It’s a concept that directors and audiences alike have been battling with since the birth of cinema; how to convert novels to screen? From the 1930’s classic interpretation of Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With The Wind, to the release of Tomas Alfredson’s adaptation of John le Carré’s spy novel Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy just last week, novels provide endless material for cinematic ventures. But are texts beloved the world over, enhanced or destroyed by their conversion to the big screen?

The growth of cinema has seen the rise of the franchise; a series such as the enormously popular Harry Potter books, or the Twilight saga, cannot be left on paper, but are transformed into colossal, all-consuming cinematic adventures which last for years. Many of the directors of these particular enterprises are assuming that their audience has already read the book, leaving out dozens of details and pieces of information that can make newcomers to the story feel out of the loop; an example of this being in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 where Lupin suddenly gains a son, seemingly from thin air.

For some people the foreknowledge of the original text is crucial. However, this is not the case for all adaptations, with some, such as The Shawshank Redemption (based on a short story by Stephen King) not needing to even acknowledge the existence of a previous text. In some ways this is a benefit to the director; if you sway from the storyline or plot then most people won’t notice, and the minor details don’t face such minute scrutiny from exuberant fans of the novel. Conversely there’s a great honour in being responsible for a well-done and respected adaptation of a beloved text – Peter Jackson’s epic trilogy The Lord of the Rings was adored by critics, Tolkien fans and newcomers alike, and is surely one of the highlights of this cinematic generation.

This month has seen the release of another cinematic adaptation of a classic novel: Jane Eyre. It’s a spectacular achievement, perfectly balancing the traditional content with modern cinematic techniques. Director Cary Fukunaga ensured the film remained true to the novel and time period, sticking faithfully to Brontë’s plot, including almost every key literary moment so fans of the novel felt that the symbolism and power of the original were kept intact. For a modern cinematic audience, however, this is not enough, and Fukunaga uses subtle camera techniques that keep Jane Eyre up to date and fresh for today’s audience. In particular the scene in which Jane discovers the secret door leading to Bertha’s chamber, with its extreme close ups and dramatic contrast between dark and light the shot was reminiscent of modern horror films. Using conventions such as these, Fukunaga manages to give an audience unfamiliar with Bront’s work a sense of familiarity, making this Victorian plot accessible to all.

Cinema is a brilliant way of introducing a new generation of readers to texts that would previously seem intimidating; Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet brought the romance and drama of Shakespeare up to date in a glamorous and visually stunning film that opened young people’s eyes to the world of the Bard. Similarly a bad adaptation can irreparably damage the reputation of a novel, Douglas Adams’ hilarious and forward-thinking Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy reduced to a bland production in 2005 which, despite an all star cast, was a weak and watery affair.

Not every novel can be adapted to screen; some are too complex, some too internal and subtle, and others are so vivid that no director can match the reader’s imagination.

The trend of adapting novels seems set to continue, with The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo series being made for a second time, and Luhrmann’s highly anticipated The Great Gatsby filming underway. As long as the texts are treated with the respect they deserve and bring something new to the experience of the plot, cinematic adaptations are here to stay, and with good reason.

Written by Alex Wynick

Twitter: @AlexWynick
Blog: thethoughtsofwynick.blogspot.com

To celebrate the September 9th release of Jane Eyre in cinemas nationwide, we have an exclusive Jane Eyre writing set to giveaway to a lucky reader, and 4 copies of the book to competition runners-up.

In a bold new feature version of Jane Eyre, director Cary Joji Fukunaga (Sin Nombre) and screenwriter Moira Buffini (Tamara Drewe) infuse a contemporary immediacy into Charlotte Brontë’s timeless, classic story. Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland) and Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds) star in the iconic lead roles of the romantic drama, the heroine of which continues to inspire new generations of devoted readers and viewers.

For over 160 years, Charlotte Brontë’s novel Jane Eyre has been one of the world’s most popular books. A mainstay of school reading lists, it has been translated into virtually every language. A story with a protagonist whom Brontë saw as “a heroine as plain and small as myself,” it continues to inspire generations and to influence storytellers.

A Focus Features presentation in association with BBC Films of a Ruby Films production. Jane Eyre stars Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Jamie Bell, and Judi Dench and is released in cinemas across the UK September 9th.

