Mansfield Park (1999)

At 10, Fanny Price, a poor relation, goes to live at Mansfield Park, the estate of her aunt's husband, Sir Thomas. Clever, studious, and a writer with an ironic imagination and fine moral ... See full summary »

Director:

Patricia Rozema

Writers:

Jane Austen (novel), Patricia Rozema

Stars:

Frances O'Connor, Jonny Lee Miller, Alessandro Nivola

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hannah Taylor Gordon	...	Young Fanny
Talya Gordon	...	Young Susan
Lindsay Duncan	...	Mrs. Price / Lady Bertram
Bruce Byron	...	Carriage Driver
James Purefoy	...	Tom Bertram
Sheila Gish	...	Mrs. Norris
Harold Pinter	...	Sir Thomas Bertram
Elizabeth Eaton	...	Young Maria
Elizabeth Earl	...	Young Julia
Philip Sarson	...	Young Edmond
Amelia Warner	...	Teenage Fanny
Frances O'Connor	...	Fanny Price
Jonny Lee Miller	...	Edmund Bertram
Victoria Hamilton	...	Maria Bertram
Hugh Bonneville	...	Mr. Rushworth

Storyline

At 10, Fanny Price, a poor relation, goes to live at Mansfield Park, the estate of her aunt's husband, Sir Thomas. Clever, studious, and a writer with an ironic imagination and fine moral compass, she becomes especially close to Edmund, Thomas's younger son. Fanny is soon possessed of beauty as well as a keen mind and comes to the attention of a neighbor, Henry Crawford. Thomas promotes this match, but to his displeasure, Fanny has a mind of her own, asking Henry to prove himself worthy. As Edmund courts Henry's sister and as light shines on the link between Thomas's fortunes and New World slavery, Fanny must assess Henry's character and assert her heart as well as her wit.

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Plot Keywords:

caught having sex | year 1806 | lesbian subtext | country estate | letter writing | 

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Taglines:

Jane Austen's Wicked Comedy

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief violent images, sexual content and drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Familia din Mansfield Park

Filming Locations:

St Austell, Cornwall, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£103,266 (United Kingdom), 2 April 2000, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$85,608, 21 November 1999, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$4,764,741, 5 March 2000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arts Council of England, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), HAL Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The production company apparently left behind the flock of doves released at the end of Henry Crawford's fireworks display (filmed in Charlestown, Cornwall). For more than eight years after filming was completed, the birds survived thanks to the efforts of a local woman who feared they would perish, due to having to compete with gulls for food.

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Goofs

The music we hear does not correspond to the fingering of the harp. In particular, the lowest notes should sound from the longest strings, i.e. furthest away from the player, not as shown.

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Quotes

Fanny Price: Well, Lady Bertram is always suffering near-fatal fatigue.
Susan Price: From what?
Fanny Price: Usually from embroidering something of little use and no beauty... not to mention a healthy dose of opium every day.
Susan Price: Your tongue is sharper than a guillotine, Fanny.
Fanny Price: The effect of education, I suppose.

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Alternate Versions

One sex scene was cut from the US version in order to obtain a PG rating.

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Connections

Featured in The Real Jane Austen (2002)

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Soundtracks

Djongna (Slavery)
Written and Performed by Salif Keita

User Reviews

An astonishing adaptation

I think this film illustrates the potential Austen's work offers to future filmmakers. While following the overall outlines of Austen's book, it departs in a number of astonishing but very effective ways. In many ways I find it the most satisfying Austen adaptation I've seen.

Modern eyes find the traditional Fanny Price to be too much of a, well, a "wuss". She shows a steely resolve that anyone would envy when faced with a serious moral choice, but most of the time she's portrayed as timid and resigned to being trampled upon. Her moments of joy and excitement pass quietly. Such a character isn't especially appealing to today's moviegoers, and it's hard to make such a character engaging.

Instead of giving us the traditional Fanny, Patrician Rozema (the director/screenwriter) has built a character with parts of Fanny and parts of Jane Austen herself. This Fanny will sit in her room during free hours and write stories home to her sister or write her "History of England" for her own (and her cousin Edmond's) amusement. She races down stairs, expresses her thoughtful but unorthodox opinions, rides in the rain, and does all sorts of other non-timid things. But her vivacity is squelched by Aunt Norris who constantly ensures that Fanny not forget her (low) status in the household.

Another important departure is the opportunity we're given to finally look behind the curtains that hide the inconvenient piles of dirt. While Austen didn't always sidestep messy things, most Austen filmmakere have. But in "Mansfield Park" examples abound of plain old shabbiness. Mansfield Part is a huge pile of masonry (seems almost a palace to naive American eyes) but it's partially a ruin and it's frugally decorated, especially when compared to similar homes in Ang Lee's "Sense and Sensibility". Austen indicates that Lady Bertram suffers from poor health, but the film portrays an illness fueled by regular doses of narcotic medicines. Sir Thomas' problems at his New World plantation seem to be tied to his use of slave labor (with an ironic resolution at the end).

As with the other '90s Austen revival works, this one shows much improved production values over the '80s BBC miniseries -- better use of musical scoring, more physical action by actors, and better use of locations and scenery.