What Do The Critics Say?

"Breaking up, jealousies, match making and a bid for second chances are the themes of this vibrant and uplifting film that explores life, love and desire. It's a superb ensemble cast with Kathy Baker as the six times married Bernadette, Maggie Grace as Allegra, the extreme-sports loving lesbian adventurer, and Jimmy Smits as the unfaithful husband intent to 'quit while he's ahead'. You don't have to have read all Jane Austen's works to enjoy the film, although those who are familiar with her works will no doubt experience a love at first sight response." Louise Keller URBAN CINEFILE "Austen devotees are sure to lap up the central premise that her notions of love and friendship are as relevant today as ever." Ruthe Stein SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLES "There isn't an actress here who isn't perfect." Stephen Whitty NEWARK STAR-LEDGER "I found this charming, funny and romantic." Robert Roten LARAMIE MOVIE SCOPE "You don't have to have a library card to enjoy this story." Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone THE MOVIE CHICKS "What ensues is a pleasant and not-too-contrived story, spanning six months (one for each Austen novel) as these six friends deal with each other and with their own private affairs. There is ample discussion of Austen's books, and their relevance to the characters' current dilemmas is underlined. "What would Jane do?" is the mantra, although what they really mean is "What would Jane's fictional heroines do?" The movie's sunny demeanor and frivolous (but not dumb!) story make it a winner." Eric D Snider ERICDSNIDER.COM

"The film has an undeniable, easygoing charm. Real life is seldom so pleasingly plotted, but then real life is what people go to movies like this to get away from. It's "Sense and Sensibility" meets "Sex and the City. Emily Blunt, who almost stole the show as Meryl Streep's senior assistant in "The Devil Wears Prada" scores again here." Colin Covert STAR TRIBUNE "Filled with pithy and funny lines and bursting with subtle but wonderful characters ... undemanding of its viewers and very entertaining, the movie goes from cute to sweet to endearing." Steve Rhodes INETRNET REVIEWS "This marvelously intelligent romantic comedy will captivate even those who don't know or care much about Austen, although there's undeniably an extra layer of pure delight to be found if you do." Connie Ogle MIAMI HERALD "The acting ensemble is as colorful, and thorny, as a garden of Austen archetypes. Those who know Austen novels will recognize how much each character resembles a figure in one of them. Those who do not will enjoy the amusing types. Men, this means you." Carrie Rickey PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER "One gets to the end of the film believing in the redemptive power of love, as well as the excitement of reading a good book." Daniel M. Kimmel WORCESTER TELEGRAM & GAZETTE "A perfectly cast, beautifully scripted, smartly directed little movie that won't get the attention it deserves because it'll be dismissed as a 'chick flick' by a large portion of the viewing world and shied away from by another portion for being about reading. That’s too bad; especially for those who prejudice themselves against seeing the film. They won’t know what they’re missing." Ken Hanke MOUNTAIN EXPRESS

