Latest news with #AustenFans
Telegraph
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
It's still Jane Austen's world we're living in – just look at the Beckhams
One of the highlights of my year so far was talking to the brilliant Jane Austen biographer Paula Byrne at the Althorp Literary Festival, to mark the 250 th anniversary of the maestra's birth. Byrne was on our screens last night as contributor and consultant to the BBC's celebratory series Jane Austen: Rise of a Genius. What I particularly relish about Byrne's approach to Austen is that she puts family, humour and social engagement at the heart of understanding the novels – rather than the often espoused view of a shy spinster, slightly detached from the world. She makes a point of highlighting Austen's frequent travel and love of the British seaside, as helping form a literary vitality so fully realised that almost any character can walk off the page and into the 21 st century without feeling outmoded. But then Byrne was brought up a middle daughter on the Wirral in a pack of seven siblings and views Austen through the prism of domestic life, with shared jokes and confidences. This makes good sense to me, as the middle child of five, who saw my own sisters reflected in Elizabeth and Jane Bennett's bond, while my book-loving publican mother's anxieties over our marital prospects closely mirrored Mrs Bennett's. (It was mum who gave me a full set of Austen's novels aged 11, forever awakening me to the potential eligibility of vicars and the importance of witty, combative discourse in courtship.) Whenever a young man from one of the locale's land-owning families came into our rural pub, mum would loudly call for my big sister Holly or me to come and join her from our linked cottage, although it was clear only one bar-hand was required to serve a pint. We were mortified by the blatantness of her strategy, but now I see it as an immensely practical act of love. As an English Literature graduate in my twenties, I pined to be Lizzie Bennett, but recognised that I was almost certainly a less loveable, know-it-all Emma Woodhouse type, who tried to match-make friends with catastrophic results. I even ended up marrying my very own Mr Knightley, a kind, wise man 15 years my senior prepared to critique my less sensible decisions. You can't grow out of Jane Austen and her world is ever-pliable, encompassing updates and endless adaptations, of which my favourite may be Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. The novels themselves withstand endless updates, makeovers and even down time tunnels, going back to the original serialisation form. This month, the Novel Magazine Company publishes a glossy 'magazine novel', three-issue version of Pride and Prejudice, 'curated' by one 'SJ King Esq', complete with imagined early 19 th -century advertisements. There are also lavish fashion plates of real Regency beauties, such as Georgiana Cavendish (the future Duchess of Devonshire, who was brought up at Althorp House), brought to life by the digital witchcraft that is AI. Volume one contains the first 23 chapters of the novel, just like Austen's 1813 first volume of Pride and Prejudice, which was published in three parts. And purists need not fear, the text is faithful to the original while the digital creator runs riot with the visuals. I must confess to a ferocious yearning for this Annie Leibovitz-style reimagining of P&P. It seems to me that Austen herself might applaud a Tatler-style rendition of her best loved novel. Her letters to her sister Cassandra betray a rich love of gossip and, if writing today, Austen would surely mull over family dramas in the public domain. Just imagine what the author's wry take would be on Victoria Bennett's – I mean Beckham's – estrangement from her feckless son Brooklyn, due to her new daughter-in-law's presumed machinations. How she would have laughed at Lauren Sánchez's staggeringly ostentatious hen night and wedding plans. The formats may change, but human folly remain the same. We are all living in Jane Austen's world.