To find out more about the film visit the Jane Eyre UK Facebook page:  http://www.facebook.com/janeeyreuk

To be in with a chance of winning the limited edition writing set and a copy of the book answer the following question.

Who is the author of Jane Eyre?
•    Charlotte Brontë
•    Emily Brontë
•    Anne Brontë

The small print:

• Open to UK residents only
• Only one entry per household will be counted
• The competition will close 22nd September at 23.59 GMT
• The winner will be picked at random from entries received
• No cash alternative is available

The usual T&Cs can be found here. Good Luck!

Jane Eyre is the story of a young orphaned girl who is brought up by her aunt, living among cousins who beat and steal from her. She is treated like an outcast, punished severely, and eventually sent away to a strict boarding school. It is there Jane meets here very first friend, but circumstances separate them. Years pass at the school and Jane is trained to become a governess, a tutor. She finds her first job as a governess to a young French girl named Adele at a residence named Thornfield. It is at Thornfield she meets Mr Rochester.

The story of Jane Eyre is one that first came to light many years after its initial publication in 1847 (published under a pseudonym) and didn’t become popular until the beginning of the 1900s. A few decades later Jane Eyre’s first big screen adaptation came about in 1943 written by Aldous Huxley and starring Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine. Many film and TV adaptations followed and nearly 70 years later comes Cary Fukunaga’s adaptation starring Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender.

Fukunaga changes the book’s chronological story to a non-linear structure, starting the film in the middle of a dramatic escape from something and a struggle for survival, immediately creating a sense that something is wrong. As Jane explains where she has come from we flash back to Jane’s childhood dipping into the roots behind Jane’s character: reserved, strong willed, determined, passionate, and intelligent. Despite being born to a wealthy family, Jane was orphaned at a young age and put under her Aunt’s charge, who has no respect or compassion for Jane. It is from this moment Jane begins to challenge the class system from within asking the question: why should people be treated different because of their appearance or wealth?

After being sent off to a strict and gruelling life at a boarding school where beating and starvation were not unusual forms of punishment, Jane leaves the school as a grown women, ready to begin her life as a lowly governess. She replies to a job advertisement at Thornfield Hall and is welcomed in by the staff and her pupil, Adele. The master of Thornfield, Mr Rochester, is only ever mentioned in brief passing, but many months later he finally arrives.

Jane’s first encounter of Rochester does not put her in great light, and so begins a companionship based on honestly,  bluntness and, on his part, rudeness. Rochester is the first person Jane feels comfortable retorting back to and a relationship between the two, first intrigue and then romantic, form between the two. But after a fire nearly burns the house down, Jane is determined to uncover the secret that Rochester keeps from here.

Fukunaga’s version is perhaps the most supernatural and gothic of the adaptations and brings Charlotte Bronte’s story back to its roots. Many adaptations grasp the importance of the supernatural theme but find it difficult to balance it against the period romance, but Fukunaga manages the balance perfectly. Some moments you’ll be caught up in the banter between Jane and Rochester, and others you’ll be following every flicker of the candle to find what lies behind the darkness or the corridors.

I originally had doubts about Fassbender being cast as Rochester, given the description of Rochester in the book, but Fassbender is brilliantly rude, charming and captivating and with Wasikowska they work perfectly, balancing off each other. The supporting cast is filled to the brim with British talent including Judi Dench, Sally Hawkins, Jamie Bell and many others. Meanwhile the location, Hadden Hall, where many previous period films have been shot, is magnificent as it is eerie and you can sense the history and past from this wonderful location.

Although not every scene from the book could make it into the film, Fukunaga kept the scenes that make you fall in love with the book and the characters, the ones that will make you proud of Jane, charmed by Rochester, spooked by the supernatural and captivated by the story.

For fans of the book this is an adaptation you’ll watch over and over, and for newcomers it is a perfect way to open yourself to a period film filled with equal about of romance, horror, supernatural and suspense. This is a period drama for all generations.

****~ (4/5)

]]> http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2011/09/02/jane-eyre-review/feed/ 1 http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2011/09/01/interview-cary-fukunaga-on-jane-eyre/ http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2011/09/01/interview-cary-fukunaga-on-jane-eyre/#comments Thu, 01 Sep 2011 09:00:35 +0000 Vicki Isitt http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/?p=104972

2009′s Sin Nombre was an audacious debut from Cary Fukunaga and won the director great acclaim and marked him as a man to watch.

It was a with a measure of surprise and excitement that we greeted the news that his next film was to be an adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s classic Jane Eyre, a feeling compounded when Michael Fassbender and Mia Wasikowska were cast in the central roles of Rochester and Jane.

The film is (finally) released here in the UK on the 9th of September and we sat down with the director to talk about his attachment to the book, the challenges of structuring the film adaptation and finding his perfect cast.

Q:  What initially attracted you to Jane Eyre?

A: I knew it more as a film when I was a kid, it’s kind of one of those classic Hollywood films that I just grew up with and really loved and it was one of my favourites. I’d been thinking of readapting it, as one of the classic films I hadn’t seen adapted in a while – that’s sort of proof I hadn’t been aware of how many adaptations there had been recently. There are probably more avid fans in the US who knew, but I hadn’t been aware of any recent different versions of the book on film or TV, so I thought there hadn’t been one in a while. I guess the BBC one was pretty recent so that had been fresh on everyone’s minds but through during the film I’ve learnt more about the others, the Timothy Dalton version and all the others. It’s just the classic stories that, not that I identified with, but the mix of mystery and the horror and the romance and the period captured my imagination.

Q: Can you tell me about the casting process?

A: It was really simple actually, it happened so quickly. When I had my initial meeting with the producer of the film, Alison Owen, she asked who I imagined in the film. I didn’t really know who I wanted for Jane just then but I’d seen Steve McQueen’s Hunger earlier that year and wanted to see if I could get Michael Fassbender, so he was the first person I thought of. I had a meeting with him about a month later in LA as I was doing some work out there and we had a chance to meet up and just had some beers and smoked some cigarettes and talked about the Bronte’s. Michael was pretty well versed on it, and I think Heathcliff is one of his favourite characters and at one time I think he was meant to play Rochester before so he was familiar with Rochester’s story and we just really vibed and had really similar ideas, and how we could interpret it compared to previous versions where it had been treated like a period romance and the gothic was lost.

Quite often when I’ve gone back to review previous adaptations, even in the 2006 version, when the gothic scenes come up they feel out of place. I saw the first episode of the 2006 version where they have Jane in the Red Room, and it’s just like shakey handheld camera then back to normal. And for me I think there has to be continuity when you’re dealing with that. It’s different because when you’re reading you’re allowed to change tones and you can spend hours and hours reading something and digesting it and experiencing it in your own way, but when you’re watching someone else’s film, someone else’s depiction of something then you change tones and you can lose the audiences, and that’s something you don’t want to do.

Q: As you’ve mentioned, Jane Eyre is heavily influences by the gothic and the supernatural, how did you go about bringing these tones into the film?

I read the book again and again, and I wasn’t trying to make it more horror than the book actually was. There are those spine tingling moments in the book, as for me the gothic comes out more in the details in the book rather than scary moments. Bronte talks about Jane walking around the third floor gallery and all this furniture that’s been kept up in the storage room and all these cushions that have been sewn by hands that have long since been turned to dust. Those sorts of observations of death and morbidity I found for me that was the gothic. If you think about her walking those rooms they are her versions of horror and gothic, they are the spine tingling moments. I knew I wanted to have moments in the film that would make the audiences jump, not in a hammer horror type way but in a very naturalistic way – things that make us jump in real life.

As a kid we had a two story home and after I turned the lights off downstairs I’d run up the stairs, always having my back to the darkness behind me. Just those sorts of little things. So you can imagine what Jane felt and we tried to create it with the cinematography and the sound, just trying to have those moments where also the more percussive moments and the pheasant jumps up and flies at her, I wanted the audience to jump as well. You know she’s slightly spooked by herself, and in the books there is so much detail. It’s oral tradition, the idea of scaring as a form of entertainment.

Q: Obviously the book is linear and in chronological order, what prompted your decision to film it non-linear?

