Becoming Jane

Touching and romantic in an intellectual way

This film was exquisitely done. The best part about it was the preformances and the way the preformers delivered their dialogue. Beautifully written. Anne Hathway was an excellent choice for Jane herself, as Hathway is known for being a good and rule-abiding person, and also very honorable. However, I must say, James McAvoy stole the show with his passion and excellent character developement. He was so charming and funny, yet far more complex than he first seemed. I really enjoyed watching his relationship with Hathway go from hostile and dislike to deep-rooted love. The supporting cast was wonderful and compelling as well, and the film was just a treat to watch all around. For fans of Jane and those who aren't familiar with her work - this film can be enjoyed by all!

8 out of 8 people found this review helpful.

Worth watching again and again

I'll have to admit that I was a little hesitant to see this movie because I just couldn't see James MacAvoy "sp?" in a romantic role. After all, the only other movie I've ever seen him in was Chronicles of Narnia and he played a faun. Weird choice for a romantic role. HOWEVER...by the end of this movie you will be in love with him too. The chemistry between him and Anne Hathaway was incredible and I enjoyed "and cried" throughout the entire movie. I will buy it ASAP as I can't wait to see it again. Julie Walters as Jane's mother was fabulous and the man who played her father "can't remember his name at present, sorry" was supporting, loving yet stern. Maggie Smith "as usual" was stupendous as the old, grouchy aunt and I can't say enough about the rest of the supporting cast. Great movie...from beginning to end!

2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Not My Cup of Tea...

Though I am a devoted Jane Austen fan, I did not enjoy this film. Or perhaps because I love Austen so much I did not enjoy this film. While I've always admired Hathaway as an actress, her performance was really difficult to watch. Her accent was off and McAvoy, playing her love interest, outshined her by far. In any other movie, McAvoy's performance being stronger than Hathaway's would not bother me in the least, but in a film about so spirited and strong a woman it was unacceptable. The script was peppered with cliches and lines lifted from Austen's work. Overall not my cup of tea.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Insanely Awesome

I am in love with anything by Jane Ausin and to have James McAvoy in one of her stories was just the icing on the cake. He is such a passionate actor that the movie is irresitable and needs to be watched over and over and I am eagerly waiting for James McAvoy to make many more movies especially romance!!!

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

In one word, wonderful...

In my solemn opinion, this is the best love story I have ever watched. It is sweet, romantic, cute, and personally my favorite movie. I would DEFINITELY recommend this to ALL ages.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A reviewer

Jane Austen is an incredible writer! I love her books, and I believe Anne Hathaway did a great justice to her in this amazing movie! Yes, like others have said, I cried, laughed, screamed "reallyyyy loud", and almost punched my friend whom I was watching it with!!! I also love James McAvoy as Tom Lefroy. It is a great story, with a beautiful romance. A very sad ending, though true, in my opinion. ="

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

i love jane austin!!!

like the title says i love jane austin. her writing is outstanding, no wonder why she is one of the well know authors of her's and our time. but she didn't get there w/o a little trouble and romance. i laughed, cry screamed at this movie. the cemistry was incredilbe. i love this movie and story and Jane Austin with all my heart.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Intellectual Romance

This is a intellectual paotrail of their romance that is touching and does not fall into the "typical" and "cheese" catagory. A must see

Sweet

Hathaway did a good job in this. The costumes were good, the cinematography. Including the performances of the cast and of course the soundtrack is excellent. The ending was a little sad. Recommend the movie if you like historical romances and of course Jane Austen's work.

OMG

I cried at the end. It was the sweetest book with the sadest ending. I wish they ended up together! But no, she had to--well, watch the movie. It was very good and I watched i more than once. I couldn't help but go "awwwwwwwww!" at the end.

Very Entertaining

I'm a fan of Jane Austen's books, but not a scholar or even someone who has read a biography, so I can't judge how faithful this story is to history or to Jane Austen as a person, but it feels very much in her spirit, and on its own terms is as enjoyable or more than some adaptations made of her books. As someone who does enjoy Austen novels, I liked several homages to the plots of her books in the events of his film. It certainly captures the Austen spirit in being both humourous and moving in turn. Overall I found this an enjoyable film about one of my favorite authors, one that certainly makes me want to find out more about the real person. I thought James McAvoy was particularly affecting.

Jane

Thoroughly enjoyed a glimpse into the author's life---made her REAL, not just someone out of the past. Had a bit of difficulty understanding the dialogue---fuzzy hearing on my part...a second view in store! Good to see real-life portrayals...

SO sad......

I never cry in movies so I was so surprised that this movie brought tears. It was a wonderful movie that I thouroly enjoyed

A Wonderful Fictional Story about Jane Austen

I loved this movie but I did research on Jane Austen and Tom Lefroy and discovered that this movie is fictional. Jane & Tom met very briefly one time and there was no emotional involvement at all. I'm glad I did the research because otherwise I did take the movie seriously as though this romance actually happened.
Nonetheless, I did love this movie. The acting was superb,the story line fun, and it had all the aspects of drama, conflict, romance, resolve.
I would recommend it to everyone who enjoys a good romance novel/movie.

Tissue needed

Even though I know what happens, I watch this movie over and over again. I've even purchased the book that the movie is based one. HIGHLY Recommended!

Terribly wrong to Ms. Austen

I can't say that I enjoyed this movie at all. I suggested to watch it with a group of friends and was reduced to embarrassment. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

0 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

Becoming disillusioned

This movie had so much potential...how could it not with such great material? I rave about Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. But this movie was painful to watch. Having seen and loved other Austen-based movies, it was dismaying to see such witty lines of dialogue (that had been uttered by other, gifted actors in memorable movie moments) being struggled through by the person who supposedly penned them. In addition, Mr. McAvoy magnificently outshined Ms. Hathaway, which left their scenes together unbalanced and uncomfortable. Becoming Jane wasn't a total waste of time (and I have seen some of those) but I would not recommend it to anyone who enjoys drama, romance, or Jane Austen

0 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

I'm surprized at the rave review frankly

I own Sense & Sensibility and Pride & Prejudice, so I thought I'd really like this. I couldn't watch it to even half way thru. Almost insulting to watch. The writer lifted verbatim lines from these 2 books and pasted them in to try to make them work for some kind of biography of Jane. I laughed outloud when I heard these bits of wonderful dialog taken and put somewhere else it just doesn't work. No creativity in the biography just stolen lines from novels. Do not recommend at all. I thought Anne Hathway's accent was all wrong but I liked the actor who played her love interest.

0 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Awesomely lovely

It was so enchanting and capured my heart. This is definitely a movie that I will watch over and over again, I think they choose the perfect actors for this movie. I just wish it would never end.

Delightful Movie

I just watched this for the first time on DVD and it's sure to be the first of many viewings. Also a big fan of Jane Austen, I feel they did justice to her memory. I suspect the actual Jane Austen was more proper in her behavior than this Jane, and I doubt if the romance, if it existed, ever went this far. Still, Jane fans will be delighted at yet another portrayal of the time period and romance fans will be delighted with the passion of an unrequited love. The cinematography was beautiful. The actors outstanding. The storyline creative, though I prefer the characters to be less casual and more prim or pious as they were more likely to be in that day. This film leaned more to the casualness or rustication of today, with today's indiscreet informality regarding certain subjects. Some of the behaviour, mostly implied but still in my opinion bordering on gratuitous, such as the opening scene with Jane's parents, put me off since that behaviour would not have been spoken of in that day in proper gentile society "even if practiced" and is certainly never implied in any Jane Austen novel. Still, I highly recommend this movie.