ABC News
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Star Wars' fascist dystopia has never felt closer than in new season of Andor
"The axe forgets, but the tree remembers." Arvel Skeen, Andor I suspect the world is divided into two groups: those who worship Star Wars and can spend hours arguing over the complexities of far-flung corners of its universe; and those who swipe left and close the app immediately they see that someone has mentioned George Lucas' creation as one of their great loves. I do not mean to suggest that a Star Wars passion is gender divided: just like the many worlds within the galaxies of the universe itself, it's not. But the genre has become something of a shibboleth for a certain kind of focus that is rivalled by perhaps only Jane Austen and Lord of the Rings fans: people whose imaginative lives are spent deep in a completely made up other world. If Star Wars is your thing, you speak a language and understand a lore that connects you wordlessly to an entire community. All of which makes the most recent contribution to its cinematic literature even more remarkable than the universal acclaim it's received: for there are no light-sabre fights, no heavy-breathing Darth Vader, no Princess Leia — no cute, fluffy animals in this new show. Only a deathlessly serious analysis of fascism, the origins of rebellion and the socio-political realities of uprisings. Star Wars has just created the greatest study unit for the history of revolutions that any university could possibly want. The two-season television show, Andor, was created by US writer, director and producer, Tony Gilroy — who broke new ground with his Star Wars franchise movie, Rogue One — and his intention was to create the most complete portrait of revolution, its origins, failings and successes, ever seen on screen. It tells the story of Cassian Andor, played by Diego Luna, an originally minor player in the rebellion that drives the Star Wars story, showing his unintended development from angry young man into a revolutionary driven by the oppression of his times. Tweezering aside the kitschy distractions of many Star Wars characteristics, Gilroy was left with the heart of its own story: dispossessed rebellion by oppressed ethnic and culture groups across nations, aided by upper class resentment of control as they rise up against the faceless tyranny of the Empire. The random detainments and deportations; the capricious taxations and work orders; the military presence and oppressions; the culture of fear the repression of free speech; the nervous resistance of some in the ruling class, and authority's impulse for retribution and punishment. Sound familiar? It's supposed to. Gilroy, a student of the Russian and Haitian revolutions, describes revolutions like families: "They're all unique and they're all the same," Gilroy told the Peabody podcast, We Disrupt This Broadcast. "I've been able to just sort of catalogue-shop history in a horrifying way all through the whole show." And so the histories of Tiananmen Square and Bloody Sunday haunt a shocking massacre of civilians in their occupied city; like the Middle East, hard-line guerillas split from the cause in disdain of the soft tactics of the rebel authority; like South America, mercenaries are hired to foment local trouble to justify a tyrannical crackdown; and like every revolution there has ever been, innocents become collateral damage to the importance of the "movement." But the present rings loudly, too. The culture we create and absorb grows from the nature of our times, and the portrait of tyranny and proto fascism crated in Andor is uncomfortably close to ours. The only real difference, as Gilroy sees it, between Russia, France or now is the rapid pace of communications and disinformation — an upgrade for modern-day fascism via the Tech Bros who decide to climb on board. But you should know that this also a beautifully produced and designed series: exquisite art direction, breathtaking costumes by celebrated Australian costume designer, Michael Wilkinson, and world-creation that glowers with a timeless brutalism that any resident of London, Caracas or Melbourne would recognise. And that's part of the connection too: fascist dystopia never felt so close. Andor has become the only television show in history to have five episodes in a row with a rating of 9.5 or higher on the review aggregate website IMDb, and is regarded by some critics as having some of the best TV episodes of all time. I am among them, and as someone who frantically scours overlapping platforms for the best TV writing, I thought that the language of Andor soars. Gilroy puts into the mouth of one of his most endearing characters, the idealistic young rebel, Karis Nemik, a speech for the ages on freedom and tyranny. He says: "Freedom is a pure idea. It occurs spontaneously and without instruction … Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks. It leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that. And know this: the day will come when all these skirmishes and battles, these moments of defiance will have flooded the banks of the Empire's authority, and then there will be one too many. One single thing will break the siege. Remember this. Try." It's the kind of speech you may yet hear in real life, one day. This weekend, you can see how this past informed our future too, with a fascinating investigation into the Australians who fought against fascism in the Spanish civil war. Empires everywhere. Have a safe and happy weekend, and if like me you are still filled with the pleasure of having inhaled season two of Andor — you'll be expecting me to play this; and if not, this banger is about to go straight to your dance list. It's the wedding remix of composer Nicolas Britell's original track, Niamos, for season one. The club world is waiting for Britell to drop the original — in the meantime here's the moment. Go well. Virginia Trioli is presenter of Creative Types and a former co-host of ABC News Breakfast and Mornings on ABC Radio Melbourne.