The Inside Story Like a 21st century version of a Jane Austen novel, the six members of the Jane Austen Book Club live through romantic hopes and disappointments, the consolations and misunderstandings of friendship, and the infinite complications of life as social beings in a complex community. The book club members need look no further than their monthly reading and discussions to find parallels with their own lives. Sylvia, in the midst of a divorce, has the misfortune of hosting and leading the "Mansfield Park" discussion; the novel is replete with dissolving alliances, romantic disappointment, marital pitfalls, and adultery. As Jocelyn says when Sylvia breaks down in tears during the book club discussion, "Reading Jane Austen is a freaking minefield." Jocelyn herself has an Austen counterpart: the title character of "Emma" is lovely, rich, vivacious, and a tirelessly meddling matchmaker who thinks she knows what everybody else needs but is foolishly blind when it comes to herself. Ignoring Grigg’s interest in her, Jocelyn pushes him at Sylvia, who is too busy mourning her marital breakup to notice. "Northanger Abbey", in which the heroine is much captivated by spooky tales of Gothic melodrama, is Grigg’s novel to host for the book club. For fun, he bedecks his suburban-bland house with Halloween-style decorations, but real Gothic melodrama intrudes when the death of a character is revealed. The book club’s "Pride and Prejudice" discussion is the one most fraught with heartache and anxiety. Although Pride and Prejudice is Austen’s most romantic novel, it’s laced with animosity and misunderstanding among lovers, and portrays the terrible strain of formal-dress soirees with deadly, witty accuracy. The black-tie dinner dance that the book club attends is every bit as emotionally charged as the husband-hunting dances in the novel, and Grigg and Jocelyn bicker as poisonously as Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett. Daughters suffer through their relationships with mothers and fathers as painfully in the present-day book club as they do in the book. "Sense and Sensibility", in which mismatched engagements hamper the romantic hopes of two impoverished sisters, gives the book club members a backdrop to thrash out their discordant perspectives and attitudes. But it’s "Persuasion", the last of the book club discussions, that resolves the various stories: it’s about a couple who, years before, parted bitterly, but find their way back to reconciliation and love after much hesitation and misunderstanding. In its theme of second chances, it’s a keystone for Prudie and Dean, and for Sylvia and Daniel. Its theme of gambling on love, it inspire Jocelyn, Grigg, Allegra, and Bernadette, each in their own way. The book club’s final romantic pairings have a satisfying resolution and rightness: just as marriage and happy endings always have the last word in Austen’s novels. Like a Jane Austen heroine, debut director and acclaimed screenwriter of some twentyone years Robin Swicord (2005 Satellite Award winner for "Memoirs of a Geisha") and her cast and crew had to be resourceful, clever, thrifty, and amicable to make The Jane Austen Book Club: and to have fun doing it. With a fast schedule, a lean budget, and a large ensemble cast sharing so much screen time, this witty depiction of modern-day love and friendship needed a real-life atmosphere of harmony, productivity, and authenticity to look great and ring true. "My most important task was to create an environment for these terrific actors to come together as an ensemble and make the chemistry happen," says director Robin Swicord. "We worked very hard and fast, but we always maintained a spirit of play. This production was serious fun." Jimmy Smits, who has seen many a film shoot, agrees: "I haven’t felt so relaxed on a set in a long time, and I see that with all the actors. I think that will come across onscreen in a big way." With only six weeks to prep and thirty days to shoot, Swicord made sure that her actors had as much rehearsal time as they could squeeze in to get comfortable with their characters and each other. "Rehearsal before we began shooting was so valuable in refining the script and the blocking," she recalls. "This screenplay didn’t go through the usual studio development process of story meetings that can sometimes flatten out a script; Sony Pictures Classics loved the original book, gave my adaptation the green light, and we were off and running." Indeed, as Kathy Baker marveled: "Robin 'made her day' every single day." First time feature director Swicord was supported by a top-notch production team including renowned producer John Calley ("Closer" & "Postcards from the Edge") and 2005 Australian Cinematographers Society Award of Distinction recipient, John Toon, who agreed to leave his farm in New Zealand after he and Swicord clicked in the course of a four-hour phone call. "I hit the lottery that John Toon would come here and shoot this. He even agreed to stay in my house with my family to save money!," Swicord said. But what about the contraints of a tight budget. "What budget constraints mean is that you’re in a hurry, and you don’t get a chance to reshoot things that go wrong. So nothing does go wrong because you get one shot at making it look good," Toon notes. Swicord forged such strongly collaborative relationships with the rest of her team. "Producer Julie Lynn can marshal armies. She had a two-year-old while we were shooting this, and we agreed that if you can be a mother you could do anything. I needed someone who could make a little money go a long way, and who could stand by my side and be another pair of creative eyes. Plus, she’s a lawyer, so she saved us all kinds of money on legal stuff!" Pproduction designer Rusty Smith designed Swicord’s short film, "The Red Coat", ten years ago. "He’s become a top big-budget designer, so he said it was refreshing to work on our modest, realistic scale, bringing the details of these characters to life on a shoestring." The actors, too, brought collaborative warmth and generosity to the project. "Everybody felt inspired to give extra. Emily Blunt came in to do readings with actors when we were casting Trey. I picked Kevin Zegers because he made her blush. Emily paid to have a wig made because she felt that Prudie should have that tidy French bob, and she couldn’t cut her hair because of her next commitment. We couldn’t afford a wig. Maria Bello was the first lead cast. She came in early every day to run lines. She cooked a ziti dinner for everybody. Nobody snoozed in their trailer. They all got together and rehearsed and gave it their all." Jane Austen was born on December 16, 1775, at the rectory in the village of Steventon, near Basingstoke, in Hampshire. The seventh of eight children of the Reverend George Austen and his wife, Cassandra, she was educated mainly at home and never lived apart from her family. She had a happy childhood amongst all her brothers and the other boys who lodged with the family and whom Mr Austen tutored. From her older sister, Cassandra, she was inseparable. To amuse themselves, the children wrote and performed plays and charades, and even as a little girl Jane was encouraged to write. The reading that she did of the books in her father's extensive library provided material for the short satirical sketches she wrote as a girl. At the age of 14 she wrote her first novel, "Love and Freindship" and then A History of England by a partial, prejudiced and ignorant Historian, together with other very amusing juvenilia. In her early twenties Jane Austen wrote the novels that were later to be re-worked and published as Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice and Northanger Abbey. She also began a novel called The Watsons, which was never completed. As a young woman Jane enjoyed dancing (an activity which features frequently in her novels) and she attended balls in many of the great houses of the neighborhood. She loved the country, enjoyed long country walks, and had many Hampshire friends. It therefore came as a considerable shock when her parents suddenly announced in 1801 that the family would be moving away to Bath. The next four years were difficult ones for Jane Austen. She disliked the confines of a busy town and missed her Steventon life. After her father's death in 1805, his widow and daughters also suffered financial difficulties and were forced to rely on the charity of the Austen sons. It was also at this time that, while on holiday in the West country, Jane fell in love, and when the young man died, she was deeply upset. Later she accepted a proposal of marriage from Harris Bigg-Wither, a wealthy landowner and brother to some of her closest friends, but she changed her mind the next morning and was greatly upset by the whole episode. In July 1809, on her brother Edward offering his mother and sisters a permanent home on his Chawton estate, the Austen ladies moved back to their beloved Hampshire countryside. In the seven and a half years that she lived in this house, she revised "Sense and Sensibility" and "Pride and Prejudice" and published them (in 1811 and 1813) and then embarked on a period of intense productivity. "Mansfield Park" came out in 1814, followed by "Emma" in 1816, and she completed "Persuasion" (which was published together with Northanger Abbey in 1818, the year after her death). None of the books published in her lifetime had her name on them: they were described as being written "By a Lady". In the winter of 1816 she started Sanditon, but illness prevented its completion. Jane Austen had contracted Addisons Disease, a tubercular disease of the kidneys. No longer able to walk far, she used to drive out in a little donkey carriage, which can still be seen at the Jane Austen Museum at Chawton. Austen died in her sister Cassandra's arms in the early hours of 18 July, 1817. She was 41 years old. She is buried in Winchester Cathedral. Synopsis

