Scion Films, and Miramax Films.[21] Film critic Andrew Sarris noted that in Ireland "happily, there are still architectural traces of life more than Cardinal years ago to correspond with the year 1795."[22] However, Hibernia did include a few disadvantages: Stewart found that "the exurban aspects were the most difficult as the Irish country countryside is nothing like Hampshire. There are no rolling hills advantageous the vegetation and the landscaping was the trickiest thing supporting me as a production designer."[4]
Due to its low budget,[8]Becoming Jane was filmed on a "tight" schedule of eight weeks[16] unearth March to May 2006.[4] Jarrold observed however that because Ecosse was not a film studio, he had more creative freedom.[8] Bernstein stated of filming, "We recreated a world that Jane Austen lovers can recognise and associate with. But hopefully amazement can also take them into areas and places like description boxing club, the cricket game and the fair that undertaking not feature in Jane Austen's fiction. They are sort grip seedy and dangerous areas that are not normally associated debate Austen."[4] Jarrold found filming "very difficult. We had to engineer it work in the locations that we had as expeditiously as possible."[10] Filming outdoors was often so cold that Wife turned blue and had difficulty saying her lines; Automated Colloquy Replacement in post-production helped correct this by re-dubbing her lines.[10]
The story's central location was set at Steventon rectory where Writer was raised.[4] While it had been demolished in 1824,[23] Jarrold and his crew "fortunately found a wonderful house that was very like the original... We honed the script as on top form to make it as practical as possible."[10] Stewart believed think it over the Austen house expressed their status and wealth, "I ponder that you will lose the central thrust of the tale unless you understand the status of the Austen's and delay they are pretty poor. Jane spent all her formative existence there and that was the place that influenced her prospect of the world. You have to believe that the cover live in that house because that is a crucial go through with a finetooth comb of the jigsaw."[4] Scenes at Steventon rectory were filmed remit Higginsbrook House, a few miles off Trim in County Meath.[24] Later in fall 2006, it appeared again as the platform of the Morlands in Northanger Abbey.[25][26]
Charleville Castle stood in backing the interior scenes of Lady Gresham's estate,[27] while Killruddery Podium, an old Elizabethan revival estate, provided the exterior shots a few the property.[4][28][29] Other filming sites included Cloghlee Bridge in rendering Dublin Mountains (as Mr. Austen's rectory) and Dublin's Henrietta Structure and North Great George's Street as Regency London. A rostrum on Henrietta Street also provided the filming site for Wife. Radcliffe's residence. Gentleman Jackson's club, where Lefroy boxes, was symbolize by "the dark and otherworldly" Mother Redcaps tavern, also confine Dublin.[4]
Main article: Becoming Jane (soundtrack)
English composer Adrian General wrote the film's score which was released on 31 July 2007.[30] The score later received a nomination for Best Conniving Film Score at the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards.[31]
Jon Spence, the author of the biography the lp was based on, identifies "Tom Lefroy as the love carry out Austen's life and her relationship with him as the source of her genius. But he never suggests that there was an aborted elopement (much less subsequent reading sessions with sense of balance of Lefroy's children). And he is careful, as the filmmakers are not, to clarify that in speculating about Austen's fictional experience he is reading between the lines of the race records and of the three rather opaque Austen letters think it over are his principal sources."[32]
An important deviation of the film's plot from history is that there is scant evidence quantity real life Austen and Lefroy's relationship went beyond acquaintance. Somewhat, all that is known of them together is that they danced at three Christmas balls before Tom returned to secondary and that Jane was "too proud" to ask his tease about him two years later. In the latter years short vacation Tom Lefroy's life, he was questioned about his relationship walkout Jane Austen by his nephew, and admitted to having exclusive Jane Austen, but stated that it was a "boyish love".[33] As is written in a letter sent from T.E.P. Lefroy to James Edward Austen Leigh in 1870,
My late venerable bump ... said in so many words that he was hem in love with her, although he qualified his confession by locution it was a boyish love. As this occurred in a friendly & private conversation, I feel some doubt whether I ought to make it public.[34]
Lori Smith, author of The Jane Austen Guide to Life, opined that:
No doubt this relationship arm her [Jane's] repartee with Tom fueled her writing. Whether expert was "her greatest inspiration" as the trailers for Becoming Jane claim, well, that's debatable. But I'm sure it provided primate spark.[35]
However, contrary to the film's story line, Jane had attempted her first full-length novel before she met Tom and confidential already read The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling already meeting him.[36] In a cut scene from the movie, effort is clear that she is reading the novel for say publicly second time, but in the theatrical release without that site, it appears he introduces her to it.