A: The first reason would be storytelling, but there are two benefits to it. Firstly you get to start off in a much more mysterious way. There has been a recent trend in the past ten or twenty years of starting a film in a moment, and then building up to how that moment happened, so it’s a very contemporary method of storytelling because you know that something is going to happen so it creates this sense of impending doom. But also what it does is, the chronology of the book is such that the Rivers part of the story falls in the last third and although it’s an extremely important for Jane to have those relationships, to find a family and to find a potential partner, it’s a narrative speed bump, if you think that the real attraction of the story is Jane and Rochester’s relationship. So what ends up happening in feature versions of the films is that the Rivers section gets compressed so that it’s ineffective. I think even in the 1943 version where Aldous Huxley was a screenwriter he condensed John Rivers’ character with a preacher from the school so we get the information about the inheritance but not the possibility of Jane and John Rivers’ potential partner, and that’s an important part of Jane’s character to be able to make those decisions. If you don’t give her a sense of control over her fate then you take away a part of her strength. So by starting off at that part of the story we could take the important parts of the Rivers’ story and spread them across two hours. Where as if they’d been all together they wouldn’t  make sense, but because we spread them out we create the sense that time has passed with them and you can therefore understand why she would give her money away to them or why that she would even consider John as a potential husband.

Q: Thornfield is stunning, where did you shoot?

We shot in the same place they shot the Zeffirelli film and the 2006 BBC, and at least one more. I think there’s been four Jane Eyre’s filmed there. It’d Hadden Hall in Bakewell up in Derbyshire. They’ve shot Pride and Prejudice there, The Other Boleyn Girl, Princess Bride…it’s incredible how many films have been shot there. And it’s strange now going back and watching any of those films because I see rooms and think ‘Oh, I remember that room’. It just has these empty chambers that you can convert into anything.

Q: Jane Eyre is quite heavily influenced by earlier novels including Northanger Abby by Jane Austen. What has influenced or inspired you so far in your career?

Photography was what really inspires me. Maybe it’s because for me film deals with the fourth dimension; you deal with time, and every story has its own pace or rhythm so films don’t often to help inspire in that sense. But photography does because continually communicates to my cinematographer what look I’m going for and they can work from that. There’s a lot of Helen Van Meene early to mid 19th Century photographs of women in that time that I took inspiration from. There is another French photographer who took a lot of photographs of her daughters, just lounging in their petticoats, and it was a lot more tactile. We talked a lot with Mia and with Michael O’Connor, the costume designer, about these kind of moments, about getting rid of the idea that everyone is so stuff and upper lipped at all times but what they were like when no one else was watching them, because that’s what we really want to see with Jane.

Q: Jane learns from an early age that a life of solitude is what is expected of her. What do you think it was about Rochester that drew Jane to him, and he to her?

I think Rochester challenged her. His rudeness made her feel more comfortable because she didn’t have to be polite back; she could be her true self. So, it was his lack of repression for her to be open and witty rather than reserved and timid which she was about Miss Fairfax. And that was a gateway to deeper feelings. I think she saw in him someone as tortured as he was, even if she didn’t know why or how.

Q: You’ve also got a wonderful British supporting cast, was that always important to you?

There are no supporting roles, every cast member is important. But we were lucky to get who we got: it was always complicated dealing with schedules  and availability but to have Judi Dench and Sally Hawkins, Jamie Bell and everyone else was a real pleasure. There’s enormous talent here so taking advantage of that was definitely a highlight of shooting around here.

Q: You mentioned earlier about condensing and spreading out certain scenes, was it difficult to decide what made the cut and what didn’t?

Yes, even some of the deleted scenes which we took out of the film were really fiercely debated as we were trying to figure out the best version of the film. Those kinds of things – condensing language, condensing everything else. Each of us had our favourite moment or scene and debated back and forth, we tried to include as much as possible as long as it didn’t ruin the scene. There are also these iconic moments where you debate do you put that in or do you take it out? In the end you make the decision what’s best for the film. There are things we took out which might upset fans, but it’s a movie, not the book, it’s its own animal.

Q: How do you think Jane Eyre appeals to international audiences?

