some acting is good while some is not so good
353749
Engaging... some acting is good while some is not so good. Worth watching at least one time.
2386272
I am puzzled as to why the director, producers, and writers of this so-called adaptation of Jane Eyre decided to stray so far from the actual novel by Charlotte Bront. Not only were several key scenes deleted, they chose to put in words and scenes that were never in the book. So why did I give it a three-star rating? Well, this is because of the wonderful acting by the main characters.

Samantha Morton, whose luminous beauty is portrayed subtly here, plays plain Jane Eyre, whose intellect and high moral character is wonderfully and credibly depicted here. Mr. Rochester is played by the consummate Ciaran Hinds who first impressed me in his performance as the lead character in&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/The-Mayor-of-Casterbridge/dp/B0000AQS3P/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">The Mayor of Casterbridge</a>&nbsp;and who delivered a finely nuanced performance as the once thwarted in love Captain Frederick Wentworth in&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Persuasion/dp/B001DUDKEY/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Persuasion</a>. Both actors deliver credible, compelling performances and the age gap is certainly true to the novel, though many of the dialogue and scenes may not. The chemistry is believable, though not the best of all the adaptations.

If you watch closely, you'll recognize several other familiar faces in British period drama. The wonderful Gemma Jones from&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/The-Duchess-of-Duke-Street-The-Complete-Collection/dp/B001ADXWYC/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">The Duchess of Duke Street - The Complete Collection</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Sense-And-Sensibility/dp/B0019TYQ38/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Sense And Sensibility</a>&nbsp;as Mrs. Fairfax, Elizabeth Garvie from 1980's&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Pride-and-Prejudice-The-Complete-BBC-Miniseries-VHS/dp/B00004WG2X/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Pride and Prejudice: The Complete BBC Miniseries [VHS</a>] as Diana Rivers, and Rupert Penry-Jones of&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/White-Chapel-The-Ripper-Returns/dp/B005G172Q8/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">White Chapel: The Ripper Returns</a>as St. John Rivers.

The cinematography is beautiful enough though the score is forgettable, and ultimately, I would rate this as one of the weakest adaptations of Charlotte Bront's Jane Eyre. That being said, I would still recommend watching it if you're a fan of Hinds and Morton and also if only to do some comparisons with other adaptations.
4659250
Lots of variety; great acting, different plot.  Some parts a little too gory
4097812
The movie in total is not that good, but there are scenes in it that are wonderful and elicit genuine emotion. Charles Dutton is an amazing actor, and it was good to see him on screen again. The actors who portray his mother and younger brother have two scenes with Dutton that are just too funny, and Loretta Devine does an outstanding job as Othell's sister. The only downside is Tatyana Ali. She seemed to be struggling throughout the entire film and never quite finds her role. The scenes with her and her catty friends are awful; the scenes with her fianc were almost painful to watch. Perhaps it was the material she just couldn't handle, I'm not sure. Her performance left much to be desired. She nearly ruined the movie for us. Other than that, I'd recommend giving it a try. Sure, it's made for tv but it works for an afternoon at home with the family.
4400785
I have watched all three movies and ive enjoyed them besides the bad acting on some people the over all meaning and concept is actually good.
1702955
good actors good backview  the final actions were left out, which was mayaabe tasteful
3266542
The storyline was pretty good but I can't say the acting was that great overall
4282934
Some of, if not THE, best writing and acting I've ever seen.
2883974
The acting from the two main characters left a lot to be desired although that may have been a result of the poor writing.
4521053
The acting is beyond just good, it is a tribute to its craft.  The story is compelling but the presentation lacks continuity and snap.  It is abrupt and at times without explanation.  There are just hints of the kind of personality involved with the main character, although the obvious temptation to make it a love story was resisted, it nonetheless flirted with that as an unnecessary and distracting sideline to the real story.
4949259
This production is a mixed bag. On balance, the performances are good to very good. Anja Harteros as Alcina is fantastic - "Ah, mio cor" gets deservedly enthusiastic applause from the audience, and she's equally effective in the other big set-pieces (E.g. "mi restano le lagrime"). Veronica Cangemi is a wonderful Morgana, with the type of clear, agile voice that is perfect for this character and this music. And that choirboy singing Oberto KILLS. Wherever they found him, I hope there are more such young singers forthcoming.

And then there's Vesselina Kasarova, whose voice is definitely an acquired taste. I have not acquired it yet. She was a great Sesto in a Salzburg production of La Clemenza di Tito and I don't remember being puzzled by her voice in that instance. But having listened to this Alcina I can see why some people love her voice, others viscerally dislike it, and still others (me included) just find it . . . intriguingly weird.

And w/r/t intriguingly weird: this is probably the best description of her acting as Ruggiero. I don't know whether this is weird directing or weird acting, but it comes off as mannered and a little kooky.

But in general, this production sounds good. And it looks good. The opener indicates that the drama is an evening of fun staged by some eighteenth-century aristocrats, and the scene is part drawing-room, part bright blue sky and sea grass. It's pretty. The lighting is nice, costumes are both attractive and make sense - nothing wrong here.

The big thing about this production, though, is that one ends up not caring all that much. Nothing appears to be at stake. The play-within-a-play conceit takes the edge off the drama, and this is not an opera that has a lot of edge to begin with. (Also: the fact that without reading the liner notes you wouldn't know that the aristocrat staging this play-within-a-play was the Duchess of Devonshire indicates that this detail is a little bit pointless.) There is no sense of urgency - the play-within-a-play concept suspends our disbelief for us, and the result is that it's not very compelling. We know that they know that Alcina's magic isn't real. Had the concept been a play within a play that got out of hand and the characters became caught up in relationships that turned all too real - a 'real' enchantment -- then it might work. But 1) then the Duchess of Devonshire racket would probably have to go: it'd have to be less specific 18th century nobles to whom this happened and 2) this would be fairly difficult to get across without some very clever staging and even cleverer acting.

So. I am glad to be able to watch a DVD of this that is easy on the ears and reasonably entertaining, but I'm still waiting for one that's really gripping.
352936
The actors in this movie really raised the caliber of the material I think. A good deal of the funny parts were in the trailers but not all was given away. At times it was difficult to measure the amount of time that had passed but that's ok. You know from the title how long everything SHOULD take. The middle where they were in Michigan and Jason was trying to find himself was a little long in the tooth and then the ending felt very rushed but overall, due to the actors, I found it to be an entertaining film.
3995206
The story is one you'll want to experience. If you can get passed acting of the character-roles of some of the actors....I perceived a  lack of confidence in either their belief or just the aging factor for some of these actors!
4387653
Some fine acting, a convoluted plot, and the machinations of humans doing their darndest to get by in life by fibbing, cheating, masquerading,

stealing, and murdering.  There are texts and sub-texts and Mr Hitchcock, even when he is not at his absolute best, is far better than most. Worth revisiting from time to time.
639000
Storyline was good but I've seen better acting in the local theatre group.
2138325
Good acting cast.........Should Hollywood get new material and stop remaking stories
3541365
Though it was a good story and well acted with a seasoned and capable cast, it was not quite s good as it could have been.