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JANE EYRE (1996) (***)

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Franco Zeffirelli's rendition of Charlotte Bronte's gothic romance seems quaint now 15 years after its release. The director known for his lavish period dramas, especially his classic 1968 version of ROMEO AND JULIET, gives this story a quality "Masterpiece Theater" approach.

Young Jane Eyre (Anna Paquin, THE PIANO) is an orphan whose aunt Mrs. Reed (Fiona Shaw, HARRY POTTER) sends her off to the oppressive religious boarding school, run by the sadists Mr. Brocklehurst (John Wood, WARGAMES) and Miss Scatcherd (Geraldine Chaplin, HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS). It's a very Dickensian start to her life. After suffering under the school's rule, she (played as a young woman by Charlotte Gainsbourg (ANTI-CHRIST)) is hired on as a governess at the estate of Edward Rochester (William Hurt, ACCIDENTIAL TOURIST) where she is to care for his French ward Adele (Josephine Serre). The house is run by the pleasant Mrs. Fairfax (Joan Plowright, ENCHANTED APRIL), who describes her master as a man who is hard to read. He is an unhappy man, she says.

It's the classic tale of the unlikeliest lovers. Jane is poor and plain and young, while Rochester is rich, handsome and much older. Rochester is always handsome in the movies, not so much in the book. Rochester is moody and mysterious. Of course Jane will only fall for him more because of it. Rochester can even be cruel — coming onto Jane and then inviting the woman he has been courting for years, Blanche Ingram (Elle Macpherson, BATMAN & ROBIN), to stay at the house. He goes as far are insisting that Jane sit in the drawing room with his guests as they insult her.

Through all of this Rochester treats her like an equal. He doesn't see his actions as cruel at all. He just wants Jane around. Hurt makes Rochester a little manic-depressive. Gainsbourg gives Jane great innocence and vulnerability. He says her mind, but she seems to wonder if it is the right thing to do after she says it. Of course Rochester only falls for her more because of it.

There is of course a secret that Rochester is hiding and its revelation is presented here in all its sudsy majesty. A great scandal erupts. Can Jane and Rochester last? These are questions we know the answers to going in, but what this film does well is make us want them to happen. One can see how this romantic tale has influenced countless soap operas and romance novels.

This is the kind of material that could easily go way over the top. In Zeffirelli's hands, he keeps all the material moderated. We believe in these characters. He's not pushing any boundaries and presents everything straight-forward, but it's still done classy. He does so by staying true to the characters. He doesn't change them to bring them together. Rochester is still surly and Jane is still plain, but none of that matters. And that is what matters the most.

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Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks