A One Mann’s Movies review of “Sense and Sensibility”. (2026, 4*, U).
It is a brave decision for Georgia Oakley – in only her second feature film (after 2022’s excellent lesbian drama Blue Jean) – to take on an adaptation of a Jane Austen novel, beloved of many thousands of people around the world. But when you are also following the 1995 film that was nominated for seven Oscars, winning one, then you probably need your head examining! For you can’t not compare this adaptation against the Ang Lee classic.
Fortunately for Ms. Oakley, it compares very favourable, whilst being a very different beast.
One Mann’s Movies Rating:
Plot:
The Dashwood family – mother (Caitríona Balfe), Elinor (Daisy Edgar-Jones), Marianne (Esmé Creed-Miles) and Margaret (Bodhi Rae Breathnach) – are left almost destitute when their husband/father dies and his fortune, including the family home, falls to his brother John (Tom Brooke) and his cruel wife Fanny (Stacy Martin). But help is on hand through distant relation Mrs Jennings (Fiona Shaw) who has a cottage in Devon that they can stay in.
Certification:
UK: U; US: PG. (From the BBFC website: “Upsetting scenes, very mild threat, sex references, language.” How delightful to have something other than an animated film released as a ‘U’ certificate! I’m not sure what age of child would enjoy this – since the story of romance and intrigue is quite intricate…. but it’s great that younger kids can at least give it a go!)
Talent:
Starring: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Esmé Creed-Miles, Caitríona Balfe, Bodhi Rae Breathnach, Tom Brooke, Stacy Martin, George MacKay, Herbert Nordrum, Fiona Shaw, Frank Dillane, Turlough Convery, Chloe Pirrie, Ceara Coveney.
Directed by: Georgia Oakley.
Written by: Diana Reid. (Based on the book by Jane Austen).
Running Time: 2h 11m.
Review:
Positives:
- The film is sumptuous to look at without veering into unrealistic territory. Certainly, the cottage that they move into in Devon is FAR more realistic an abode compared to the enormous mansion that featured in Ang Lee’s version! (By the way, I thought I recognised the cottage and I was right… this is the very same property, re-renovated again clearly, as featured in the Steven Spielberg 2011 film War Horse. It’s near Sheepstor on Dartmoor and I paid it a visit after that Spielberg film came out. I wonder what condition its been left in again now?)
- Another thing this film gets right compared to the Ang Lee version is Elinor Dashwood. In the book, Elinor is just 19 years old so Emma Thompson (aged 35 in 1995) was rewritten as a sort of ‘old maid’ in danger of being left of the shelf. Here, Daisy Edgar-Jones although 28, plays it as much younger and can almost get away with being late teens (if you squint a bit). Edgar-Jones is exceptional in the role and really carries it: the feelings of frustration, as the hot but drippy Edward Ferrers (‘Gorgeous’ George MacKay) struggles to communicate with her within the bounds of social embarrassment, is exquisite. This is also a strong performance from the apparently omnipresent MacKay and there is real chemistry between him and Edgar-Jones.
- Of course, much of the drama in the story is the relationship between the two older sisters, with Elinor and Marianne being as different as salt and sweet popcorn! Playing the role of the feckless, vivacious and definitely unrepressed Marianne is Esmé Creed-Miles, who I must admit is new to me but who made a strong impression. She has such an animated face.
- Elsewhere in the cast, Fiona Shaw has a whale of a time as the busy-body Mrs Jennings who arranges the rent of the Dartmoor cottage from the equally boisterous Sir John Middleton. Turlough Convery plays the jovial host with vibes of Hagrid about him as he regularly thwacks dead pheasants into Elinor’s lap for dinner! If you are struggling to think where you’ve seen the Margaret actress before, she is Bodhi Rae Breathnach who was excellent as the young girl alongside Jason Statham in this year’s Shelter, as well as one of the daughters in Hamnet: Breathnach has had a very busy and successful year!
- While Diana Reid’s script is unlikely to win the Oscar, as happened for Emma Thompson in 1995, it still cleverly plays the famous story with wit and style and the Illustrious Mrs Movie Mann was impressed with the way it was more gritty and had a more feminist undertone, better reflecting (compared to the 1995 version) how militant, for her age, Jane Austen actually was. It was no surprise that, as the end credits rolled, we noticed that virtually every one of the contributors (excepting score and DP) had female names.
Negatives:
- One casting note that didn’t quite work for me was Herbert Nordrum as Colonel Brandon: not because Nordrum does a bad job in the role… quite the opposite, since a dramatic dual scene with the villain of the piece, Willoughby (Frank Dillane), is very well done. The only problem is that his initial introductory lines sounded SO MUCH like Alan Rickman (who played the role in 1995). That whipped me out of this version into remembering just how great Rickman was in that earlier film (and how sad I remain that he is no longer with us). Perhaps Brandon is described as talking in this way in the book? But a different approach, to put some water between the two actors’ portrayals, might have been wise.
- The script is relatively ‘vanilla’ in its storytelling, with little in the way or twists or tricks. But there is one exception: as Marianne is running through a wood, the music turns strangely atonal and the atmosphere quite spooky as a hunt pack emerges from the mist. It’s a really impressive little sequence that I loved: but it felt like it belonged in a completely different style of movie. (I’d have actually liked more of this sort of stylised innovation!)
Ang Lee vs. Georgia Oakley?
As I said, it is impossible not to compare this version against the 1995 Ang Lee version. Although it is evidently the same story, there are significant differences in style. I gave the 1995 film 4.5 stars (having seen it about a year ago as an Everyman Throwback – reviewed here) so I evidently enjoyed it just a bit more than this version. Notably, the Illustrious Mrs Movie Mann, with her female perspective on the two films, would reverse that preference!
To me, the Ang Lee version feels more like a cinematic ‘event’ to me. It has a ratio of 1.85 : 1 and has a colour palette that is highly saturated and lush. In contrast, the Georgia Oakley version has a much squarer ratio (I’m not sure which – perhaps not even reaching 16:9) and the colour palette is much more washed out and ‘natural’. The film feels to me much more like a BBC series like Poldark in terms of look and feel. Both are perfectly valid approaches: but as a rip-roaring cinematic spectacle, I personally prefer the former to the latter.
Summary Thoughts:
This is an impressive film and a ‘two-out-of-two’, from my perspective, for Georgia Oakley after Blue Jean. A must see for fans of Jane Austen.
Where to watch?
Trailer:
The trailer for the film is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcrwcvad84U.
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