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Los Angeles Times
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Embeth Davidtz has always been soft-spoken. Stepping up as a director, she decided to roar
Embeth Davidtz's home is so quiet. Nestled in Brentwood Park, the 59-year-old actor's spacious yet cozy place feels like a sanctuary, the skylight in her kitchen offering plentiful afternoon sun. Once owned by Julie Andrews, the house is where Davidtz feels most comfortable. It's taken most of her life to find somewhere that made her feel that way. 'I seldom leave,' she says, smiling. 'I'm not someone who likes to run around. I like being here.' She's lived in this house for about 20 years — it's where she and her husband raised their children, now 22 and 19. She moved to Los Angeles in 1991 and before then, hers was a completely different world. Lately, that world has rarely been far from her thoughts. In the early 1970s, when Davidtz was eight years old, she moved from America with her South African parents to Pretoria, in the midst of that country's apartheid system. Long wanting to come to terms with the institutional racism she witnessed during her childhood, she has done something that previously had never held much interest: write and direct a movie. Pivoting from an on-screen career of stellar, precise performances in movies like 'Schindler's List,' 'Junebug' and 'Bridget Jones's Diary,' Davidtz has at last made a directorial debut with 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight' (in theaters Friday), a gripping and somber drama based on Alexandra Fuller's acclaimed 2001 memoir about growing up in colonial Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). The film is about Fuller's family, but it's also very much about the lessons Davidtz never wants to stop learning herself. 'It's a constant processing,' she says of how she is always reckoning with her past. 'I think I'll probably have to grapple with it till the day that I die — what I remember seeing.' Set in 1980, the year that the African region known as Rhodesia, ruled by a white minority, would become the independent nation of Zimbabwe, 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight' features Davidtz as Nicola, an angry, alcoholic policewoman whose privileged life crumbles as the Zimbabwean War upends the country's racial power imbalance. However, the movie is not told from Nicola's perspective but instead, from that of Bobo, her 8-year-old daughter (played with beguiling immediacy by newcomer Lexi Venter), who reflects Fuller's own blinkered worldview at the time. As Bobo provides voice-over narration, we witness a disturbingly naturalized culture of colonialism in which our main character, a seemingly innocent child, bikes through town with a rifle slung on her back and parrots the racist attitudes espoused by white landowners around her. Zimbabwe isn't South Africa, but when Davidtz read Fuller's stark memoir, the similarities of racial injustice were striking. 'She cuts you off at the knees,' says Davidtz. 'You recognize it, then you feel shame.' Davidtz was born in Indiana, but after some time in New Jersey, her family moved to Pretoria when she was eight. Her 17 years in South Africa left their mark. Even though she'd never written a screenplay before 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight,' she had been working on something about her upbringing. But after reading Fuller's memoir, Davidtz says, 'I remember thinking, 'Well, that's the definitive book on it. I'm never going to be able to write a book like that.'' 'I wouldn't say mine was a happy childhood,' she continues. 'I think it was very unhappy in ways. Did I love Africa? Yes. But was it an idyllic childhood? No.' Bobo's bigoted views — the girl has come to believe Black people don't have last names and are secretly terrorists — weren't what Davidtz experienced growing up. 'My family didn't act that same way, they didn't speak that same way, but you were part of the system by being there,' she says. Like Bobo's family, Davidtz did not enjoy many luxuries, except in comparison to the help around her. 'If you had servants in your home, you were part of the system,' she says. '[My parents] certainly were not out marching for civil rights. They fell in that gray area.' Not that Davidtz excludes herself from the racist mindset that's evident in Bobo, who enjoys spending time with her family's housekeeper, Sarah (Zikhona Bali), despite treating her as beneath her. That relationship picked an emotional scab for Davidtz. 'There's uncomfortable memories that I have,' she admits. 