I don’t know yet, we’re finding out! Apparently it did quite well in South Korea, and I don’t know why. Maybe it’s the tradition of soap opera there, there melodrama to women, as it’s a story that definitely appeals to women and younger girls, and I think as they grow up they look back at it and see it as a powerful story from their formative years. And it’s divisive. I know people that read it when they were younger and said they didn’t understand what Jane saw in Rochester, and it’s interesting when they go back and reread it. My friend Laura still doesn’t understand what Jane saw in him. I think it’s great, because it makes it more real. If it was too appealing then she’s a generic person. Charlotte [Bronte] is so clear in the description of Jane’s thoughts and observations that those who identify with it, really identify with it.

Q: I think the “do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain and little I don’t have as much heart and soul?’ is definitely one of the most powerful scenes, both in the book and the film.

I think that that’s what gets people upset sometimes, that in the film versions they feels it’s unfair that Jane is shown to be attractive because they think that women who identify with that idea are not attractive, they like the idea that there’s a heroine who isn’t attractive. But I also think it’s one of those things about Jane and that her perception of self was so much lower than who she really was. Because Diana Rivers even says that Jane’s pretty – I have proof in the book that she says it! It’s more her own perception than being less of who she is. I also think it’s the same with Rochester. I mean, Rochester must have been attractive.

Q: There is the scene in the book where Rochester asks Jane if she thinks he is attractive, and she talks about his large forehead showing his intelligence and large Roman nose.

A: Yeah, it’s like having a royal forehead. I also have female friends that think the men they are attracted to are weird looking, they like to think they like to one that no one else likes, the oddball. But then you like someone that everyone else likes, that other people find attractive as well. It’s the idea of uniqueness of attraction. So I don’t think you can necessarily take Jane’s subjective word for being the truth in the sense of whether she is beautiful of not.

Jane Eyre is out on the 9th of September and you can read our review of the film tomorrow.

News have come thorough via The Hollywood Reporter that Sin Nombre director Cary Fukunaga (currently winning plaudits for his adaptation of the Emily Bronte classic, Jane Eyre) will be working within a very different genre for his next feature. The American filmmaker will direct sci-fi thriller, Spaceless, for Universal, and will also rewrite the screenplay based off the original spec by Jeff Vintar (one of the screenwriters from i, Robot).

It’s a trippy, reality-bending tale of an assassin in space who awakens to find himself deep in the galaxy, having no recollection of what happened since breaking into the space station where he was to perform his hit. Alone (and with a limited air supply), he must try to solve the mystery of his death.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Fukunaga would direct and co-write No Blood, No Guts, No Glory (one of the scripts from the 2009 Black List). It looks like Spaceless has now taken priority over that.

Focus Features International have just sent over this new clip from their new movie Jane Eyre where the awesome Michael Fassbender has to ask the question ‘Do you find me handsome!’ Unfortunately he doesn’t get the answer that he’s looking for although.

Directed by Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre), Jane Eyre is based on the acclaimed novel of the same name by Charlotte Brontë, and stars Mia Wasikowska , Michael Fassbender , Judi Dench , Sally Hawkins , Jamie Bell, Imogen Poots, Sophie Ward and Craig Roberts.

After a bleak childhood, Jane Eyre (Wasikowska) goes out into the world to become a governess. As she lives happily in her new position at Thornfield Hall, she meets the dark, cold, and abrupt master of the house, Mr. Rochester (Fassbender). Jane and her employer grow close in friendship and she soon finds herself falling in love with him. Happiness seems to have found Jane at last, but could Mr. Rochester’s terrible secret be about to destroy it forever?

Jane Eyre is scheduled to hit UK cinemas on September 9.

Focus Features International have released the official UK trailer and poster for Jane Eyre.

Directed by Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre), Jane Eyre is based on the acclaimed novel of the same name by Charlotte Brontë, and stars Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Judi Dench, Sally Hawkins, Jamie Bell, Imogen Poots, Sophie Ward and Craig Roberts.

After a bleak childhood, Jane Eyre (Wasikowska) goes out into the world to become a governess. As she lives happily in her new position at Thornfield Hall, she meets the dark, cold, and abrupt master of the house, Mr. Rochester (Fassbender). Jane and her employer grow close in friendship and she soon finds herself falling in love with him. Happiness seems to have found Jane at last, but could Mr. Rochester’s terrible secret be about to destroy it forever?

