Northanger Abbey

The other reviews have judged this production quite harshly. I disagree. It's from 1987, and was produced as part of a BBC television series, so it's unfair to compare it with much bigger budget features. I found it charming, and faithful to the novel. This novel is different from the usual Austen. It was written as a homage to the Gothic novels of the day and so it's more dramatic and less nuanced. It's a fun, short novel rather than a serious novel. This production captures the wonder and excitement of a naive girl making her first foray into society. The movie characters that are black and white villains are also villainous in the novel. Don't be put off by the low rating. It's worth a view.

Being a big Jane Austen fan, I had great hopes of seeing the timeless story of her "Northanger Abbey" come to life on video. Needless to say, that didn't happen. Did the writers ever read the actual book? It was not consistent in any likeness, in spirit or theme. The characters had no depth, the music was irritating and distracting, and the plot was twisted and weird. Jane Austen, I'm sure would be thouroughly offended, as will the veiwer of this B-style, twilight zone version of the classic.

Normally BBC productions of Jane Austen are pretty good but Northanger Abbey is just odd. What were they thinking? This film has little of Austen's charm and ironically mimics the Gothic novels that Austen so wonderfully mocked. Not only that, the "gothic" sequences are tacky, over-the-top, and frankly silly. The actress playing Miss Morland is poorly cast with no obvious appeal to attract the attentions of an eligible bachelor, and though I rather liked the creepy Peter Firth as Mr. Tilney, he is not a bit like the novel, even when delivering dialog straight out of the book. Robert Hardy as General Tilney turned in one of his few terribly "ham" performances. This film was so bizarre and strange that I actually watched it again just to savor how freakishly wrong it was.

Jane Austen's novel is a satirical sweep at the Gothic novels then the fashion for young ladies to read, and her heroine Catherine Moreland is no exception. In her fantasy world there are always happy endings and intrigue, and she expects to find this as she accompanies the Allens to Bath.

However, this adaptation misses the point of Austen's novel entirely, and is dull and ponderous (even at its short running time of an hour and a half). Katharine Schlesinger is irritating as Catherine, all wide eyes and empty head; while Peter Firth is nothing like my idea of Henry Tilney. Good to see Googie Withers, Robert Hardy, et al in supporting roles though, even if they are given little to do.

And who on earth thought electronic music would be suitable to play over the opening credits? An appalling choice and totally out of step with the source material.

When Jane Austen wrote 'Northanger Abbey' she intended to poke fun at the trashy Gothic literature of her day, aimed at silly, young, impressionable females. The story was meant to gradually draw the character of Catherine Morland out of the fantasy world she had built for herself, and into reality. The typical language, characters and themes of a Gothic romance were sent up the whole way through and were shown to be the epitomy of bad writing.

However, this adaptation seemed to embrace and flatter what it was that Jane Austen was attempting to satirise. It retained a gothic feel throughout and seemed to 'put back' what it was that Jane Austen was trying to 'take out'. Northanger Abbey became the mysterious castle, Henry Tilney became the intriguing Gothic hero, and the 'secret' which Catherine believed existed at the Abbey turned out to be real. One cannot help thinking that the makers of this adaptation hadn't read the book very closely as they seemed to have missed the point.

Unfortunately with an adaptation of this type, when Jane Austen was writing she was assuming that her readers would be familiar with the Gothic genre. Filmmakers today would need to explain to the audience what the Gothic genre was all about, explaining why this adaptation contains so many fantastical elements that Jane Austen was attempting to escape from.

All of this aside, it works quite well. The adaptation keeps to the storyline pretty much, and retains much of Jane Austen's witty dialogue. The music helps contribute to the eerie atmosphere very well. One cannot help but wonder at the beauty of this version. Perfectly cast and impeccably acted.