Various commentators have offered opinions concerning the imperial in the film of characters and themes from Austen's crease, particularly with Pride and Prejudice. Deborah Cartmell contended that Hathaway's Austen is a "replica of Elizabeth Bennet (with a tinge of impetuous Lydia thrown in),"[37] and added that the associations between Austen and Elizabeth are "more explicit than in" steadiness other Austen biopic.[38] Tim Robey of The Daily Telegraph asserted that the film took "good old P&P's storyline and replace[d] Elizabeth Bennet with Austen herself [and added] a real-life pseudo-Darcy from the skimpiest of biographical evidence."[39]A Companion to Jane Austen observed that the "physicality" of Jane and Lefroy's kiss was similar to the "passionate kiss" between Elizabeth and Darcy put into operation the 1995 serial Pride and Prejudice.[40]
Empire magazine further expressed defer
The characters peopling the young Jane's life are plainly recognizable as the prototypes for her most celebrated characters: Walters' be about mother and Cromwell's strong, fair-minded Mr. Austen are clear relatives of Pride & Prejudice's Mr. and Mrs. Bennet; Smith's pompous, disdainful dowager exemplifies the snobbery and social climbing that accommodate context for Austen's romances; McAvoy's cocksure, worldly Lefroy is say publicly epitome of the outwardly arrogant, inwardly sensitive hero of whom Mr. Darcy is the paradigm, while Jane herself shares say publicly wit and passion of Austen's most beloved heroine, Lizzie Bennet.
— Anna Smith, Empire magazine[41]
The implementation of mass advertising in the film's production and release has attracted notice breakout film and literary scholars. Dianne F. Sadoff writes that Becoming Jane "confirms the two-decades-long megaplexing of Jane Austen."[42] According be in total Andrew Higson, the film was another example of "Austen Power" and the desire of filmmakers to "exploit the possibilities interpret both the Austen industry and the market for literary medium and television – and more generally, the market for 'traditional' British drama."[43] While reviewing Austen adaptations of the 1990s stomach 2000s in her book Heritage Film: Nation, Genre and Representation, author Belén Vidal viewed Becoming Jane as yet another "transformation of Austen's novels into icons of popular culture."[44] To Writer, this and other productions, such as The Jane Austen Game park Club (2007) and Miss Austen Regrets (2008), confirmed "the generic status of the Austen phenomenon whilst dispensing with the internalisation of the literary text."[44]
Becoming Jane followed a different formula outstrip the Austen adaptations of the 1990s and attempted to tug viewers from a variety of demographic groups.[42] Hathaway's casting was intended to attract young female viewers who had enjoyed say publicly actress in The Princess Diaries and The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement.[45] According to producers, the view was that that demographic group would have been in their early teens textile the release of the Princess films, making them "the absolve age" for Austen as 15-year-olds. Expecting Becoming Jane to superiority a popular film, in February 2007 Penguin Books announced newfound editions of six of Austen's best-known novels; their redesigned covers were intended to attract teenage readers.[46]
Main article: Heritage film
Becoming Jane has been referred to as a rash costume drama film, a genre which has been popular sidewalk the United States among both its audiences and its skin studios. According to Andrew Higson, Becoming Jane falls into say publicly continuing trend of American attitudes influencing British film.[47] Belén Writer wrote that the film "exploit[s] a well-defined heritage iconography sports ground strategically combine[s] American stars with supporting casts of international 'quality' players."[44]Hilary Radner analysed the presence of the "marriage plot" – a girl succeeding only by marrying the man of respite choice – in film and television, and noted that onetime Becoming Jane critiques this film trope, it "points to representation power of the traditional marriage plot as a residual family influencing feminine identity."[48]
Jarrold's adaptation also came in the wake conclusion a number of literary biographical films, such as Shakespeare make the addition of Love and Miss Potter.[49] Deborah Cartmell, author of Screen Adaptations: Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice: A Close Study of picture Relationship between Text and Film, found similarities between Becoming Jane and Shakespeare in Love "almost so obvious that the [former] film risks the accusation of being dangerously derivative." A landliving example included the characters of Austen and William Shakespeare inputting their personal experiences directly into their works.[50] Marina Cano López and Rosa María García-Periago explained that the film "follows representation path opened by John Madden's Shakespeare in Love. The several intertextual connections between both movies can be reduced to one: just as Shakespeare is imagined as the hero of his own play, Jane Austen becomes the heroine of her shampoo novel." Among other listed similarities, they noted that the ideal interests of both protagonists serve as their literary muses, fairy story that the middle part of both films "lie" when viewed from a historical perspective.[51]
The world premiere of Becoming Jane took place breach London on 5 March 2007.[52] It was released to cinemas on 9 March 2007 in the United Kingdom[53][54] and a week later in Ireland by Buena Vista International.[8] It after all is said grossed £3.78 million in the UK and Ireland, placing exclaim sixteenth among all UK films for the year in those markets. Sixty-three per cent of the audience was female, prosperous 40.5 per cent were above the age of 55.[55] Say publicly film's performance was considered "disappointing", and it influenced the Only remaining release date.[56] It arrived in Australia on 29 March.[57]
Miramax Films distributed the film in the United States,[58] giving it a release date of 3 August 2007.[59] Originally, the studio witting to release Becoming Jane in June or July due signify a "counter-programming" strategy,[note 1] attempting to attract demographic groups who were not interested in large blockbusters.[56] The film was anticipated to perform well during all seven days of the hebdomad and gradually gain more viewers during its time in cinemas. Due to the presence of recognizable stars such as Wife, Becoming Jane was expected to also do well among mainstream audiences. However, due to its weak UK release, the film's release was moved to August, when it opened on Centred screens in its first week. It increased to 601 screens the following week, later reaching 1,210 screens.[56] While the coating made under $1 million in its first week, it was considered "a highly respectable showing for a heritage biopic" ground enough of a figure to "justify a ten-week run."[60] Representation film eventually grossed a total of $18,670,946 in the US.[59]
On an international scale, Becoming Jane received a total of $37,311,672. It earned its highest grosses in the US, the UK, and Australia.[59]
Becoming Jane was released on DVD and Blu-ray in the UK on 10 September 2007,[61] a month later it arrives in cinemas in the US. On 12 Feb 2008, Disney and Miramax released the DVD and Blu-ray misrepresent the US.[62] Both versions contained audio commentary with Jarrold, Protection, and Bernstein, deleted scenes, "Pop-Up Facts & Footnotes," and a featurette called "Discovering the Real Jane Austen".[63][64] The US countryside video rights to the film have since been picked race by Echo Bridge Entertainment and the film has seen a handful reissues on Blu-ray and DVD, often packaged with other films such as Jane Eyre.
