
Our next installment of our Psych series features a Jane Austen movie! Apparently in season 1, episode 4 they mention Jane Austen? And I took that as a reference so I wrote it down and here we are!
I also thought this would be a good opportunity to watch an Oscar-winning screenplay I’d never seen, so we’re reviewing Sense and Sensibility (1995)! I’ve already seen Pride and Prejudice a few times, as well as Emma, but I think this is my first S&S viewing, which I’m excited about. Not to mention, this is a step toward finding a romance movie I like! We’re killing every bird with just one stone today, so off we go!
Briefly, and Without Spoilers
After the tragic death of their stepfather and husband, the Dashwood family finds themselves pushed out of their home by Mr. Dashwood’s first-born son and his shrill wife. Desperate for affordable accommodations, the women live at an old, rickety cottage owned by Mrs. Dashwood’s (Gemma Jones) cousin.
There, the Dashwood sisters must navigate life and love in their new world while still balancing the lingering memories of their old life.
F*** Those Flowers in Particular (Spoilers Ahead!!!)
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve seen a handful of Jane Austen movies, a variety of story adaptations, and I’ve never read the books. By no means am I a Jane Austen expert, so if that’s the deep dive you came for, you might want to check out someone else’s blog.
But for an unfiltered and unhelpful opinion from a non-expert, I thought there was a lot to like. Screenplay Oscar is well-deserved. I thought the dialog and the story structure was excellent. Granted, I don’t always know just how difficult it is to write a screenplay adapted from a novel that’s already laid the groundwork for you. Particularly a beloved novel from a legendary author who knew what they were doing. But still very good. I’ve only seen a couple of the other movies that were nominated that year, but I don’t think anyone stands out as a more obvious winner.
I liked that the sisters were the central focus on the story, as opposed to the romances. I think Jane Austen movies in particular sometimes fall into this trope of making everything about the love stories, when Jane Austen’s novels were a little more complex than that. I think in this case, the sister’s relationship is the clearer foundation for success.

The sets and cinematography were excellent. I loved that little cottage and some of the outdoor shots were magnificent. I saw the word “fresh” in another review and I think that’s a great way to describe this movie. It was fresh, bright, and it didn’t drag on. I would even consider watching it again, which isn’t always my inclination after watching Jane Austen movies. If I had to rank all the Jane Austen movies, this one would pretty comfortably take first place.
Directed by…Checks Notes…
Anyone else double take when they saw it was directed by Ang Lee? As in the Ang Lee of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Brokeback Mountain and Life of Pi? And also apparently the 2003 Hulk movie with Eric Bana? That had those Hulk Dogs?
Ang Lee definitely has distinctive directorial stylings and I feel like I can kind of see it in Sense and Sensibility. I mean…it’s more of an Ang Lee movie than Hulk (2003), but I was extremely surprised to find out he directed this movie.
Digging into the history a bit, it looks like this was his first all-English film and first big introduction to Hollywood, and production intentionally hired someone who wasn’t familiar with the source material, but had previous works that aligned with Austen’s more defining themes. And clearly it was a good move. It’s extremely well done. But definitely not the name I expected to see.
Is it a Love Match??
Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for: did I like this romance movie? As mentioned, there’s a lot of non-romance that happened that I thoroughly enjoyed. But to say that I liked this movie for everything non-romance feels like cheating.
Honestly, the romance part was not my favorite. First you have Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant. I think I said the phrase, “Throw the whole man out,” at least three or four times. I get it was a different time and the societal expectations were different and blah, blah, blah. Never fall in love with an engaged man. I don’t care what the circumstances are. It feels very “a cheater will always cheat.” Sure, you can say he was trying to be honorable by keeping his promise to Lucy, but where was this honor all the many weeks he was flirting with Elinor? Why did he wait until the last minute to explain himself? Throw the whole man out.

Then you have Kate Winslet and Alan Rickman. I must say, as a female woman, I would have risked it all for Colonel Brandon. He most certainly was a love match. The age gap was a bit too much for me. I realize it was a different time, but 2024 me had a hard time stomaching that. And at the end of the movie, it still felt very much like a father-daughter relationship. Maybe it’s more believable in the book, but there was something not sexy or romantic about that relationship. But Colonel Brandon could ride all night to collect my mother when I’m on death’s doorstep.
And then I guess there’s Kate Winslet and Willoughby. I don’t think you’re supposed to like that relationship and it was obviously very immature and young puppy love. I didn’t invest anything in it since it was obviously a plot device.
So I’d say this wasn’t a love match. Wonderful movie. Not a love match. Except Colonel Brandon. I will accept every bouquet of flowers from Colonel Brandon. He can track mud in my condo. I would very much like to hold hands with Colonel Brandon.
Better than a Romance Movie
Having said all that, Sense and Sensibility is still a very good movie and if you’re into Jane Austen, I would highly recommend watching. Even if you’re not, you might find something to like about this one.
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