Being a Jane Austen fanatic for decades (and I do mean decades) I read the novel Austenland when it first came out.  I admit it, if there actually was an Austenland, I’d probably go.  I’ve read fanfic at Austen Interlude, the Republic of Pemberly, and alas, the now defunct Hyacinth Gardens. I even wrote an ultimate Jane Austen movie guide for Hypable. I consider myself something of a cross between Elinor Dashwood from Sense and Sensibility and Fanny Price from Mansfield Park. I’ve seen every Austen movie, spin-off, loose adaptation. Yeah, I am one of those people. So to say I am picky about my Austen is an understatement.

When I read the novel version of Austenland, I was kind of meh about it. I loved the plot, but I didn’t really connect to the heroine. In the novel she was too much like the 30-something, NYC-overly career obsessed and struggling to find themselves women who I have to deal with in my day job.  I have to say one of the big improvements from the novel is that Jane’s backstory is streamlined, and she is infinitely more likable and quirky than the Jane of the novel. Whereas, I was so-so about the novel, I liked the movie way better.

A good deal my liking the movie Jane has to do with Kerri Russell’s portrayal. How can anyone not just love Kerri Russell!  She is vulnerable, lovable, loyal with a streak of independence. Her character of Jane also has a great way of making lemonade when she is served lemons. She doesn’t let Mrs. Wattlesbrook, played by Jane Seymour, get her down, or ruin her fun.  She’s also way more obsessed with the world of Austen than her book counterpart is.

Stephenie Meyer described the movie as a com-rom. It’s a newly coined term for a comedy romance. First and foremost this movie is a comedy. There is the high-brow, witty comedy provided by the acerbic remarks from Mr. Nobley. He is a Darcyesque character played by JJ Feilds.  There’s also the low-brow comedy provided by Miss Charming played by the larger than life Jennifer Coolidge.  According to director/screenwriter Jerusha Hess, Coolidge was given freedom to ad lib many of her scenes.  One of her best moments is pretending to read aloud from Pride and Prejudice, only what’s she say isn’t regency. It goes in an entirely rated r fashion until Jane cuts her off with a blush and a curt, “I don’t think Mr. Darcy would ever say that.”

Secondly, the movie is a romance. Jane has two equally presented choices. Book fans will be interested to note that I did not find that the movie revealed too much about either gentleman. I saw them each as Jane viewed them, the good and bad. The question the viewer is presented with is, Can Jane find happiness, a fling, and perhaps a future with Mr. Nobley or Martin, the groundskeeper.  If she makes a choice, will she want more than either is willing to give? What might be the price for giving her heart? Is it real love, or just a vacation romance?

The supporting cast is just terrific. There isn’t a weak actor in the lot including the background actors who in various scene are lugging all sorts of period items from picnic supplies to luggage around and looking very weary in doing so, but then perking up when the upper classes observe them. One of the real standouts is Ricky Whittle who plays the over-the-top, swashbuckling Captain East. He doesn’t miss a chance to flirt with three ladies at once while showing off his 8-pack abs at the drop of a hat.

The movie is very faithful to the novel with only minor changes. There is a slight change in the ending that I quite enjoyed. I found the novel’s ending a bit too abrupt. Without spoiling, I felt the movie let the airport scene play out more naturally with a far more satisfying and believable resolution. 

I only had minor quibbles with the film. As funny as Jennifer Coolidge is, the big, brassy, and loud thing works better in small doses.  The humor was milked too much. It’s as if the director wasn’t sure we’d get the joke so it played on too long. We get it, she has a bad accent, she’s the typical “ugly American”. It was funny the first time, not the 5th scene where it goes on too long. I realize she is supposed to be over-the-top, but it was too much for me. It was like she was trying too hard for the gag that never seemed to end. Also the scene where Lady Amelia drags Jane aside and wants to be her bosom sister and then goes crazy jealous on her was funny, but again too long for the comedy to land.

Lastly, viewers should stick around for the credits for a HILARIOUS look at the actors doing a rap lip-synch in Regency dress.  It’s like a bunch of Downton Abbey wannabes trying to be the little girls from the hood. You don’t want to miss it.

The Lexicon participated in the NYC Austenland press day. We were able to interview Stephenie Meyer and director Jerusha Hess at a roundtable. There are relatively minor spoilers in this interview.

Question: Can you talk about treading that line about honoring Jane Austen fans and being affectionately funny about them too?

Stephenie Meyer: I mean when we were working on it, a lot of what we had came from the source material ( the Shannon Hale novel), but I also feel like this wasn’t just about Jane Austen fans. This is about any person who is so lost in a fandom that they want to live there. Everybody has that one thing in their life that they would probably go and do a theme park based around it if they could. It feels like we can kind of make fun of all of ourselves with that one thing we nerd out over.

Jerusha Hess: Absolutely. We always knew going into it, it was for the fans: the crazy fans, the genteel fans, but it’s also for the people who think fans are funny. We just played both sides the whole time. We had to be careful because we didn’t want to offend our biggest group of followers….(giggles jokingly) but I think the fans are going to see it because they will see anything with those empire waists.

There are some overt references to Colin Firth being Mr. Darcy. Are there other intentional shout outs to Jane Austen works other than Pride and Prejudice?

Jerusha: Anything that was there was from the Shannon Hale novel. Shannon Hale would be better to ask if she had anything specific in mind.

Stephenie: There was a little bit that didn’t make the final cut. But we did have all sort of costumes and things from other costume dramas that there were some unintentional nods.

How long ago did you come up with this idea and why? You did no wrong with me because I am a romantic. Why this project?

Jerusha: The book was out for a whole year before I even read it. When I read it I thought it was so easy, and fresh, and fun. It definitely had that romance that really sweeps you away, but it was quirky and funny as well. It was kind of a blank slate for more humor and  I was like “yes please”. Sign me on for the “com-rom” as Stephenie calls it.

It seems very faithful to the book with few exceptions. I was wondering how much leeway you gave the actors to improv and play?

Jerusha: 50% of Jennifer Coolidge’s lines are ad libbed. It was more like 90% on set but we had to scale back. She’s (Jennifer) brilliant, and amazing comedienne, but she doesn’t memorize lines very well, she’d rather do her own. Sometimes I’d say, “Can you make this funnier?” James Callis also really made some brilliant improv choices. He add all this French and wild gestures that was so funny. Georgia King she came with little things, but her physicality just brought so much to it. Brett McKenzie came up with lots of stuff.

Stephenie: Kerri Russel is 100% script except for one scene which I think might be my favorite. She nerds out when the girls. They are having their quiet time and she says “Mr. Darcy would never say that. He was a gentleman.” That was improved. It was brilliant. You could see the tension in her neck. She was taking it so seriously.

There is this wonderful idea throughout the film about fantasy vs. reality and how we actually fall in love. can you talk about that idea?

Jerusha: I think Kerri is trapped in the fantasy and it’s kind of an unhealthy place to be in, but who doesn’t want to be in that world? And she pays a lot of money to live in that fantasy world even more. She then finally gets it out of her system when she realizes the fantasy isn’t all she thought. So she does self actualize (laughs) for like 10 seconds before she gets the boyand there is part of the fantasy again. I mean films are not always real, and this is a fantasy and fairytale where we want to be swept away

Stephenie: I think one of the reasons that I was so taken with the book when Shannon sent it to me in a manuscript form is that I had seen enough of fandom at that point and people who really wanted to step in and live it. And so I had more of a connection than I might have had otherwise. Some people are this girl who would if there were a place where they could go and dress up and live these lives they would do it. It’s more prevalent than I had thought. As I read it, I connected with the idea of people who say, “I don’t want reality. Take it away. I’ll do fantasy all the time.”

On another note there has been some discussion of the Austenizing of history, where you have these novels that are very insular. They really don’t look at the history, the terrible history of England at that point. Particularly there was a lot of brutality with what was going on in England. Could you address that?

Jerusha: I’m not familiar with any of that. I’m only familiar with Jane Austen’s history. You just broke my heart.

Stephenie: I think if people consider most of the fiction that is out in America right now it would have very little reference to some of the major issues facing the government right now. A lot of people turn to their fantasy and reading for fun not to read about brutality they otherwise see on the news. So certainly we get a glorified look at England, the escape they wanted too. I think you would get that in the novels of any time period.

Jersuha: Also with the upper middle class then, they would ignore it. It was not something they dwelled on.

The character of Mr. Nobly has this line of “Did you ever consider that you are my fantasy?” It took me a little aback, and I wanted to know if you thought about how women view men’s idea of romance.

Jerusha: I think it was fulfilling to turn it on its head and have Mr. Darcy fall in love with Miss Bennett.  For him, she’s the hot chick, the handsome face, the c’mon we all want her. In our film he was equally a nerd and equally passionate about the world. We had him as a history professor who loves this world as much as she does.

