Jane Eyre (2011)

This is the fourth adaptation of Jane Eyre I've seen and, despite being the most elaborate of them, it's also the least effective.

Having read Jane Eyre, I know it's not exactly bursting with joy -- but this production went out of its way to be depressing.  It was dark to the point of oppression early on and the orphanage scenes, told in flashback, felt like flashbacks in that they came off as exaggerated and cartoonish with few details.  The caricatures were there, but the loneliness that made her one friend such a brilliant bright spot barely registered.

I watched it with Gary and he liked it quite a bit more than I did so I can't help but wonder, since I've read it and seen a fair few of the film versions, whether this DOES stand on its own when not suffering by comparison.  Ah well, I've just got to go with what I think with all of my history intact.

C