'I remember playing with [Black] children and being bossy and being just an a—hole.' Her personal connection to 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight' goes deeper. Fuller's mother was a drinker; in Davidtz's family, it was her father, who studied applied mathematics and physics in the States. She sees his alcoholism as the byproduct of an idealism that got crushed. 'He was a physical chemist; he was a scientist,' she says, 'and his whole thought was this altruistic thing of, 'I'm going to take everything that I've learned and bring it back [to South Africa].' That's where the alcoholism emerged. That government that was running South Africa really tightly controlled everything that my father did. I think they were highly suspicious of somebody coming from America. He very much felt his wings were clipped. And so the bottle got raised.' (These days are happier ones for her dad: 'He's medicated; he's calmer,' she says. 'He doesn't drink anymore.') Davidtz can't quite pinpoint where her passion for performing originated. 'No one else has it,' she says of her family. 'I really think that 7-year-old me sat in my living room in New Jersey watching the 'Sonny & Cher' show. Cher with that hair was just the most glamorous, amazing thing I'd ever seen. And then, suddenly, we land in this dirty, dusty farmhouse with my dad in decline and no television.' Davidtz escaped Pretoria — at least in her mind — by going to the movies, including an early, formative screening of 'Doctor Zhivago,' David Lean's 1965 historical romance. 'My mind was blown by the sweep, the story, the epicness,' she recalls. 'Maybe I wanted, somehow, to remove myself from that dirt and squalor and aspire to something.' 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight' doesn't contain the gratuitous violence you often see in films about racism. In its place is a codified class structure ruled by its white characters, who strongly encourage the locals to vote for approved candidates in the upcoming election in order to maintain the status quo. But once revolutionary Robert Mugabe comes to power, that old system gives way, leading to an unsettling scene in which Nicola wields a whip to keep Black Africans off what she considers to be her farm. The questionable optics of a white woman telling a story about Zimbabwe entered Davidtz's mind. She did her homework about the region, even though she ultimately had to shoot in South Africa because of Zimbabwe's current political unrest. She spoke with her cinematographer, Willie Nel, about how the film had to look. 'I need the light shining through her eyes like that,' Davidtz remembers. 'I want the closeup on the filthy fingernails. This is the way Peter Weir gets in super-close, how Malick [shows] skies and nature.' And she made sure to center her pessimistic coming-of-age narrative on the white characters, condemning them — including young Bobo. 'I don't think a Black filmmaker could tell the experience of a white child,' she says. 'I think only a white filmmaker could tell that. [Bobo] misunderstands a lot of what [the Black characters are] doing. That was deliberate — I tried to handle that really carefully. I'm certainly not trying to make the white child sympathetic in any way.' She was just as adamant that Nicola be an utterly unlikable, virulent bigot. 'You needed her to be diabolical in order to show what really was happening there,' says Davidtz. 'I saw people behave like that.' This isn't the first time she's played the villain, but she wanted to ensure there was nothing sympathetic or devilishly appealing about Nicola. Recalling her portrayal of the superficial, materialistic Mary Crawford in the 1999 adaptation of 'Mansfield Park,' Davidtz observes, 'She was just cheerfully going about her life — being diabolical, but with a smile. She was charming. That was more acceptable, more palatable.' She allowed none of that here, tapping into the desperation of a woman whose self-worth is wrapped up in the subjugation of those around her. The veteran actress has often done terrific work by going small, her breakthrough coming as a Jewish maid prized by Ralph Fiennes' sadistic Nazi in 1993's 'Schindler's List.' More recently Davidtz has earned rave reviews in series like 'Ray Donovan' and 'The Morning Show.' She doesn't do showy and she's the same in person, appealingly modest and soft-spoken. But in 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight,' she gives a boldly brazen performance as Nicola, a portrait of ugly, entitled hatred. Although Davidtz felt anxious playing such a demonstratively racist character — especially around her Black cast — she also found it a refreshing change from how she usually approaches a role. 'This [performance] was hard and it was scary, but it was necessary,' she says, Getting herself to such a dark place for 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight' was easy, though. The trick? 