Stephenie: I also think it’s kind of the ultimate fantasy to have a man who thinks you are perfect the way that you are. That is the perfect fantasy that he thinks that you are perfect. That’s the heart of every romance novel probably. You don’t have to change for him.

The music was really perfect in this. How did you pick the songs that went into this?

Stephenie: I don’t think the music really came up until midway.

Jerusha: I think when we started writing we came up with some playlists. We (Shannon Hale and I) wanted it to be girly, predominantly female vocalists. We did change our mind throughout. We just wanted it fun and poppy, all that 1980’a stuff.

What about the music over the scene of the end credits (Note: You want to stay through the end credit on this for an Easter Egg).

Jerusha: The original song was supposed to be Warren G’s Regulator. It was just something super irreverent for the to do. The actors didn’t know anything about it til that day. The night before I was like here is a song, can you all memorize it? You’re going to sing it. (all laugh) No, they knew it, they all knew it. They all hated me. Kerri specifically hated me, she’s forgotten her ways from The Mickey Mouse Club and she couldn’t memorize it to save her life. Then their voices all sounded horrible with the worst blending of sound ever.  I was actually originally thinking we would use voices instead of lip syncing. Good thing Ricky Whittle knew the whole song. We kept cutting back to him.

Stephenie: Clearly he should be a rap star. He does anything and he’s brilliant from being a professional athlete to an actor.

In the book I was torn more between the two guys. But in the movie I felt it was more obvious she would go for (spoiler).

Stephenie: I think it’s because you know from the book and then you’re looking for hints as to who she picks. We were really careful, and could have made it more obvious. We reeled back on things to make it appear that she had two solid choices. I just read someone’s reaction recently who didn’t know the ending and she was totally surprised by the choice and why.

Jerusha: We really tried to balance the scenes between the two guys. And we had to cut a bunch on both sides.

Stephenie, can you talk to your attraction to this project and is there any connection to Twilight and perhaps strange romances?

I think that I love romances. There wasn’t any real connection though. I had written Twilight well before this was conceived. When I did read it, I think it was more my love of Jane Austen. I always love a good Darcyesque charcter. It’s a fun read. it would be hard not to have  good time as you’re reading it. It’s very cinematic, it’s so visual.

Will this just be targeted to just women, because I’m a guy. Like I said i’m a romantic and I loved it.  The guy does find the girl who is perfect in his eyes.

Jerusha: It’s incredibly bawdy. I think we went into it as women filmmakers understanding we were going to England to chick out, but at no point did we say this is just for women. But that has been the marketing, and I think it’s pretty brilliant because it’s getting a lot of press. That said, my husband loves it. He loves historical dramas, but there’s also low brow humor: bob humor, crotch humor and also high brow witty humor. Keep telling people it’s ok for boys to see it.

The Lexicon participated in the NYC press day for Austenland. We had the opportunity to interview cast members at a round table along with Bekah from That’s Normal.  TY to Becka for the transcription.  WARNING: Spoilers lie ahead if you have not read the novel Austenland, you will encounter spoilers!

Question: Keri, did you ever have this experience where you had expectations of something that all your dreams were pinned on & got there and saw all the cracks in it & that it didn’t live up to it?

JJ: Life?

 Keri: What do you mean!? That’s called life! That’s called existence

 Question: Did this feel familiar to you? 

Keri: The thing that feels familiar to me or the thing that I found on my way in was more this idea of this person who was stuck emotionally because life is hard for everyone. It’s emotional and it’s hard that you sort of escape into this fantasy.

No maybe I’m not making out with Mr. Darcy dolls on my bed, but we all have our little dabbling into fantasy to help get us through the day. Mine might be endless hours on home interiors online (laughs) or whatever vacation places- which I call hotel porn “Oh my gosh that place looks so good! that I’ll never go to…” And that idea of how much time we’re spending in that fantasy and you need to hardness & turn it around.. What is existing right now? What’s my world right now? This is a funny silly version of that. That was my into the story.

 JJ: I think the key is what you’ve said about expectation. I’m terrible at projecting expectation on just about everything from a meal, to a job, to my son, to everybody. The thing I have to work on the most is not having any expectation so I can just enjoy whatever that is at any moment.

The destruction of expectation is depression- depressing. The thing that was the most fun- too big for me to have an expectation was.. an acting career. I always wanted to and i never imagined it would be what it is so every day is an absolute dream. I don’t think I ever sat and dreamed about it. I just knew it was what I was going to do. So that’s been better than any expectations I could have put upon it.

