I think I will take that waltz sir

Canadian sweetheart, actor director extraordinaire, Sarah Polley's most recent film Take this Waltz is expected to debut at this year's Toronto Film Festival.  The film is based on the haunting son by singer/writer Leonard Cohen.  Seth Rogan and Sarah Silverman are starring in it.

A Polley film based on a Cohen song?  It's a Canadian dream come true. 

Leonard Cohen's The Essentials album cover.  Dreamy.

Jane Eyre's Tale of Woe

Yesterday I caught a matinee screening of Cary Fukunaga's 2011 film Jane Eyre based on the 1847 novel by Charlotte Bronte.  I had just finished reading Wuthering Heights, written by her sister Emily Bronte, so I was in a Bronte state of mind.

The thee Bronte sisters, Emily, Charlotte and Ann published their novels under the male names Ellis, Currer and Acton Bell because their publisher told them it was not proper for women to write novels.  These pioneer women writers' novels keenly explore the social niceties, inconsistencies and critical nature of their time period.  The successfully explore the inner workings of their male and female characters but for me it is usually the female characters that stand out.

In Jane Eyre the female protagonist is a spirited, intelligent and moral governess.  Her childhood 'tale of woe', where she is orphaned and abandoned by a mother in law and poorly treated in a boarding school, seem all forgotten when she falls in love with the her employer.  But all is not what it seems at Thornfield Hall.

The recent film version, Fukunaga's first major director project, manages to stay true to the novel while being under 2 hours.  The cinematography utilizes the english countryside to add whimsy and beauty to the film.   Mia Wasikowska's portrayal of Jane is the perfect mix of contemplative yet spirited.  I think those who already have a love for Bronte novels and those new to the style would enjoy this film.

The Bronte sisters have quite a few novels that have been made into films and I am inspired to watch more.  I think I may have a new theme for my next Movietraxx show on CFUV 101.9fm on May 16th, 2011.