'I didn't have time,' she says. 'Everything was focused on only the three hours [a day] that I had with the kid. It was like, 'I got to get this quick,' and I was on my last nerve, which was great for the character — I was pretty worn down by the time we shot a lot of my stuff.' Similarly to 'The Zone of Interest,' which Davidtz reveres ('I love that film,' she declares, awed), 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight' illustrates the insidiousness of bigotry by stripping away the simplistic moralizing. Bobo, her parents and the other white settlers benefit from an unjust system, always presented matter-of-factly, as the adults relish their domestic bliss at the expense of the indentured locals. I ask Davidtz if she's showing us what everyday evil looks like. 'Evil's a strong word,' she replies. 'I'd say 'oblivious' or 'unconscious' or 'culpable.' It's all of the above. I really wanted to reveal something the way 'The Zone of Interest' revealed something. It's the casual racism. An ordinary person watching [the film] goes, 'Oh, my God, that was normal to them. That was their normal.' Then you see the full picture. Then, the evil of it shows up.' In her memoir, author Fuller writes about her later political awakening, a process Davidtz underwent as well. 'I saw moments around me — horrible, violent police arresting men on the streets, the people chucked into the back of police vans,' she says. 'Just that terrified feeling inside and knowing, 'If you're white, you're safe. If you're Black, you're not.' Then as I got older, [there was] the disconnect between what I'm seeing and what is right.' According to Davidtz, 'the scales fell off' once she attended South Africa's liberal Rhodes University in the early 1980s and started taking part in protest marches. 'I felt like that was the big awakening,' she says, 'but it's an awakening that continues.' There is one frequent sound in the calm oasis of Davidtz's home: the chatter of news broadcasts. 'It's often on in the background,' she says, 'but I think it's a habit that's eroding my peace of mind.' She admits to the same conflicted feelings many in Los Angeles have, a desire to stay informed of everything that's happening — the ongoing war in Gaza, the stories out of Ukraine, the violent ICE raids in Southern California — but not succumb to despair and anger. No amount of quiet can tune out the world, and Davidtz doesn't want to. 'When you've been in a place where things have been so wrong, you spot it really quickly in other places,' she says of the injustices occurring both here and abroad. 'One thing that we can do is say what we think.' Remembering her own childhood, and pondering what prompted her to make this movie, she suggests, 'I think it comes from watching something silently for a long time. I think that part of me will never want to not say, 'I don't think this is right.'' With 'Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight,' Davidtz is speaking up, but she knows those bad old days aren't over. In fact, they've never been so present. As the film ends, Bobo takes one last look at the town and the locals that shaped her. There's a glimmer of hope that, one day, this girl will outgrow the racism she's ingested. But the land — and the pain — remains. Davidtz has not allowed herself to look away.
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Renée Zellweger Has Her 'Fingers Crossed' for More Bridget Jones Stories
When Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy debuted in February (on Peacock in the U.S. and in theaters abroad), it had been nearly nine years since a film focused on the adventures of the beloved British singleton. Would audiences respond with the same affections for Ms. Jones in 2025 that they had when she was introduced to the world with Bridget Jones's Diary in 2001 or the follow-ups, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason in 2004 or Bridget Jones's Baby in 2016? Turns out the answer was a bloody yes, indeed! Credit the collaboration of two-time Oscar winner Renée Zellweger, who slipped back into Bridget's life (and accent) like no time had passed, author and screenwriter Helen Fielding, and the new man on the scene, filmmaker Michael Morris. But the truth is, time had passed. Mad About the Boy picks up four years after the crushing death of Bridget's true love, Mark Darcy, played by swoon-worthy Colin Firth, leaving Bridget navigating life as a single mother with their two young children. Enter two potential love interests played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, as a strict teacher, and The White Lotus breakout Leo Woodall as a garbage aficionado. More from The Hollywood Reporter 'Shrinking' Actress and Music Supervisor Christa Miller on Pulling