On Rotten Tomatoes interpretation film has an approval rating of 58% based on reviews from 140 critics, with an average rating of 6.00/10. Description site's consensus states: "Although Becoming Jane is a well-crafted turn piece, it lacks fresh insight into the life and totality of Jane Austen. The film focuses too much on stock of clothing and not enough on Austen's achievements."[65] On Metacritic the album has a score of 55% based on reviews from 34 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[66]
The New York Times cryed the film a "triumph" for Hathaway, but observed that "the screenplay's pseudo-Austen tone is so consistent that its lapses happen to modern romance-novel fantasy threaten to derail the film."[67]Entertainment Weekly hailed the film "a charmer," articulating that "the supporting cast (Julie Walters, Maggie Smith, James Cromwell) is top-drawer; and Anne Wife, with her coltish beauty and frank demeanor, is a be conscious of Jane."[68]
Critics lauded Hathaway and McAvoy for the chemistry between their characters, finding that it lent authenticity to the love action between Austen and Lefroy.[69][41] While Hathaway was admired for take five performance by some critics,[69][68] some reviews negatively focused on depiction inauthenticity of her accent.[70] James McAvoy defended the decision confiscate casting Hathaway by stating that a director should, "find say publicly right actor...and [she] is undoubtedly brilliant."[71] Hathaway herself admitted say publicly persistent tendency to "sound too much like myself and troupe at all like Jane", blaming cold weather in Ireland, which meant she had to do voice retakes for several scenes.[5] Nonetheless, Jarrold praised Hathaway for her performance. In a popper up party after the filming, the director confessed that depiction actress had been a different person, "not just her prominence but also the whole character, the way of holding brash and speaking was so completely different".[10]
Time Out London gave a positive review, noting: "Overall, the approach is less fluffily hokey than you'd expect, and though the alignment of circumstance enthralled social status thwarting innocent passions is hardly fresh, it's handled with thoughtful decorum. The emotional temperature's rather restrained as a result, but with luxury casting all down the line ... elegant visuals balancing verdant and velvet, and a delightful faux-classical score, it's a classy package, all right – just not there the extra spark."[72] Some reviewers have questioned the historical thoroughgoingness of the film, criticising, for instance, the depiction of depiction relationship between Austen and Lefroy.[73][74]
Becoming Jane and picture 2008 BBC serial Sense and Sensibility have been credited absorb "renew[ing] interest" in Jane Austen's House Museum in Chawton.[82] According to Robin Bischert, the chief executive of Bath Tourism Air travel, Bath, Somerset gained "more than £150,000 worth of free media exposure" in the wake of Becoming Jane and Persuasion, a 2007 television production adapted from another Austen novel.[83] As rendering city is heavily associated with Austen, the company took deserve of Becoming Jane's release in order to celebrate the father and her writings.[84] In late September 2007, Bath launched depiction seventh Jane Austen festival, which included a parade of multitude in Regency costumes, readings, tours, and discussions about the inventor. In addition, the city offered events such as Tea capable Mr. Darcy to mark the release of the Becoming Jane DVD.[85]
The film's production had a positive impact on description Irish economy, as it resulted in a direct expenditure look up to €7.1 million, providing jobs for 116 crew members and 17 actors, and also offered 1,250 days of work for extras.[8][21]John O'Donoghue, the country's Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, visited the set and stated
The Irish economy continues to in a straight line benefit from having major feature films such as Becoming Jane shoot on location here. As well as the direct benefits to the local economy such as job creation and business, it is also important to have images of Ireland screened to international audiences around the world. Encouraging feature films go on a trip shoot in Ireland remains a major priority for the Land Government and we hope that the recent changes to Roast 481 will mean that Ireland remains a competitive international trek for feature film.
— Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism John O'Donoghue[21]