14: Sense and Sensibility

February, 1996
Sevilla, Spain
with JULIE ANNE EDMOND!!!!

I have never seen this in English. My college roomies had a VHS copy of it sitting under the television, but I never watched it, not once. I've only seen it dubbed in Spanish.   My roommate in Spain and I were movie goers. We went A LOT. In Spain, you could always go at midnight for three dollars and that included popcorn and a Pepsi.


This is what I got out of Austen-everyone was engaged to someone, who ended up engaged to someone else.  But at the end, it didn't matter who was who as long as you were married to someone.

Seriously..Elinor likes Edward but his sister is married to her brother, and she doesn't want her brother near her sister-in-law, so she makes them move.  Then sister Marianne is spotted by Snape, I mean Colonel Brandon, and he immediately falls in love,  But Marianne falls in love with Willoughby because he helps her with a sprained ankle. Willoughby is as big of a sleaze as Jane Austen will make a man be a sleaze, having gotten one girl pregnant and then gets engaged to someone else.  Edward was engaged to Lucy but changes his mind because they were young when it started, and marries Elinor.  Marianne decides that since Willoughby was a jerk, she'll marry Snape/Colonel Brandon.

All right, if you say so Jane.

In all of this hullabaloo, the thread that cracks me up is Willoughby/Marianne.  That is what NOT to do. So he stopped on his horse to help her with an ankle in the rain-let's fall in love?  Nowadays that was calling 911. Then he disappears instead of proposes, got another woman pregnant earlier, and is now engaged to someone else who comes from money.  And ladies, please, if you see someone at a party you used to date, smile, go about your night and that's that.  Do not make a fool out of yourself-but make sure you are looking smokin' hot. 

 Oh how we love the wrong men.

Here is the letter Willoughby wrote Marianne to dump her: (from the book):

 I have just had the honour of receiving your letter, for which I beg to return my sincere acknowledgements.  I am much concerned to find there was any thing in my behaviour last night which did not meet your approbation: and though I am quite at a loss to discover in what point I could be so unfortunate as to offend you, I intreat your forgiveness of what I can assure you to have been perfectly unintentional.  I shall never reflect on my former acquaintance with your family in Devonshire without the most grateful pleasure, and flatter myself it will not be broken by any mistake or misapprehension of my actions.  My esteem for your whole family is very sincere; but if I have been so unfortunate as to give rise to a belief of more than I feel, or meant to express, I shall reproach myself for not having been more guarded in my professions of that esteem.  That I should have ever have meant more, you will allow to be impossible, when you understand that my affections have been long engaged elsewhere, and it will not be many weeks, I believe, before this engagement is fulfilled.  It is with great regret that I obey your commands of returning the letters, with which I have been honoured from you, and the lock of hair, which you so obligingly bestowed on me. I am,dear Madam, your most obedient humble Servant, John Willoughby

This is what it would sound like today, if he bothered to write at all:

 

Marianne-Sorry I didn’t write sooner- just checked my email. A text would have been quicker. I wasn’t acting myself last night, must have been drunk or whatever.  Hope I didn’t piss you off too badly, please get over it if I did, didn’t mean to do it.  It was cool getting to know your family in Devonshire.  I'll always remember how great you guys were. Anyway, I feel like an ass leading you on, but I really like this other girl better, and we are moving in together, but probably not for a couple more weeks because I have to get some other things taken care of first.  Sorry for the misunderstanding, don’t make me have to block you on Facebook.  Don’t worry, I deleted all our private messages and special texts. ;0)  Let’s be friends, John Willoughby


Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha...... she wandered around like a lost soul in the rain and stayed in bed over that?????? Oh Honey,  he was broke and a baby daddy-that letter and that hair back was the best thing he could have ever done for you!

No worries for you old fashioned romantics, both Dashwood sisters got married in the end.

My film side says bravo to Emma Thompson for a well written screen play and bravo to Ang Lee for wonderful direction.  I loved Kate Winslet in Heavenly Creatures and obviously, we can look back and say that she did not burn out as a young and talented actress.  My private Austen says... my private Austen says...she says...

My private Austen?

I don't have a private Austen....

I've been told everybody has a private Austen. We have Emma or Elizabeth or Marianne or Elinore living inside us. We channel them in times of need.

I don't.

You know who I have inside me?  I have Shakespeare women inside me.  I have an inner ambitious Lady MacBeth. I have a dark Ophelia. I have feisty Katerina. I have an inner impulsive Juliette, and a Desdemona who does not know when to run from a jealous freak. I could take one or two of the Bronte sister,s characters and make room for them- Bertha Mason can hide in my attic, Cathy can wander around until she finds Heathcliff all she wants.  Hester Prynne can come study abroad with us in England.

But Austen, she's just not there.

I'll hang out with her if she wants to hang, but I'm not letting her in...no way in hell I'm crying over Willoughby.

In any language....