the Strings Behind the Scenes 'The Boys' Showrunner and Stunt Coordinator on Crafting the "Ugly" (And Sometimes Nude) Supe Fights Ramy Youssef Talks Using Hand-Drawn Animation to Find Humor in Dark Reality of '#1 Happy Family USA' Zellweger and Morris collaborated once again for the conversation below to discuss how they cracked Jones' code, the most memorable moments on set and whether this is truly the end of the road for Bridget and company. Renée, you have that emotional scene with Colin Firth's Mark Darcy when you arrive at the house together, and we can feel the grief. But there are moments of joy and levity once you enter and greet your friends. What was that scene like for you to shoot? RENéE ZELLWEGER That was, 'I'm not supposed to cry in the scene,' and it's impossible not to cry in that scene. It was such a strange day seeing Colin there in his Mark Darcy finery. I had this moment of realization that the real-life journey of sharing the Bridget and Mark Darcy love story with my friend was coming to an end. It really felt like a profound moment thinking about the nearly 30 years we've shared in telling this story. Then I thought, 'Yeah, I don't want this to end. I love Mark and Bridget!' MICHAEL MORRIS What I love so much about your performance in that moment — it's critical actually for how we are setting up this particular story of this woman's journey on from her great love — is that while standing in the doorway, after experiencing all those feelings you just talked about, the character Jeremy [played by Neil Edmond] answers the door. He is obviously upset on this anniversary of his friend's death, and it's Bridget who consoles him. It's Bridget who hugs him and says, 'It's OK.' Then your voiceover comes in and we go into the scene as the audience is feeling this loss, and it's Bridget who is looking after us. She's saying that this is what happened and 'I'm OK.' That's so Bridget in the way that you've made her over the years. When she wallows, she wallows. But for the rest of her life, she doesn't. I found that a really wonderful way to begin. All of the sadness was there, all the nostalgia was there, all the yearning for the past. But you were really present: you Renée, you Bridget. Michael, you said Renée and Bridget as almost one in the same. I know a lot of people feel that way. Helen Fielding told , 'Bridget and Renée have merged into the same person for me. But when Renée and I met, it's quite funny and confusing because we both think the other is Bridget, but neither of us is.' Renée, what do you make of that? ZELLWEGER It's interesting what Helen says about that, as she exists in the middle of everybody. I feel like when we sit down with the friends or with Colin or Michael, who has been working on the script so closely for such a long time, or with Helen, who is in the midst of all of these conversations, she starts to show up. The rest of it is technical. I just have affinity for her. I love her. I love who she is and what she inspires, her optimism and her joy and her perspective. I love that she lifts other people up when she's feeling down and that she's self-effacing in a way that we all recognize. It's just a testament to this beautiful thing that Helen has tapped into in terms of our vulnerabilities and bits of our shared humanity that Bridget seems to embody in a way that makes us feel seen when we spend time with her. It is an interesting experience [to play Bridget] because she's different every time. That's an unusual exercise for an actor to have that opportunity, and I've loved it because each time each of us revisits this world, Bridget's world, we're all different as well. So much has changed and so much has changed us. How wonderful not to have to pretend that we're less than we are. Michael, after having worked on the script and being British and knowing the world of Bridget Jones for so long, what was it like when you called 'action' and saw Renée slip into becoming Bridget? MORRIS Funnily enough, I experienced Renée as Bridget almost instantly when Renée came to London because she brings that energy, much of the character and her outlook, to the entire process, whether it's a meeting, conversation or rehearsal. One of my favorite moments, before even calling action, came on our very, very first day, which we had set aside as a rehearsal. We had some really great days rehearsing with the two children, who were fantastic. Casper Knopf is a wonderful young actor who had been onstage with David Tennant doing Macbeth but had never done anything like this before, and Mila [Jankovic] had never done anything and was just a ball of energy and spirit. On day one, we set aside some time for us all to get to know each other and be in a room and talk about the scenes