Sense & Sensibility (with Miss Austen Regrets) DVD Credits:

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Sense & Sensibility (with Miss Austen Regrets) DVD Release Date: 7th April 2008

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Sense & Sensibility (with Miss Austen Regrets) DVD Review:

The history of British cinema is a rocky and inconsistent one, but even in this volatile national cinema there have been a few consistent stories that could be easily exported through each decade. Certainly William Shakespeare has been able to draw international crowds and often with the use of American actors to increase appeal. The same can be said of Jane Austen’s material, and we seem to be going through a sudden increase in exportability of Austen. Ever since the successful adaptation of Pride and Prejudice there has been a new surge. Suddenly there was a Jane Austen Biopic (Becoming Jane) starring an American actress, no doubt to help profits (though I doubt it made as much as Pride and Prejudice which starred Brit Keira Knightley), and after that came an American romantic comedy based around the themes of Austen (The Jane Austen Book Club), which only proved that the Jane Austen craze had indeed reached the States.

I am certain that this must have impacted the decision for all new television adaptations to be made for the Austen novels, all to air on the BBC. These new adaptations features younger casts, as to appeal a younger crowd, and many may recognize one of the young actors in Sense and Sensibility from The History Boys. In all fairness, I don’t believe that it is easy to ruin any production of Austen, because the themes and the romantic tension always builds so naturally the way that she structured her stories. For story structure alone you must give her credit as a remarkable storyteller, and this comes across brilliantly on film even when things are wisely or unwisely omitted.

In this latest adaptation of Sense and Sensibility the actors and the sensibility of the story certainly may be younger, and indeed a great deal of emphasis is placed on the fact that Andrew Davies wrote the screenplay, as he was the one to adapt the ever-so controversial Pride and Prejudice that I am a shameful fan of. This is not a favorite story of mine, especially because of the petty behavior that the women are forced to endure simply because of greed. I feel the same way about Howard’s End. Perhaps I am too American in my thought and don’t appreciate the class controversy nearly enough.

This is a two-disc set in order to allow for the inclusion of the new BBC biopic Miss Austen Regrets, which was based on the letters of Jane Austen. There is also a cast and crew commentary on Sense and Sensibility as well as interviews with producer Anne Pivcevic and Davies.

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Sense & Sensibility (with Miss Austen Regrets) DVD review written by: Ryan Izay