Geek Vibes Nation
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Vibes Nation
‘Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' Review: Camille Rutherford Tangos With Romance And Writer's Block In Laura Piani's Sharp Debut
From its title alone, you can tell that Laura Piani's Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is no Pride & Prejudice. As in, it's not exactly the dramatization of a (moving) picture-perfect romance in which two people go from enemies to potential lovers, nor where they traipse around picturesque manors in gowns, drink tea from sunup to sundown, and entertain throngs of esteemed guests in massive ballrooms stuffed to the gills with champagne and crumpets. There is romance aplenty, but nothing is perfect about it. A charming estate plays a sizable role in the film's events, but its guests are welcome to wear jeans as they mill about the grounds. Coffee and wine are served; an evening out on the town is an option; the one time a ball-like reception is thrown, it's treated as a special occasion, not a Thursday. The fact that these elements are in play at all makes it certain that Piani's romantic comedy will be placed in direct conversation with the legendary author's work, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and the writer-director's debut feature is as much a clever, borderline satirical ode to Austen's texts as it is inspired by them. In other words, there's a reason that her film is called Jane Austen Wrecked My Life and not Jane Austen Is My Life, even if her main character makes it clear early on that she adores Austen's novels and identifies most closely with Persuasion's Anne Elliot. Agathe Robinson (Camille Rutherford) doesn't quite live the life of an old maid, but she's certainly an independent spirit whose world is confined to her duties at Paris's Shakespeare and Company bookstore, as well as her own writing dreams, which are supported and encouraged by her close circle of confidants. Her sister is a single (but ready to mingle) mom, which makes the eternally-available Agathe the ideal aunt. And while her best friend and coworker, Félix (Pablo Pauly), tends to sleep around, his heart is in the right place. That's precisely why it's no surprise to learn that he is the one who secretly submitted Agathe's newest story to writer's retreat housed at Jane Austen's old residence, a prospect she initially (and nervously) spurns due to a nagging case of imposter syndrome, only to accept once she realizes how ridiculous it would be to reject the opportunity to type where her favorite scribe once scrawled. There are a few (read: three) big problems, though: For starters, her writer's block – a symptom of imposter syndrome – is nagging heavily, and causing immense frustration for a young woman whose opportunity to showcase her gifts has finally arrived. Then, there's the fact that Felix kissed Agathe and expressed his feelings for her just moments before she had to go away for a month. (Naturally.) Finally, there's Oliver (Charlie Anson), the stuck-up, devilishly handsome sourpuss who drives Agathe to the workshop, and also turns out to be Austen's great-great-great-grandnephew. He's the worst. He thinks his renowned relative is overrated. He even speaks French – the film is in both French and English, reflecting Agathe's (and Rutherford's) bilinguality – which allows him to understand what the workshop's newest participant is saying when she mutters insults about him under her breath. But there's something about him, something that intrigues and frustrates Agathe to no end, an intangible quality that keeps her fascination with his every utterance a constant presence in the film, providing Piani's proceedings with a love triangle as its natural narrative engine. Yet the director and her star have far more on their mind than merely who Agathe will choose in the end. Jane Austen Wrecked My Life is a rom-com at its core, but it balances a plethora of tones, all of which are essential parts of its plot rather than throwaway elements that could theoretically make its characters more developed. Agathe deals with intense grief from a devastating tragedy; Oliver's father, Todd (Alan Fairbairn), is ailing, which puts a great deal of pressure on his mother, Beth (Liz Crowther), to run the Austen estate. That our two principal characters, in particular, are faced with these individual conflicts in the midst of the film's more mainstream qualities allows it to entirely clear the plane on which more basic, prototypical romantic fodder exists. It certainly helps that Rutherford's performance grounds the film with a resonance that far too few heroines are afforded in today's cinema. In an interview with Piani and Rutherford, the director told me that she especially enjoyed discovering Agathe as more of a real human than a mere character, something that Rutherford was instrumental in developing. Part of that is due to the star's innate abilities as a physical performer – Agathe is an enthusiastic dancer, whether she's fully clothed or in the nude; in one scene, she smells herself, only to discover that the odor is wretched; later, she's drunk enough to condemn a suitor for not going down on her. Agathe, thanks to Rutherford's interpretation of the character, is far from the sort of creation that Austen is famed for, and that's all the more reason for Jane Austen Wrecked My Life to succeed on its own merits. After all, despite Austen's influence and the film's meta commentary on her work and the tropes that often appear within, the story at its center is about a woman whose life has been altered because of Jane Austen's influence, not a life that has been written by Jane Austen. Austen might have wrecked Agathe's life in some ways, but the former also allows the latter to learn from the mistakes that her own protagonists have made in the process of paving her own road, both in the literary world and in the real one. Late in the film, Agathe comes to understand that both writing and love are not about operating in the ideal conditions, but about growth even when the environment appears to be barren. As one character notes, like weeds and plants, writing needs ruins to exist; 'Look for your ruins,' they tell Agathe. Naturally, this is where she finds the most success, and in many ways, it's what Jane Austen Wrecked My Life was doing all along: Exploring the perceived ruins of someone's life and uncovering profound lessons as a result.