loosely. Literally, within 15 minutes of everyone getting there, they went from 'Hello, my name is Mila' and 'Hello, my name is Casper' to the kids crawling all over Renée. Mila was on her lap putting slime all over her. It was just all warmth. I knew in that moment they were a family with family history. How did that happen? That's a bit of a magic trick, and I don't ever deny the skill of the magician in that one. Renée has a real ability with everybody on the film —technicians, guest cast, background artists, everyone — of inviting them into the world that she has created over these 25 years so that everyone feels connected and part of this character. There's no sense of me and you, us and them, mine and yours. Everything is ours. When you're making a film, that's everything. It allows everyone to do their best work and relax into the project and feel safe to try things and be supported. Thank God that's the environment Renée creates wherever she goes. That was so lovely. Renée, are you blushing? ZELLWEGER Hot pink. You said that this is the last book, but forgive me in advance for asking the same question that's on everyone's mind: Have there been any conversations with Helen about another book or continuing Bridget Jones' journey in some way? ZELLWEGER My understanding was that this was kind of it, but I keep my fingers crossed that she might want to share some more of her own experiences through the world of Bridget. MORRIS Me too. And look who we've got: Chiwetel Ejiofor in the world now, and we've got Leo Woodall in the world now. We've got all these fantastic people and Helen's got her life, her kids are going to college. Let's hope for more chapters. Renée, knowing this could be the last, how did you honor that? Did you take any special mementos from set or do you have anything that marks what could be the end? ZELLWEGER Twenty-five years' worth. This story first appeared in a June stand-alone issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. Best of The Hollywood Reporter 13 of Tom Cruise's Most Jaw-Dropping Stunts Hollywood Stars Who Are One Award Away From an EGOT 'The Goonies' Cast, Then and Now
ITV News
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- ITV News
ABC's heartwarming series Austin returns this July
The eagerly awaited second season of the ABC's hit comedy series Austin premieres Sunday 27 July at 7.30pm on ABC TV with all episodes available to stream on ABC iview. Praised for his standout performance in season one, Michael Theo is back as the straight-talking and brilliantly authentic Austin, alongside adored UK stars Ben Miller (Bridgerton, Death in Paradise) and Sally Phillips (Veep, Bridget Jones's Diary), and Australian favourites Gia Carides (My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Big Little Lies), and Roy Billing (Jack Irish, Underbelly). Rob Collins (Total Control, Cleverman) and Kate Elliott (Wentworth Prison, The Gulf) reprise their roles, with Rodger Corser (Doctor Doctor, The Floor), Katrina Milosevic (Wentworth, Population: 11), Claire Lovering (Gold Diggers, Class of '07), and Natalie Abbott (Aftertaste, The Deb), joining the cast for season two. Across the eight-part season, Austin (Michael Theo) grapples with sudden literary fame when his novel, 'An Autistic Guide to Britain' is picked up by an international publisher. Meanwhile his previously estranged father Julian (Ben Miller), and stepmother Ingrid (Sally Phillips), sell their beloved Big Bear series to Australian TV. Julian is swiftly cut out of the process due to his status as a social media pariah, leaving Ingrid to take the wheel. As Austin tries to stay true to himself, everyone else scrambles for relevance. At its heart, this season is all about love – finding it, falling into it, leaving it behind – woven through a heartfelt comedy about family, ambition, and the unpredictable pitfalls of success. Always free and Always entertaining, stream season one of Austin on ABC iview now. Production Credits: Commissioned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. A Northern Pictures production with Lincoln Pictures, in association with ITV Studios. Major Production investment from the ABC in association with Screen Australia, the ACT Government, and Screen Canberra. Post, digital and visual effects supported by Screen NSW. Created by Darren Ashton, Ben Miller, Joe Tucker and Lloyd Woolf. Executive Producers: Ben Miller, Sally Phillips, Jessica Parker, Joe Tucker, Lloyd Woolf, Peter Anderson, Darren Ashton and Catherine Nebauer. Produced by Joe Weatherstone. ABC Executive Producers: Rebecca Anderson and Rachel Okine. ITV Studios distributes the series internationally. 0404 026 039
Hamilton Spectator
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Jane Austen's life was more fascinating than fiction. I travelled to four destinations to learn all about it
