Title: Mansfield Park

Author: Jane Austen

Pages: 410

Rating:  5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: T4MC -- Reread; Jane Austen; Ebook; Book to Movie; Book Bingo -- 3 rereads

How I Got It: Own It!

Most definitely least favorite of the Austen novels.  Fanny is too meek and naive to love to the fullest.  Edmund is a bit of a limp noodle when it comes to the opinions and character.  I do revel in the villainy of Mary and Henry Crawford.  They are the lowest form of villans in the Austen novels.  They start as interesting and likable, and only later do we see their treachery.  The entire section dealing with the play drags a bit.  I kept wanting to skip ahead, but I didn't.  I knew the book would get better.

Movie: 

This is a very losse adaptation of the novel.  In that, the director took liberties with the character of Fanny Price.  Here she is much too bold and confidentwilling to speak up.  She is a much weaker creature in the novel.  The side characters are a lot of fun, I especially love Hugh Bonneville as Mr. Rushworth.  And I forgot that James Purefoy played Tom.  I love him!  Henry is a bit too handsome, but Mary is spot on.  And I do love the romance between Edmund and Fanny.  As to the story, the heavy slavery references get to be a bit much.  It's mentioned in the book, but the movie dwells on it.  I like the movie, but can't compare it too closely to the novel.

Random trivia: Jonny Lee Miller (Edmund) and Justine Waddell (Julia) were in this movie and Dracula 2000 together.  Weird connection.

Movie:

I like this version so much better.  The storyline and characters are much more in line with the book.  The Crawfords are still devious.  Edmund is still the rock.  Yet, this Fanny is much more docile and meek.  I believe her consistency much better.  And we don't have the reliance on slavery to make any social point.  The costumes are amazing, just right for the time period, not showy or too modern.  I love this version of Mansfield, even if the book is my least favorite Austen...