Hot take: Netflix's Persuasion

From the outset of this current version, I was dismayed. Anne Elliot swilling wine from the bottle; rudely blurting out at supper that Charles asked her to marry first; telling Wentworth he looked old at first sight-- the cringeworthy moments are relentless and incessant. I don't know which audience this adaptation is for, but it's just embarrassing.

I feel like Netflix is peddling and hustling Jane for cheap coin and it's terrifically sad to watch. The world of Jane Austen is rich but subtle -- this story is originally largely told in glances, stolen moments, and unsaid things. Breaking the fourth wall by looking at the camera now and then greatly diminishes the slow burn and detracts from the original ‘wow’ factors, like when Wentworth finally confesses his feeling to Anne in his letter. It’s as if instead of Mr. Darcy saying, “You have bewitched me body and soul…”, he just said, “I’m obsessed with you.”

Yes… it doesn’t quite feel the same.

Netflix’s Anne has some flustering I’m-not-like-other-girls qualities: she has a pet rabbit; she’s goofy; she plays with children because she doesn’t mind if her dress gets a bit dirty and of course the excessive drinking (which is not funny, btw). This Anne felt like a spiced-up Instagram-filtered version that was made to appeal to the GenZ.

The book revolves around Anne (it does for me, don’t get all fussy about it) and focuses on her character development and ‘glow-up’, unlike the movie. The book Anne was smart and witty but she had no idea because nobody apart from Wentworth appreciated it. While the film Anne knows that she is smart and witty which is a completely different vibe, like… how do you develop from there? The biggest wtf moment was when the film Wentworth told Anne that she had no trouble speaking for herself. Umm…. YES, SHE DID. If she had no trouble speaking for herself, there would be no character development and hence, no point in telling the story.

Despite all this, there were a few things that I liked in the movie. One of those was a refreshing take on Mr. Elliot’s character: Mr. Elliot in the movie is portrayed as not a complete villain (he is a villain but he kind of owns it, so it’s a different vibe). Also, the characters of Mary Musgrove and Charles Musgrove were very nicely done and were faithful to the book. Lastly, watching Dakota Johnson in a slightly comedic setting was fun.

But that’s it. The only nice things I can say.

So, if you have made it till here, my suggestion to you is to READ THE BOOK and don’t watch the movie, and if you already have read the book and want to practice your critiquing skills… well then go ahead, give it your best shot.

- Anon