On a peaceful street in Winchester, England's medieval capital, stands P&G Wells, advertised as 'Britain's oldest bookshop (probably).' From the wood-panelled storefront, you can spot a window display dedicated to the literary legend who once frequented this place herself: Jane Austen. A sculpture, by local artist Robert Truscott, depicts her at a writing table with quill in hand, oblivious to anyone's gaze. It's a fitting scene. In her lifetime, no one had any inkling she would become one of the world's most adored authors. Her books were published anonymously. The first edition of 'Sense and Sensibility' declared only that it was written 'By a Lady.' I picture Austen browsing these shelves, which now showcase her six completed novels — plus some of the countless works she inspired. Stacks of sequels, spinoffs and other fan fiction prove her enduring modern appeal. Would we have 'Bridget Jones's Diary' without 'Pride and Prejudice,' or 'Clueless' without 'Emma'? As if! Just a small selection of the books that Austen has inspired, on display at P&G Wells. The author once frequented the historic Winchester shop. 'This is incredible, isn't it?' says tour guide Erica Wheeler, gesturing to the great many Austen biographies. 'Everybody's so interested in her — and not just in the books. Everybody wants to know about Jane Austen herself.' Austen's life story is as intriguing as her fiction, and 2025 is an opportune time to learn all about it. This is the writer's 250th birthday, inspiring a year-long calendar of special events, including festivals, lectures, museum exhibitions, theatrical performances and fancy costume balls. There will be celebrations in Steventon, Bath, Chawton and Winchester , all destinations that claim her as a local. Just a few doors down from the P&G Wells bookshop is another historic address. The painted-brick home at 8 College Street is nondescript, save for a small plaque: 'In this house Jane Austen lived her last days and died 18th July 1817.' The author had come to Winchester seeking care for a mystery ailment. She perished shortly thereafter, at age 41. The private residence, now part of Winchester College , has never opened to the public, until now. This summer (until the end of August), Janeites from around the world can come see an artifact-filled exhibition or sign up for a private guided tour. A five-minute walk away is Austen's final resting place, the most prominent landmark in town: Winchester Cathedral . How did then-obscure Austen end up in one of Europe's finest medieval cathedrals, under the same roof as kings? Word has it that family — one brother was a clergyman — may have pulled some strings. A gravestone only hints at Austen's vocation, mentioning 'the extraordinary endowments of her mind.' A brass tablet, added in 1872, is more forthright, revealing she was 'known to many by her writings.' Left: The memorial stone marking Jane's final resting place inside Winchester Cathedral. Right: A brass tablet, added in 1872, belatedly acknowledged her writing talent. Jane Austen was born in 1775, in the tiny, rural Hampshire village of Steventon, where she grew up with seven siblings and spent her first 25 years. Today, a classic red phone booth, emblazoned with her name and turned into a free little library, serves as an adorable 'visitors' centre.' The Austen family home, the old rectory, was demolished long ago, but the open field where it stood will host a Regency-themed fair in her honour next month. A tree-shaded lane leads up to St. Nicholas Church, where the writer's father, Reverend George Austen, preached. It's still an active place of worship for the community of 250 locals and has become a small-scale tourist attraction. 'There's not a lot to see, in a way,' churchwarden Marilyn Wright tells me, 'but the countryside hasn't changed.' Taking in the bucolic atmosphere, the bluebells and birdsong, I can see why Austen was so fond of long walks in the country, a favoured pastime in her fiction. Travellers can follow in her footsteps on the newly opened Overton Jane Austen Trails . The most obvious pilgrimage site for Janeites is Bath , recognized by UNESCO as one of the great spa towns of Europe. Today, it's home to a small, dedicated museum, the Jane Austen Centre . It hosts a 10-day Jane Austen Festival each September, where you might see the 'largest gathering of people dressed in Regency costumes' (the festival holds the current Guinness World Record). Bath's annual Jane Austen Festival is the largest celebration of its kind. Events include guided walks, theatrical performances and costume balls. Austen herself held little affection for Bath. Although 'Northanger Abbey' and 'Persuasion' are set here, she didn't write much in the city. She moved to Bath in 1801, along with her dear sister, Cassandra, because her parents wanted to retire in the resort town, which attracted the gentry during the social season. 