 Question: Why do you feel that americans are so fascinated with British culture?

 Keri: I don’t know, I think it’s sort of “other than.” It’s all fancier than anything here. i don’t know! I think it’s just so other than our world. There are all these rules and everyone has to behave a certain way. I sorta still feel that way today when I go visit. There’s a code that even if it’s not spoken about, you sort of live by. It’s different here. You are allowed to say “That’s not right” or “That’s not true! That’s not what I did.” Versus there you go “Oh well, okay. That’s your impression of what you did.” I don’t know it’s a romanticized version.

Jennifer: [we are fascinated with British culture because…] It’s way cooler than us. It just is. I don’t know- it has this thing where it just seems like everyone is so in control. And it’s so appealing. Especially like, English men feel so much more in-attainable than American men. You feel you just can’t ever have one. Even if you have one you don’t have one.  Even if you’re sleeping with one you don’t really have him. Because they are kinda horrified by Americans.

 JJ: I feel awful. You’re making me feel terrible!

 Jennifer: If i could come back & be one I probably would!

 JJ: An english male?

 Jennifer: Anything! I was having lunch with a guy yesterday who said “I give so much more money to the English homeless men because they’re like (uses cockney accent)

“You got uh, you got uh, sixpence what what!?”” He said it’s so charming!

(laughter) The American guys don’t ask for it that way

Keri: the use of vocabulary is not as full, that is true.

JJ: i want to go to the england you know!

Jennifer: well some of the food- we went to some amazing restaurants in London but you have to admit- there’s lots of meat that shows up that….

JJ: That’s film catering. London has the highest Michelin stars of anywhere in the world! I defend our cooking

 Jennifer: But the proteins on set….

 JJ: but set cooking is not human food. We crated cool cooking from the Jamie Olivers- that cooking chef who can whip up something quick for the misses. All the american men I know cannot cook. It’s embarrassing. English men think it’s cool to cook!

 Keri: JJ can really cook, obviously

JJ: All my friends can cook in England and all my male friends in America can’t understand the concept of cooking. They think it’s not something they should even understand which I think is shameful

Question: JJ:  I was struck by the last line you said, “did you ever consider that you could be my fantasy?” It’s struck me but it wasn’t a super original line. You get it in almost every romantic movie. Why do you think that woman constantly doubt – well we know that men have fantasies- but they doubt that men have romantic fantasies similar to what theirs might be?

 JJ: Because a lot of men haven’t evolved from the Neanderthal age to show their emotions. I think that men’s romantic fantasies might be simpler in that women probably think about it a lot more.They have thought of every option that fantasy could live out. And a man goes “This is the fantasy I want” and he’ll go in a straight line to get that. So if that doesn’t fall into what fits the woman’s fantasy then it doesn’t exist. We’re maybe a little simpler romantically but when you get a group of men who are slightly inebriated and they are being honest about how they feel, there is nothing equally as soft as gushy as a group of men together lamenting their girlfriends!

 If you really want to see when men find their romance is when they just split up with a woman. They are pathetic. they are useless. And they want them back every fucking time. And as someone described it to me once when i was licking my wounds- tell me if I’m wrong- a woman told me this. We had split up and she moved on and I was still slashing my wrists. Men find romance through pain. Women spend the end of a relationship imaging every scenario possible and they’ve lived through it in their imagination and when it’s happened they can move on & are prepared. But men are so ignorant that it’s broken up and they’re like “What? It hurts? I’m broken up? What do I do now?” And they spend years in agony. It’s a shame that they don’t get in touch with their feelings before they’ve have them burned.

Jennifer: I’ve never seen any of my exes in agony ever! You’re one in a billion (to JJ) 

JJ: When I first moved to LA- about 10 years ago- and there were 4 men who had all come out of relationships over 5 years. And we got this massive home in Los Feliz, thinking it would be bachelor chaos. and it was a lot of “boo hoo hoo hoo.” (makes crying noise) Just lamenting these women constantly and trying not to google them- “What have they done?!” Tt went on for years. And it was embarrassing. But we aren’t gonna show you that!

Question: Were you all british?

JJ: There was a British, a Spanish man- there was a guy from san Fransisco, and an Indian guy- a spectrum.

 Jennifer: thats when it would have been great to be that 5th girl roommate!

“well boys, let me make you something. I don’t know where my bra is. but I made dinner!”

