Although it certainly isn't a hard-set rule and can be pleasantly surprising when it's bucked, filmmakers often feel the need to make their movies about real or imagined people match all or some part of their subject's profession or lifestyle. Thus, biopics about famous musicians obviously contain lots of music and performances, while fictional dramas concerning politicians try to capture the complexity and structure of politics.
It becomes more of a minefield when dealing with personas that are highly identified by the style of their work, especially in the creative field. And that's because many viewers want any latest offering to match the person or character type. Thus, in the mass mindset, a film about a pornographer should contain sex, one about a horror director should be scary, and a film about comedians should be funny, etc.
When it's not, as was the case with the 1988 drama "Punchline" about standup comedians, audiences rebel. Perhaps sensing that, those responsible for "Becoming Jane" -- a fictionalized re-imagining of what inspired writer Jane Austen and her famous works -- have tried to fashion a romantic tale in the style for which the writer is best known.
Unfortunately, neither the visual storytelling by director Julian Jarrold nor the actual writing by scribes Kevin Hood and Sarah Williams is on par with the late great master of observational romanticism who made her mark in the late 18th and early 19th centuries with works such as "Emma," "Sense and Sensibility" and "Pride and Prejudice."
Much like the upcoming "Moliere," this handsome costume drama plays with the thought of what inspired the young and never married author to formulate her works, particularly in this case, "P&P." Beyond the fact that the artistic liberties taken with known or speculated facts will likely drive Austen historians and devotees into a tizzy, the plot -- also about a young woman whose mother desperately wants to marry off her daughters -- just isn't up to the task of emulating the famous writer.
All of which means that it pales in comparison to the original works, at least for those familiar with them. Yet, even for those who aren't and/or don't know much if anything about the writer and her life, the film is simply too dramatically and romantically inert, and clearly too predictable for its own good.
Presumably sensing the material's slow and methodical nature, Jarrold tries to spice things up with lots of camera movement and edits. Yet, all of that can't hide the fact that many viewers will likely find all that's presented as trite at best, without the necessary imagination, cleverness, or complexity to make it as engaging as it needs to be.
Beyond the script that goes through all of the motions and hits the notes but still doesn't make beautiful "music," some of the fault also lies with Anne Hathaway's performance as the title character. While she also touches upon the expected characteristics, I never felt that she achieved the necessary transition from simply playing the character to becoming the real person. By that, I mean I never felt like I was watching Austen, just an actress portraying her.
James McAvoy fairs a bit better in the Darcy type role of Tom Lefroy, the aspiring lawyer who initially clashes with our young heroine, but eventually falls for her, just as we'd expect. It's obviously just my observation and opinion, but due to Hathaway remaining stuck as herself, the chemistry between the characters never quite bubbles forth as deliciously (or romantically) as I imagined it should have.
Supporting performances from the likes of James Cromwell, Julie Walters, Maggie Smith, and Anna Maxwell Martin are generally fine, but their characters -- more from the way they're written than portrayed - simply don't pop off the screen like the same in Austen's original works.
Generally speaking, that's the film's biggest issue. While the production values (costumes, set design, and cinematography) are top notch, the overall effort is languid when it should be fun, and boring when it should be romantic and invigorating. Not horrible, but simply too bland for its own good or the viewer's enjoyment of it, "Becoming Jane" rates as a 4.5 out of 10.
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