'Bath was the place you brought your unmarried daughters to get them married. So I think the Reverend Austen chose Bath because he thought, My daughters are in the last-chance saloon. I must get them married, and Bath is where to do it ,' explains Theresa Roche of Strictly Jane Austen Tours , guiding me along the cobblestone streets and grand Georgian crescents in her period costume: a butter-yellow gown with matching gloves, pearls and parasol. As it turned out, Bath didn't set the scene for a new romance. (Austen did once accept a marriage proposal, from the brother of friends, but had a change of heart by the next day.) Instead, a plot twist: Reverend Austen died, abruptly. 'That left the mother and the two daughters, now 'unmarriageable,' basically relying 100 per cent on the brothers,' explains Roche of the women's precarious fate. 'By 1806, their money has run out, and they're living in a slum. They're desperate,' says Roche. Jane Austen's lucky break came out of tragedy: Her wealthiest brother, Edward Austen Knight, lost his wife during childbirth. With 11 kids to raise, he realized his mom and two sisters could look after his brood. 'He offers them a cottage to live in for the rest of their lives,' explains Roche. 'And if he hadn't done that, I don't think we would have Jane Austen's books.' Jane Austen's House, in Chawton, Hampshire, is a cherished museum in the red-brick cottage where the author spent her last eight years. Located in the village of Chawton, this red-brick cottage is now the charity-run museum known as Jane Austen's House . Carefully restored, right down to the historically faithful botanical wallpaper, it's one of the most treasured literary sites in the world. Austen thrived here over the last eight years of her life, happy to be back in her beloved Hampshire. Inside the drawing room, I picture Austen doing her first-ever reading of 'Pride and Prejudice' right when it was published, sharing it with a neighbour one wintry evening in 1813. (She didn't disclose she was the author.) In the dining parlour, I see the tiny walnut table where she wrote and revised her novels. Her eyesight was bad, so it was placed by the window for the best light. In another room, a special exhibition called ' Austenmania! ' pays tribute to 1995, which saw 'the birth of modern Austen fandom.' That year, and purely by coincidence, four Austen-related adaptations hit screens: 'Pride and Prejudice' (of Colin Firth lake-diving fame), the BBC's 'Persuasion,' Ang Lee's 'Sense and Sensibility,' and the coming-of-age rom-com 'Clueless.' It was such a cultural moment that Entertainment Weekly named Jane Austen one of its Entertainers of the Year. When 'Pride and Prejudice' was published, Jane Austen gave her first-ever reading in this drawing room. Austen wasn't a household name until long after her death, and it was her own life that helped earn her books a wide audience. When one of her nephews published 'A Memoir of Jane Austen' in 1869, her works finally caught the general public's attention. A fascinating heroine, flouting convention. A true tale of dramatic twists and turns and triumph. Talk about main-character energy. 'What's revolutionary about Jane Austen: two things,' says Roche during our tour in Bath. 'She made money by her own hand, long before it became normal. And she created women characters who weren't perfect. She was, in many ways, ahead of her time.' How to get there: From London, train service connects to Bath and Winchester; both cities are walkable once you arrive. Smaller destinations like Chawton are easiest to reach by car; arrange a ride with a local taxi company. Where to stay: Hotel Indigo Bath offers playfully designed accommodations in an 18th-century Georgian building, including 'literary hideaway' rooms (one inspired by Austen). In Winchester, Kyoto Kitchen Rooms is a boutique micro-hotel above the city's popular Japanese restaurant. What else to do: In Bath, the modern Thermae Bath Spa is the only place in Britain where you can bathe in water from hot springs (go midweek and early to avoid crowds). After visiting Jane Austen's House, stroll to her rich brother Edward's manor, Chawton House , where the current special exhibition 'Sisters of the Pen' highlights Austen and other women writers of her era. Before flying home, catch a London showing of ' Plied and Prejudice ,' an irreverent, not-for-kids rendition of Austen's best-loved book. The writer travelled as a guest of VisitBritain, Visit West and Visit Hampshire, which did not review or approve this article.
