On July 15th, Netflix launched, worldwide, the adaptation of the book by Jane Austen, Persuasion. Since the premiere - which preceded the 205th anniversary of the author's death - the reception of the film by the public has been worse and worse. Since then, he's been collecting Twitter threads and TikTok videos with reviews and jokes, mostly coming from the author's most assiduous fans, as well as a 31% rating on Rotten Tomatoes - film review platform.
To begin to understand this dissatisfaction, it is necessary to keep in mind a little bit of what Jane Austen represents. An early 19th-century author, with her first book published in 1811, is in itself something of note. Even though his works did not gain traction as classics until the Victorian Era, towards the end of the century, his presence was significant in English literature for his very advanced views for the time in which he lived.
His novels bring a point that is very common today, but which was an advent for the time: strong female protagonists. This was an influential factor in the lack of support from the very male-dominated literary community of the century. Furthermore, her novels have become one of the mainstays of the genre, and their dynamics are the clichés of contemporary pop culture – used in both books and Hollywood productions – and Jane Austen has gained new fans even after more than 200 years of her life. death.
Although her books are primarily about love, the author brings a deep reflection of the female role in society, albeit in a subtle way, which is one of her greatest qualities. His books bring several criticisms to the English social structure, to the frivolity of high society and, mainly, to the treatment of women in this context. The lack of Austen's sarcasm, irony and delicacy in the adaptation was one of the first things criticized by fans, who consider the film too aggressive with its dialogues and, at times, without consideration for the critical aspect of the book.
Persuasion tells the story of Anne Elliot, who was discouraged from marrying the great love of her life, the Captain Wentworth, for being a man of lower social class. She spends the next eight years reflecting on the decision she made through the influence of her ambitious family, and as she rediscovers her teenage crush, she realizes the big mistake she made, now impossible to reverse. The book has a high emotional charge, and many viewers point out that the film fails to portray Anne's intensity, and makes its interpreter, Dakota Johnson, seem almost unconcerned about the situation – the second biggest point of criticism.
The original heroine is not good at expressing her feelings, is insecure and reserved, and often holds her tongue out of fear of social conventions – a crucial point in the story. As for Anne Elliot from Netflix is extremely confident and fearless, always speaking her mind. These are not bad traits, but within the context, they kill most of the plot and the objective of the work, making the dissatisfaction of the character's admirers understandable.
Also, many historical inaccuracies were pointed out, in addition to a simplification of Jane Austen's writing for the transformation of the script, using a modern language in a period film. It is to be considered that fans of the English author receive the best adaptations for film and TV. Pride and Prejudice, from 2005, for example, has 5 Oscar nominations.
The tricky thing about moving books to screens is that readers eagerly wait for the memorable moments, dialogues and characters they want live, and when that doesn't happen, it can be frustrating for him. Many other adaptations have also gone through this problem, and rare are those well-received by fandoms.
At the end of it all, there's that old social media debate: will the book always be better than the movie? “The fact is that adaptations always arouse curiosity for the original work. Austen, as one of the greatest writers in the English language, collects fans, and will no doubt gain even more readers. For those who liked, or not, the literary adaptation, it is worth remembering, there is always the book.”, comments Skeelo’s editorial supervisor, Thereza Castro, who brought Austen’s works to be part of the app’s e-book collection.
If you watched the movie Persuasion, from Netflix, and want to understand what Jane Austen fans are talking about or if you are already a fan and the movie made you want to read the book, it can be found at Skeelo app.
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Terrible movie, I didn't even finish watching it. I don't think Dakota Johnson is really a great actress, well out of place in the film, nor does she seem like a period character. Sometimes I forgot that it was an adaptation of a book by Jane Austen, Anne almost let out a resounding expletive, which certainly didn't even exist at that time.