Jane Eyre (2006 miniseries)

Infobox Film
name = Jane Eyre


caption = DVD cover for "Jane Eyre"
director = Susanna White
producer =
writer = Charlotte Brontë (novel)
Sandy Welch
starring = Ruth Wilson
Toby Stephens
Georgie Henley
Tara Fitzgerald
Claudia Coulter
music =
cinematography =
editing =
distributor = BBC One
released = 24 September 2006
runtime = 240 min.
country =
language = English
French
budget =
Gross =
website = http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/janeeyre/index.html
amg_id = 1:385938~T0
imdb_id = 0780362

Charlotte Brontë's novel "Jane Eyre" (1847) has been the subject of numerous television and film adaptations. This 2006 four-part BBC television drama serial adaptation was broadcast on BBC One.

The mini-series tells the story of the orphaned Jane Eyre in 4 episodes which were first broadcast on BBC in autumn of 2006 to great success and has for instance earned BAFTA, Emmy and Golden Globe nominations.

Plot summary

In this version of Charlotte Brontë's novel, Jane Eyre as a young girl (Georgie Henley) is raised as a poor relation in the household of her aunt, Mrs. Reed (Tara Fitzgerald). As a young woman (Ruth Wilson), Jane is hired by the housekeeper of Thornfield Hall, Mrs. Fairfax, to be a governess for young Adele (Cosima Littlewood). The owner of the estate is Mr. Rochester (Toby Stephens), who is courting the beautiful and wealthy Blanche Ingram (Christina Cole).

"Episode by episode"

Episode 1

After the death of her uncle, the orphaned child Jane Eyre is left to the care of her uncaring and cruel aunt Mrs Reed. In their house at Gateshead Hall, Jane is ill-treated by her cousins and aunt alike and never feels at home. After one of many ill-treatments she is accused of being bad blood and in an attempt to get rid of her, Jane is sent to Lowood School by her aunt Mrs Reed.As much as in Gateshead Hall, Lowood School is a cold institution. Jane’s only friend dies and she is left alone once again. Convinced to become independent, she takes on the profession of a governess.

At 19 she is able to secure a position as governess to a girl at Thornfield Hall. Here Jane learns that her pupil Adele, a French girl, was left in the care of the master of the house, Edward Rochester. She is also informed that the master of the house is seldom at home. On one of his journeys back to Thornfield Hall, Jane at last meets Rochester.

One night, Jane wakes to strange noises coming from the room in Rochester’s room. She follows the noise and realizes that Rochester’s room is set on fire and the master in danger.

Episode 2

After Jane was able to rescue Rochester just in time, she wonders who set the fire and from whom these strange sounds from the North Tower come from. She barely receives an answer from Rochester who instead leaves Thornfield without notice the next morning. On his return to Thornfield, he brings along some acquaintances among whom are the beautiful Blanche Ingram and her mother Lady Ingram.

Rochester receives another unexpected und not wholly welcome guest. Mason, the guest, is one night severely injured. In an attempt to catch a doctor, Jane is left to take care of Mason in the North Tower. Once again strange sounds from the North Tower preceded the incident. While looking after Mason, Jane is startled by loud noises from the other side of the door in the North Tower.

Episode 3

Jane receives a visitor from the past. Bessie informs her of her aunt’s illness and the request to see Jane before she dies. Jane learns from her aunt Mrs Reed that she has an uncle. This uncle requested to take care of Jane when she was still a child. Her aunt misinformed the uncle and told him that Jane died. Unlike her aunt, Jane is able to forgive Mrs Reed on her aunt’s dying bed.

Away from Thornfield Hall, Jane realizes with more clarity that Thornfield has indeed become a home for her, something she never had before. However, the rumours of an upcoming marriage between Blanche Ingram and Mr Rochester immensely disturb her. Is she to leave her beloved Thornfield?

In an attempt to find out about Jane’s real emotions, Rochester constantly teases Jane so that she finally reveals that she loves not only Thornfield Hall but Rochester as well. As these feelings are shared by Rochester, he proposes to Jane and is accepted.