Business Insider
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Insider
7 love triangle movies to watch after 'Materialists'
'Materialists,' a highly anticipated romance movie came out on Friday. Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, and Pedro Pascal play characters stuck in a love triangle. Here are seven other love-triangle movies to watch next. "Materialists" could become a classic love triangle movie after it was a hit with critics. The film stars, which came out Friday, stars Dakota Johnson as a matchmaker torn between her romance with a rich financier, Harry (Pedro Pascal), and her broke ex, John (Chris Evans). It's directed by Celine Song, whose directorial debut, " Past Lives," was also about a love triangle and was nominated for two Oscars. The success of that past film, the recognizable stars, and the popularity of the love triangle trope have created a buzz around "Materialists," which could make it a commercial success. If you want more love triangle drama after "Materialists," here's what to watch next. "Challengers" Song's husband, Justin Kuritzkes, wrote 2024's " Challengers," one of the year's most talked about movies. The film, directed by Luca Guadagnino, stars Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor as two tennis players who go from friends to rivals as they compete for victory and the love of a woman (Zendaya). Though the film was not a major box office hit, it reignited the discourse around love triangle movies and horniness in art. "Past Lives" Song's 2023 film "Past Lives" follows two friends from South Korea, Nora (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo), over 20 years after Nora's family emigrates to Canada. While the pair has a deep connection, the timing is never right and Nora gets into a relationship with another man. "Past Lives" isn't a traditional love triangle movie because the rivalry doesn't start until halfway in the movie, but is just as emotional. "The Twilight Saga" "Twilight" is one of the most iconic movie franchises of the the early 2010s — and it centers on a love triangle. The series' main plot follows Bella (Kristen Stewart), a teenage girl who gets caught in a love triangle between her classmate (Robert Pattinson), a vampire, and her childhood friend (Taylor Lautner), who is secretly a werewolf. If you're looking for films about messy romance, all five "Twilight" movies are available on Netflix. "Bridget Jones's Diary" Before "Twilight," the buzzy love triangle movie of the 2000s was " Bridget Jones's Diary." In this rom-com, the heroine, Bridget Jones (Renée Zellweger), is on a journey to improve her life and forms connections with two men: Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant), a sleazy womanizer, and Mark Darcy (Colin Firth), a judgmental, cold lawyer. "Bridget Jones's Diary" is a lot more comedic than "Materialists" but is similarly realistic about the struggles of modern dating. "The Age of Innocence" " The Age of Innocence" is an Oscar-winning movie directed by Martin Scorsese and an adaptation of Edith Wharton's 1920 novel of the same name. The film, set in the 1870s, follows Newland Archer (Daniel Day-Lewis), a lawyer who is engaged to marry May Welland (Winona Ryder), but instead falls for her scandalous cousin Ellen Olenska (Michelle Pfeiffer). It's essentially "Bridgerton" season two set in the Gilded Age. Newland is stuck between following his heart, adhering to society's conventions, and committing to May. "Brooklyn" The love triangle in "Brooklyn" doesn't just see a woman have to choose between two men, but two countries. Saoirse Ronan plays Eilis, an Irish immigrant in 1950s New York who falls for an Italian man (Emory Cohen). But when a tragedy brings her home to Ireland, she forms a relationship with another man (Domhnall Gleeson). "Brooklyn" was nominated for three Oscars and is rated highly by critics and the audience alike on Rotten Tomatoes. "Brooklyn" is available to stream on Hulu. "She's Gotta Have It" "She's Gotta Have It," directed by Spike Lee, is more of a love square than a love triangle movie. Nola (Tracy Camilla Johns) is a young woman secretly in a relationship with three men she loves for different reasons. When the men meet and discover they are dating the same woman, Nola is forced to choose between them. But this film is a cautionary tale rather than a romance.