Six people, five women and one man are brought together through the power of Jane Austens books. Each of the people in the group is at a different stage of life: there’s Sylvia, whose husband has just left her for another woman, and her daughter Allegra, who’s looking for a woman herself. Bernadette has six marriages under her belt, while Jocelyn’s most significant relationship is with her dog. New to the group of friends are Prudie, a French teacher who has never been to France and who is unhappy with her marriage; and Grigg, the group’s only man, a sci-fi fan invited by Jocelyn to take Sylvia’s mind off her failed marriage. As they make their way through Austen’s novels, they discover that the writer’s work is just as relevant in their time as it was in the hers. The group has its own Emma, and a sparring would-be couple bears striking resemblance to Elizabeth Bennett and Mr Darcy.

The Verdict "For those guys who are rolling their eyes at the thought of another 'chick flick' let me quote a warning from film critic Ken Hanke: "They won’t know what they’re missing." And you won't. Why? Because the glue that holds "The Jane Austin Book Club" together is in the main, men! Well it can't be a 'chick flick' then. And, it's not all awash with Jane Austen either. This thoroughly modern adaptation of Karen Joy Fowler's 2004 book of the same name is filled with vibrant, interesting characters and situations everyone can relate to. And no, you don't have to be a Jane Austen Fan!. Her books are only the catalyst that reacts in the lives of those involved in the book club. Cinemagoers should put their Pride and Prejudices aside and take in what is a beautifully presented, thoroughly entertaining film, which features a delightful cast which includes rising star Emily Blunt and Hugh Dancy. Very recommended. 4 1/2 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB" stars .......
2005 Dixie Film Festival Outstanding Actress Award winner Maria Bello ["A History Of Violence", "Thank You for Smoking", "World Trade Centre" and "Flicka"]; Emily Blunt ["Irresistible", "The Devil Wears Prada" and "Charlie Wilson's War"]; Kathy Baker ["Cold Mountain", "Suddenly 30", "Nine Lives" and "All the King's Men"]; Amy Brenneman ["Heat", "City of Angels", "The Suburbans" and "Nine Lives"]; Maggie Grace ["Shop Club", "The Fog" and "Suburban Girl"]; Jimmy Smits ["Running Scared", "Gross Misconduct" and "Star Wars: Episode III"]; Kevin Zegers ["Dawn of the Dead", "Transamerica" and "It's a Boy Girl Thing"]; Marc Blucas ["We Were Soldiers", "I Capture the Castle", "Judy's Got a Gun" and "The Killing Floor"] and Hugh Dancy ["Young Blades", "Black Hawk Down", "Ella Enchanted", "King Arthur" and "Evening"] as Grigg.
"THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB" was .......
directed by Robin Swicord ["The Red Coat"]; screenplay by Robin Swicord ["Little Women", "Matilda", "Practical Magic" and "Memoirs of a Geisha"]; set decoration by Meg Everist ["Welcome to Collinwood", "21 Grams", "The Lake House" and "We Are Marshall"]; costume design by Johnetta Boone ["Runaway Bride", "Hearts in Atlantis", "The Notebook" and "Syriana"]; production design by Rusty Smith ["Mystery, Alaska", "Elf", "Meet the Fockers" and "Accepted"]; edited by Maryann Brandon ["Race for Glory", "Grumpier Old Men" and "Mission: Impossible III"]; cinematography by John Toon ["Rain", "Sylvia" and "Glory Road"]; original music by Aaron Zigman ["The Notebook", "Flicka", "Bridge to Terabithia" and "Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium"]. Who's Who?

Maria Bello Emily Blunt Kathy Baker Amy Brenneman Maggie Grace Jimmy Smits Kevin Zegers Marc Blucas Hugh Dancy Miguel Nájera

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Jocelyn Prudie Bernadette Sylvia Allegra Daniel Trey Dean Grigg Señor Obando

Run Time 105 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2008 - Sony Pictures - All Rights Reserved ©2008 All Rights Reserved - Protected by Australian, International, Copyright & Trademark Laws.