Jane Eyre, which has been critically praised following its US release, is scheduled to hit UK cinemas on September 9.

Award-winning director Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre) has signed on to write and direct civil war heist film No Blood, No Guts, No Glory.

Fukunaga will co-write the script alongside Chase Palmer (Number 13), whose original draft found itself on the 2009 Black List.

No Blood, No Guts, No Glory follows a spy and twenty Union soldiers in disguise who board a train in Georgia in order to pull off a heist that could bring a quick end to the Civil War.

The project is set up at Focus Features, and will shoot later this year.

Fukunaga’s latest directorial effort, Jane Eyre, will be released in the UK on September 9th.

Source: Variety

Apple have released a new clip from the new Focus Features movie retelling the classic story of Jane Eyre. Cary Fukunaga directs a fabulous ensemble cast which includes Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Judy Dench, Sally Hawkins and Jamie Bell.

Synopsips: Mia Wasikowska (“Alice in Wonderland”) and Michael Fassbender (“Inglourious Basterds”) star in the romantic drama based on Charlotte Bronte’s classic novel, from acclaimed director Cary Fukunaga (“Sin Nombre”). In the story, Jane Eyre flees Thornfield House, where she works as a governess for wealthy Edward Rochester. As she reflects upon the people and emotions that have defined her, it is clear that the isolated and imposing residence – and Mr. Rochester’s coldness – have sorely tested the young woman’s resilience, forged years earlier when she was orphaned. She must now act decisively to secure her own future and come to terms with the past that haunts her – and the terrible secret that Mr. Rochester is hiding and that she has uncovered…

In this new clip, we get to see Wasikowska and Fassbender discussing why Jane has to leave to avoid the certain heartberak which she is sure to ensue before a bombshell is dropped!

The clip shows us just how great the acting in the movie will be. I’ve got high hopes for this one!

It’s set for release in the UK 9th September which is rather disappointing considering it’s released in the US on March 11th.

Director Cary Fukanaga has chosen a very different kind of film to follow his feature debut Sin Nombre, and in taking on a literary classic Fukanaga has wisely chosen some of the most impressive new actors to star in Jane Eyre.

Posters have come and gone, as has a decent trailer, and now new images surface showing the fine features of Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender who are joined by Jamie Bell, Imogen Poots, Sally Hawkins, Tamzin Merchant and Judi Dench.

The film has a US release date of the 11th of March, but the only release date I could find for the UK is the 9th of September which seems crazy and I’m happy to be corrected.

Anyhoo, eyes open for new pics,

The escape was aided by Focus with help from  The Playlist

Only a few days after unveiling the poster and official synopsis for Jane Eyre, Focus Features have released the first official trailer via Yahoo! Movies.

Directed by Cary Fukunaga, Jane Eyre stars Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Judi Dench, Jamie Bell, Sally Hawkins, Imogen Poots and Tamzin Merchant.

Based on Charlotte Brontë’s classic novel, the romantic drama stars Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland) and Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds) in the lead roles. In the story, Jane Eyre flees Thornfield House, where she works as a governess for wealthy Edward Rochester. The isolated and imposing residence – and Mr. Rochester’s coldness – have sorely tested the young woman’s resilience, forged years earlier when she was orphaned. As Jane reflects upon her past and recovers her natural curiosity, she will return to Mr. Rochester – and the terrible secret that he is hiding…

Watch the official trailer below:

Focus Features have unveiled the first poster, images and official synopsis for Jane Eyre on the film’s Facebook page.

Jane Eyre, directed by Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre), stars Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Jamie Bell, Imogen Poots, Judi Dench, Sally Hawkins, Jane Wisener, Sophie Ward and Tamzin Merchant.

Synopsis:

Based on Charlotte Brontë’s classic novel, the romantic drama stars Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland) and Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds) in the lead roles. In the story, Jane Eyre flees Thornfield House, where she works as a governess for wealthy Edward Rochester. The isolated and imposing residence – and Mr. Rochester’s coldness – have sorely tested the young woman’s resilience, forged years earlier when she was orphaned. As Jane reflects upon her past and recovers her natural curiosity, she will return to Mr. Rochester – and the terrible secret that he is hiding…

Jane Eyre will be released on March 11, 2011.

