Mansfield Park

Why bother, ITV? Admittedly, Mansfield Park is the most difficult of the novels to "get," and Fanny is certainly the hardest to like, but... If one is going to take it on, then have the courage to risk being true to the book and its rather complicated spirit. And for heaven's sake, have the guts to cast Fanny as she was written: A prissy, good-hearted, sweetish, whiner! Mrs. Norris wasn't nearly as awful as she should have been. And what the heck happened to Portsmouth? The contrast between Fanny's rather dubious family and family home and the splendors of Mansfield is key to, well, so many aspects of Fanny's refusal of Henry, her uncle's rejection, Henry's near transformation to a good person, etc., etc. Again, given the complexity and challenges of the novel, why did they bother? It's beyond me...

This television film was first broadcast by ITV1 on Sunday 18th March 2007. It was the first episode of a four part Jane Austen season. Although the television drama was given 2 hours in the ITV schedules, when the time for commercial breaks has been deducted, the film has a total running time of 93 minutes. This is the main problem with this dramatisation. The novel, which in my Penguin Classics edition runs to 457 pages, is simply too long and complex to be covered adequately in such a short period of time. Consequently, a number of very important sequences in the novel, such as the visit to Sotherton, and Fanny's stay at her parents' house in Portsmouth, are omitted from this adaptation. Similarly some of the novel's characters such as Dr and Mrs Grant are conspicuous by their absence. Furthermore, Billie Piper is completely miscast in the role of Fanny Price, a character described in the book as shy and timid. The supporting cast includes reliable actors like Douglas Hodge as Sir Thomas Bertram and Jemma Regrave as Lady Bertram, but their parts are so underwritten that they get little chance to shine. On a positive note, though, this dramatisation does feature some attractive location photography of Newby Hall in North Yorkshire.

Well, this latest version of Mansfield Park seemed to try and take the edginess of the 1999 theatrical version (outright copied some of the ideas from it in fact), but tone things down a bit to bring it more in line with the original story. Unfortunately, the result is a rather lackluster, and schizophrenic, production. And, as with all the other versions of Mansfield Park out there, the character of Fanny Price is no where to be found. Instead there is a strangely child-like, bleached-blond woman running around who never really fully develops as a character. At least in the 1999 movie the character they call "Fanny Price" is firmly established as rebellious tomboy who is too clever for her own good. This "Fanny Price" is a complete enigma. Someday, I would really like to see a dramatization of Mansfield Park that actually includes a depiction of the character of Fanny as she was written by Jane Austen. A sweet, kind, compassionate girl with a timid personality and frail constitution. She is reserved in manner and painfully honest, but also strong in her convictions, unfailingly loyal, extremely intelligent, and remarkably astute. A bit of a late bloomer, it is not until her eighteenth year that she finally begins to make the transition from awkward adolescent to self-possessed young woman. And she wants nothing more in life than to be of some real use to those she loves most. It's a wonderfully complex character that I look forward to one day seeing faithfully portrayed.

This is a really disappointing version of a clever book, with inappropriate characterisations and appalling acting from its lead actress. As Fanny Price, Billie Piper is just wrong in every respect - too modern, too flirtatious, and too aware of her station.

However there are some compensations, even if the characters are portrayed with little reference to the original book - Douglas Hodge, Jemma Redgrave, and Maggie O'Neill are pretty good, while Blake Ritson has a decent stab at the role of Edmund.

It just doesn't feel right or have the correct sense of period. It's a bit without character, and a missed opportunity.

This seems like a film made with Jane Austen kind of elements but doesn't relate at all to the 'Mansfield Park' novel that Jane Austen wrote. It has no idea what the novel is about and I think that if you are adapting a book for the screen that it should be at least faithful to the spirit of the book. And that certainly means not casting Billie Piper as Fanny Price. Whoever thought of that one deserves a raspberry. I'm sure I was laughing in the wrong places.

I watched it expecting it to get better but sank lower and lower in my seat. One of Austen's more profound novels had been turned into flavourless and unrewarding entertainment (if that is even the word). TV and film producers for ages have been underestimating the general audience and this Austen travesty is another slap in the face. It is a great shame that the quality of British television plummets year after year.