Cinefile

Much of the appeal to Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre (published in 1847) comes in its episodic-like operatic fervor. As it moves through its topical sections, highlighting issues from class struggles to gothic motifs, there is a persistent sense of rejuvenation in the text. It's a rich piece of source material and it should come as no surprise that Cary Fukunaga's version of Jane Eyre is the sixteenth film adaptation to hit the screens. Fukunaga, the breakout director of the Sundance-winning drama Sin Nombre, brings some much needed freshness to an otherwise drained template: the starchy European period piece. In fact, the opening moments of this new Jane Eyre call for a more lyrical style of observation. As Jane (Mia Wasikowska) roams the dreary, wet countryside English landscape in search of salvation, we're reminded of the simple power of watching someone amidst the elements. Cinematographer Adriano Goldman moves the camera with a calm collective that is reminiscent of 70s Malick and Antonioni. It's a nice opening and affirms Fukunaga's appreciation and knowledge of form elevating content.

For the most part, Jane Eyre sticks very close to the novel. We see Jane as a child in Gateshead, under the rueful care of her aunt Mrs. Reed (Sally Hawkins) and then later as a young adult in her places of domestic work at Lowood School and Thornfield Hall. The crux of the story is of course her quietly complex relationship with Rochester (the excellent Michael Fassbender), the head of Thornfield Hall. For the sake of modernist appeal, Fukunaga brings the relationship between Rochester and Jane to an elevated platform of exposure; Jane Eyre functions more as a dystopian romance than it does as a testament to "new independent woman" mindset of its literary roots. We watch the implosive game of footsie between Rochester and Jane unfurl with muted fervor. Luckily, Fukunaga and Goldman add loads of visual texture to almost every scene. In most adaptations of Jane Eyre, the opportunity for yawning is overwhelming; here the filmmakers even give scenes of little importance the heft of weighted obstacle.

Ultimately, though, I feel that the material for today's audience may be a little too underwhelming. The fault doesn't lie with any of the filmmaking talent or onscreen thesps either. I mean, when your supporting cast includes the likes of Judi Dench, Jamie Bell and Valentina Cervi, the screen is always equipped with interesting performances. All around, from the production design to the execution of regional dialects, Jane Eyre has the winning elements for an exceptional drama. The problem here really lies with its site-specific source--the weight of its novel and its crisis of its domineering social antiquity overshadowing any of its timelessness.