Austen leads the way to love in ‘Book Club’
I’ve said it before, probably in this column, that there are no
new stories
– just slightly different ways of telling them.
”
The Jane Austen Book Club
”
is the epitome of this as a group of five women gather to
discuss the works of Jane Austen and soon find their own lives
resembling those of the characters in the books.
When I first saw a preview for the movie, it sounded pretty
cheesy to me
– a handful of women get together to read Austen while wallowing
in their own miserable lives. The movie is based on a book of the
same name by Karen Jay Fowler, and I’ve always been leery about
contemporary fiction for women. But the acting and dialogue made
the movie work for me. And in the end
the book club is not about wallowing in their own miserable
lives, but about moving on and taking responsibility for what they
want.
Austen leads the way to love in ‘Book Club’
I’ve said it before, probably in this column, that there are no new stories – just slightly different ways of telling them. “The Jane Austen Book Club” is the epitome of this as a group of five women gather to discuss the works of Jane Austen and soon find their own lives resembling those of the characters in the books.
When I first saw a preview for the movie, it sounded pretty cheesy to me – a handful of women get together to read Austen while wallowing in their own miserable lives. The movie is based on a book of the same name by Karen Jay Fowler, and I’ve always been leery about contemporary fiction for women. But the acting and dialogue made the movie work for me. And in the end the book club is not about wallowing in their own miserable lives, but about moving on and taking responsibility for what they want.
My knowledge of Jane Austen comes mostly from movies starring Keira Knightley and I have a vague memory of reading “Pride and Prejudice,” in advanced placement Brit Lit about a decade ago. But a good understanding of the books is not necessary to appreciate the movie.
Bernadette (Kathy Baker), who has been married six times, comes up with the idea of the book club to help her friends Jocelyn (Maria Bello), Sylvia (Amy Brenneman) and newcomer Prudie (Emily Blunt) take their minds off relationship problems and other issues. They will read six books in six months, with each person leading the discussion once. The additional club members are Sylvia’s daughter, Allegra (Maggie Grace) and Grigg (Hugh Dancy), a man Jocelyn meets at a conference center who she thinks would be a perfect match for Sylvia.
Prudie, played masterfully by Emily Blunt, is the most obviously like a Jane Austen character. She is uptight, proper and conservative in her dress and manner. She gives off an air of superiority when talking about Austen. Though she is unhappily married, she seems like the last one of the bunch to succumb to temptation so it is ironic when she begins a flirtation with a younger man who happens to be a student where she teaches. But don’t worry, the screenwriters make it clear, Trey (Kevin Zegers) is 18 so if something does happen it’s not entirely illegal.
Sylvia comes to the club with her broken heart, and no one can play misery quite like Amy Brenneman, who starred on “Judging Amy” and now has a role on “Private Practice,” where she also has a broken heart. Her curly hair goes to frizz, she wears oversized wool cardigans and her eyes swell up with tears in a way that seems genuine. Her husband of 10 years has left her for another woman, and it’s not even a younger woman. Her friends carefully pick an Austen book for her to discuss that they think is least likely to evoke negative emotions around her separation.
Her best friend Jocelyn has a plan afoot to set Sylvia up with younger man, Grigg. Grigg is as clueless as any man in an Austen book, and in addition to that he is extremely awkward. He bikes everywhere in blue spandex, reads science fiction and e-mails his sisters regularly. It’s a good thing he has stunning blue eyes and chiseled features. It takes him a few months to figure out that Jocelyn wants to set him up with someone else in the book club. In the end, Grigg figures out what he wants and asks for it.
Jocelyn is very much like Elizabeth Bennett as the sole member of the club who has never been in love. Though it is clear from early on that she is attracted to Grigg, she denies her feelings for the benefit of her friend. She nitpicks at Grigg and tries to drive him away rather than give in to her feelings.
Allegra is most like Lydia Bennett, Elizabeth’s younger impetuous sister, who runs off with a man in “Pride and Prejudice.” Allegra cares deeply about her family – she moves back in with her mother after her parents separate – but she is drawn to danger. After skydiving, she meets a woman and quickly the two move in together. Just as quickly the relationship dissolves and Allegra is on to her next love.
In the end, the members of the book club figure out what they really want and find the power to ask for it. The ending is a little cheesy, but the journey there makes it worth it.