Two days before the marriage Jane’s wedding dress is ruined. Even her seeing a shadow of a woman in her rooms is, according to Rochester, part of her dream. On the wedding day however, Jane is finally told of Rochester’s wife Bertha living in the North Tower. Jane leaves Thornfield after these news. This information is revealed by Mason who turns out to be Bertha’s brother.

Episode 4

Jane is left penniless and without any hope. She succumbs and lies down on the moors to die. She is however rescued by the clergyman St John Rivers who takes her home and nurses her back to health with the help of his two sisters. But Jane seems to have lost her memories.

When Jane is told by St John Rivers that she has inherited some money by her uncle and that they are also related, St John Rivers also informs Jane of his knowing of her past including Thornfield Hall.

Jane cannot come to terms with the marriage proposal by St John Rivers and the prospect to live abroad as missionaries. As she begins to hear Rochester calling her name, Jane immediately knows that she belongs to Thornfield and Rochester. On her return she finds a weakened and blind Rochester and a burnt down Thornfield. Jane is also told of the circumstances surrounding the fire and Rochester’s blindness. He was injured while trying to rescue his wife Bertha who does however not survive.

Differences from the novel

While for the most part a faithful retelling of the novel, the screenplay does contain minor deviations. These include the reduction of time devoted to the first third (Lowood School) and the final third (St. John) of the novel. The middle of the novel is instead developed and a few scenes from the novel are compressed or moved to different times and places in the narrative. The scenes surrounding Jane's flight from the Rochester estate until her gaining of health are treated as a brief dream sequence, a useful tool that enabled many pages of text to be condensed into a passage of a few minutes' length. Additional scenes were created for the screenplay which underscore the passionate natures of Jane and Rochester (a thematic point implied but not explicated throughout the novel). One of the more significant plot changes occurs during the gypsy sequence as Rochester hires a gypsy rather than portraying one himself. Rochester also uses an ouija board as a supplement to this game, a scene which was written specifically for the screenplay.

For a full length summary of Charlotte Bronte's novel, see: "Jane Eyre" plot summary.

Distribution

The world-wide premiere outside of the United Kingdom was in Spain. The production appeared on Antena 3 on 1 January 2007 as a four-hour program and had an audience of 2,056,000 or some 17.7% of the viewing audience.

"Jane Eyre" was shown on "Masterpiece Theatre" on most PBS stations compressed into two hours each over two nights, on 21 January and 28 January 2007. "Jane Eyre" was rebroadcast on 30 December 2007 and 6 January 2008. It was the final broadcast of "Masterpiece Theatre" before WGBH retooled the classic anthology series into "Masterpiece."

RTP2 in Portugal premiered the series on 22 September 2008, 10.40 pm.

Reception

Lucasta Miller states in "The Guardian" that, "The new BBC version shows that it is [...] possible to make successful drama by telling the story straight. It features an excellent performance from Toby Stephens, who manages to make Rochester simultaneously macho and vulnerable, and also from Ruth Wilson as a quizzical, strong and un-neurotic Jane." [ [http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1878743,00.html Guardian review] ] Barry Garron in "The Hollywood Reporter" suggests that, "the new adaptation written by Sandy Welch and directed by Susanna White doesn't add new colors to Bronte's romantic novel. Rather, it brings out all the shades and hues of the original portrait, restoring it to its full glory." [ [http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/television/reviews/article_display.jsp?&rid=8637 Hollywood Reporter review] ] Dennis Moore of "USA Today", argued that, "The story is splendidly retold [...] From sweeping shots of the English countryside through all seasons to intimate scenes in the recesses of the manor house, this adaptation of "Jane Eyre" shows off a richness American TV projects rarely attempt. The appeal stretches beyond style. The lean scripting (even at four hours the program can't cover every one of Brontë's plot details), the expeditious pacing and the interaction among the actors are first-class, if not as brilliant as the more ambitious and magnificent "Bleak House" from last season." [ [http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/reviews/2007-01-18-jane-eyre_x.htm USA Today review] ]

Notes

External links

* [http://www.newstatesman.com/200610020039 An Eyre of Intelligence] - "New Statesman"