Jane Eyre, an orphan, is raised in a harsh charity school. She becomes a teacher and is hired as a governess at Thornfield Hall by housekeeper Mrs. Fairfax. The plot revolves around her expe... Read allJane Eyre, an orphan, is raised in a harsh charity school. She becomes a teacher and is hired as a governess at Thornfield Hall by housekeeper Mrs. Fairfax. The plot revolves around her experiences there.Jane Eyre, an orphan, is raised in a harsh charity school. She becomes a teacher and is hired as a governess at Thornfield Hall by housekeeper Mrs. Fairfax. The plot revolves around her experiences there.
- Awards
- 1 win
- Adele
- (as Josephine Serre)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe cast includes three Oscar winners: William Hurt, Julian Fellowes, and Anna Paquin; and one Oscar nominee: Dame Joan Plowright.
- GoofsWhen Mrs. Fairfax puts down the photograph of a young Mr. Rochester in his bedroom, the boom pole is reflected in the photograph.
- Quotes
Mr. Rochester: Sometimes I have the strangest feeling about you. Especially when you are near me as you are now. It feels as though I had a string tied here under my left rib where my heart is, tightly knotted to you in a similar fashion. And when you go to Ireland, with all that distance between us, I am afraid that this cord will be snapped, and I shall bleed inwardly.
I've always felt that the reason for Jane Eyre's enduring popularity is that it's a tale of both resilience and courage for women in an age when if woman did not have man's protection she was adrift and in trouble. Women were little more than chattel during the Victorian times that Jane Eyre was written.
Anna Paquin plays Jane as a child and Jane is one unloved child sent to live with relations who barely tolerate her. She's sent to board with a school run by John Wood playing school master Mr. Brocklehurst, a man with issues. She's treated cruelly and has to watch a young friend die from neglect. But it hardens her character though she wonders if love will come her way.
When the grownup Jane Eyre now played by Gainsbourg leaves the school where she has become a teacher she gets a job with Lord Rochester's estate as a governess. The master of the house is rarely there and Gainsbourg is well established by the time William Hurt returns from one of his many trips abroad.
Gainsbourg's responsibilities is to Lord Rochester's daughter Adele and she becomes mother and father to the child. The story of the mother is part of the reason for William Hurt's frequent absences. Something in Gainsbourg touches a sentimental and romantic part of Hurt's character. There's still a lot of problems to be resolved. In the end the relative economic positions have been reversed, but these two people need each other more than ever.
Charlotte Bronte's novel has certainly got an enduring popularity, this is one of several adaptions to the big screen and small. Gainsbourg compares well with Joan Fontaine probably the most well known portrayer of Jane Eyre. William Hurt is good as Rochester, so good that you hardly notice his distinct American speech pattern. Then again Fontaine's Rochester was Orson Welles another American.
Jane Eyre I've always felt was a feminist role model, a woman who makes her way in the world successfully when women were not legal and social equals. It's the reason the story will have an enduring popularity and this version can stand proudly besides previous adaptions.
- bkoganbing
- Mar 31, 2014
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre
- Filming locations
- Wingfield Manor, South Wingfield, Derbyshire, England, UK(Thornfield Hall after the fire)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $5,200,601
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $269,929
- Apr 14, 1996
- Gross worldwide
- $5,200,601
- Runtime1 hour 52 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1