JJ: and all 4 could cook amazing food. We were all obsessed with Benicio del Toro- it was the time when 21 grahams came out- we were all actors

Jennifer: Was he cooking? Was he one of the guys? (in the house)

JJ: no! Sadly not. but no one was taking us seriously as actors so we said “We’re gonna grow big pot bellies and be taken seriously” So we cooked and ate like sumo wrestlers for two years, and we all got really fat and not one of us worked!

Jennifer: good advice

Question: Keri, there’s a moment at the end – before you come back JJ- where I think “Okay this isn’t going to be your traditional romance movie. She’s going to be this woman who finds herself & she’s going to end up alone & it’s going to be great!” But then of course- Nobley comes back & it’s great – it’s what everyone wants. Did you ever think “No, she’s not going to have either guy!”

Keri: Did i want that for the story? I think this is a really sweet hopeful fable about hope. It’s poppy & fun and fantasy. It’s totally okay that she got the guy in this. I don’t think it’s anything to choose your life by, this one. I think it’s fun and no one dies. And people are wearing fancy clothes and all the boys have fake tans and fake stuff in their pants. It’s meant to be fun.

JJ: I didn’t get either- that’s unfair!

Question: Ms. Charming doesn’t know much about Jane Austen going in- she just seems to like the look of this world. What did you know about Jane Austen or Pride & Prejudice going in & what did you take away from it?

Jennifer: Growing up my parents had a lock on the TV and we were just allowed to watch like PBS. So I did get a very big dose of the Jane Austen thing. You know, i would have to say that …. I always start off thinking “I’ll be the know-it-all in the movie and know everything.” I could have had that choice in this movie. but I always sorta feel like the funniness is that– especially in LA. some people have these big jobs but maybe.. don’t always know too much- so i think it’s a funnier choice. Some people want that incredible experience- but they don’t really know anything. They don’t know the particulars. 

A lot of people in America have the money do this kind of thing even though they don’t care about it- they just want to do it. Like (someone says) “We went to the Galapagos (islands)” And you’re like, “What did you see!?”

“All kinds of things- things with fins. They had like, things that came out.”

“What kind of species?”

“Reptiles and like, amphibians, and some fish..”

 but they don’t ever get specific. I thought that was a better choice. But some day I’m going to have to play someone smart in a movie and I’ll have to actually know what’s going on.

JJ: Don’t get fooled by Jennifer. She may play the person who is not supposed to be smart but she’s the sharpest & one of the most intelligent actresses i’ve ever worked with! You’ve gotta be really really sharp & clever to play not clever realistically

Keri: and she’s a great improviser too

 Question: I understand that you were staying close to script, Keri, but everyone else was improvising. Was it difficult to play off of that with everyone throwing other things in & I imagine on set everyone had their owns emotions and past..

Jennifer: they all improvised!

 Keri: no luckily, I got to be the straight man (and stick to script)

 JJ: The only line I threw in was to Bret (McKenzie) saying “Couldn’t you get a job in The Hobbit?”  Which no one found funny on the day at all and I’ve never done a pure comedy & I thought “Oh god I’m sinking here” and no one found anything i did funny and that lines got a laugh. I feel like I’ve won an award. I’ve joined the comedy gang.

 Question: Mr Nobley is a wonderful counter to the fantasy of Austenland, and he seems to have this serious nature to him, yet he’s the only one at the pool who keeps the same outfit on as in the fantasy. Can you talk about that?

JJ: Why I didn’t pull out my 6 pack at the swimming pool? Well no one is going to upstage Ricky Whittle’s zero body fat, so i think it would be foolish to try to attempt to!

Kerri talks Austenland, kids and Star Wars legos!

Here are some more Austenland trailers. We will have our movie review up on Monday night. We are also doing a Q & A with the acotrs, the director, and Stephenie Meyer on Monday.

The Stephenie Meyer produced Austenland (based on the novel of the same name by Shannon Hale) just posted its trailer. The film opens in NY and Los Angeles in limited release on August 16 and the rest of teh country to follow. The film is the first produced by Stephenie Meyer’s production company Fickle Fish Films and was shot in the UK in July 2011.

Austenland, written by Shannon Hale and produced by Stephenie Meyer’s production company, is set to open August 16 in NY & LA. Other dates in other cities will follow.

The book with a new movie cover is currently up over on Amazon.com

Stephenie Meyer’s company has also optioned the sequel Midnight in Austenland.

The official website is up, but is still under construction with a number of cool features in the works.