]]> http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2010/11/09/poster-images-and-synopsis-for-jane-eyre/feed/ 0 http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2010/01/28/blu-ray-review-sin-nombre/ http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2010/01/28/blu-ray-review-sin-nombre/#comments Thu, 28 Jan 2010 23:12:20 +0000 Jon Lyus http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/?p=10524

Cary Fukunaga’s film Sin Nombre can sit comfortably alongside City of God as a powerful and bleakly artistic take on the compact chaos of street gangs and the moral erosion of poverty and the violence which ensues.

Two stories clash in a hopeless and violent world as Casper, a member of a brutal Mexican street gang, kills his leader as they rob a train carrying Sayra, a teenage Honduran running the dangerous path to America to reunite with her family. One saves the life of the other, and as they both realise they cannot turn back their roads intertwine and we follow their escape, with the law and the gang taking up the chase.

Thanks to the capable eye of the cinematographer Adriano Goldman the film luxuriates in the juxtaposing of the Mexican vistas with the crowded confusion of the cities; the film breaks in the middle to let our gaze bath in the warm open blue sky with a distant plane cruising through the air and once we’ve taken a breath we’re back on the road with the hundreds of desperate souls clawing their way to a promised land.

It is a futile notion, to hope that a better life awaits. The tattoos which cover the skin of the gangs permeate to their bones and there is no way to take the train off its tracks. Witness Sayra half asleep watching Casper try to scratch off his teardrop tattoo as their journey continues, despair travels with him, and Sayra is with him for the ride knowing, as do we, that she will reach her destination alone.

Writer and director Cary Fukunaga’s research, riding the trains, immersing himself in the Latin American gang mythology, imbues each and every frame of the film, allowing the familiar conceits of a well worn story to engage at every turn. The crystal clear definition of the Blu-ray blushes the screen with the radiant colours and every carefully framed shot is incandescently rendered. The grit and grime of the streets is tangible and Fukunaga allows the ebb and flow of his pacing to carry us along with the two leads, and though the story of the escape of a good-hearted young man caught up in a dangerous cycle of violence and an innocent and naive woman trying to find a better life is nothing new, each new scene compels the viewer to see what happens next.

There is no escape, no release to be found at journey’s end. Sudden, immediate violence punctuates a desperate race to an impossible freedom, and the casual indifference of the early violence combined with a sickening realism in Fukunaga’s direction brings the two strands of the story together in a genuinely affecting denouement. The cast are uniformly excellent with the two leads, Edgar Flores and Paulina Gaitan, exerting a hold over the heart of the film. Their scenes together play out as if the weight of their worlds are on their shoulders and the gang members are a bleak and violent presence but never stray into cliche, something that is so important to this film.

See this film, take time to experience it. The sparse script belies its depth and precision, the characters are engaging though never surprising. It is an oft told tale, writ large and capably over a torn canvas. That this was Fukunaga’s feature debut is nothing short of astonishing and it will never get an English language remake, so if subtitles scare you – this is a great place to expand your horizons.

Sin Nombre is out on DVD and Blu-ray on the 1st of February, complete with a commentary and deleted scenes.

Following his success with Sin Nombre Cary Fukunaga is to adapt Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre from a script by Moira Buffini, and today rumours blossomed that soon-to-be Alice In Wonderland MiaWasikowska is in talks to play the eponymous heroine.

Jane Eyre has been adapted many times in recent years with actresses such as Samantha Morton and Charlotte Gainsbourg taking the lead role, now Focus Features and BBC films look to the relative newcomer to play the governess of Thornfield Manor.

Variety also report that my favourite Inglourious Basterd Michael Fassbender is considering the role of Mr Rochester. While literary adaptations, particularly those under the constraints of a feature film’s running time, rely on a tightly constructed abridging of the original work it is the actors breathing new life into well known characters that ensure a success or deliver a failure.

Fassbender showed his quality in Steve McQueen’s Hunger and is quickly establishing himself as a fine character actor, and while Tim Burton has placed the fate of his version of Alice in Wasikowska’s hands, we’ll wait to see how she fares as that famous literary heroine before looking forward to her take on Bronte’s classic creation.