I loved this film from the very start. It has an amazing sarcastic tone and is chalk full of Austen references. The over-dramatic nature of the setting and dialogue makes for a satirical manner which is very similar to Austen's original novels. The characters are all well developed and presented in a relatable way which makes it even more interesting. Miss Charming, for example, is absolutely ridiculous in her performance and each line just adds to her character. Jane Hayes, played by Keri Russell, is a really great lead in this film and gives an honest performance which helps the viewer sympathize with her. This film is based on a novel and there are several discrepancies between the novel and film, but if you love the book as much as I do, you will adore the film for it's own quirky style. For fun- look for the hidden peacock. He's hidden in a ton of scenes just off to the side.
122 Reviews
A fun Rom-Com
cekadah30 January 2014
Nothing high art or dramatic to be seen here .... which is a good thing!
This flick is a simple romantic comedy set in a Jane Austen theme park with paid actors to play roles from Austen novels. Our main character, Jane Hayes, blows her bank account to fulfill her love of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice novel by staying at the theme park hoping to find her love. That's the story all wrapped with some funny light hearted characters and situations.
But pay attention! You just might be fooled! The ending opens a new light for her and the viewer. I enjoyed the movie greatly because it's simple and fun!
This flick is a simple romantic comedy set in a Jane Austen theme park with paid actors to play roles from Austen novels. Our main character, Jane Hayes, blows her bank account to fulfill her love of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice novel by staying at the theme park hoping to find her love. That's the story all wrapped with some funny light hearted characters and situations.
But pay attention! You just might be fooled! The ending opens a new light for her and the viewer. I enjoyed the movie greatly because it's simple and fun!
Welcome to Austenland, a Fast but Fantastic Film
Flip_McTwist1 February 2013
Who would vacation in the Bahamas when you could live the 1800 life of Pride and Predigest characters? Apparently this Jane Austen fan will spend all her money living the experience straight from Austen's most classic books. From Jerusha Hess, the co- writer of Napoleon Dynamite (or should I say the wife of the director), the film begins with Jane (Keri Russell), a Jane Austen book lover, watching classic romance movies and planning her week-long trip adventure somewhere in the United Kingdom to live the Jane Austen life with handsome gentlemen, romance, and engagements. The only problem is when your fantasies become reality, Jane finds love is not always the same way in the books. This movie seems to aim for the book lovers and those of us who are sick of women who dream of finding their Mr Darcy. The film moves fast and the audience does not get to know Russel's character, except for the fact that she loves Jane Austen books. Still, Hess does an excellent job creating a fun and adventurous comedy for us, not to mention the performance of Jennifer Coolidge is fantastic.
The good and bad of a Jane Austen theme park with clever romance and cute comedy
napierslogs29 January 2014
Austenland is a Jane Austen theme park designed for Jane Austen fans to live the life of their favourite heroines. I was really hoping that this was a real place or at least could have been a real place. But for the sake of the delusional fans, it's probably best that this is not real. Jane (Keri Russell) is obsessed with Pride and Prejudice, and in doing something about it, she spends her life savings on a trip to England to Austenland.
What I didn't like about the film was the "theme park" itself. The first part was just a room decorated in tacky figurines with people insulting their customers if they didn't perfectly fit in the 1800s. Others in the theatre laughed, so I suppose that was supposed to be funny. The whole thing just seemed to be designed to make fun of people that were big fans but not "perfect" fans of Jane Austen. Our heroine, who wasn't perfect enough nor rich enough, finally got to experience part of this theme park.
They eventually get to go to an 1800s-styled mansion on a large country lot, exactly as Jane Austen's heroines lived. The theme park experience involves falling in love with a Jane Austen-styled hero – actors hired to play the part. This part works because it was all very funny. Watching Jane try to live the life but being treated like a servant, but no matter what she was determined to make the most of her stay here.
"Austenland" is of course a romantic comedy with Mr. Darcy-type characters all around ready to sweep her off her feet. It was also cleverly done since we know her love story is written for her as part of the theme park experience, Jane knows this but could easily forget it, but we (and Jane) also don't know what exactly was written and what exactly she's creating for herself. For fans of romantic comedies, it's not too hard to guess. But we still enjoy the humour and the romance that takes us there.
What I didn't like about the film was the "theme park" itself. The first part was just a room decorated in tacky figurines with people insulting their customers if they didn't perfectly fit in the 1800s. Others in the theatre laughed, so I suppose that was supposed to be funny. The whole thing just seemed to be designed to make fun of people that were big fans but not "perfect" fans of Jane Austen. Our heroine, who wasn't perfect enough nor rich enough, finally got to experience part of this theme park.
They eventually get to go to an 1800s-styled mansion on a large country lot, exactly as Jane Austen's heroines lived. The theme park experience involves falling in love with a Jane Austen-styled hero – actors hired to play the part. This part works because it was all very funny. Watching Jane try to live the life but being treated like a servant, but no matter what she was determined to make the most of her stay here.
"Austenland" is of course a romantic comedy with Mr. Darcy-type characters all around ready to sweep her off her feet. It was also cleverly done since we know her love story is written for her as part of the theme park experience, Jane knows this but could easily forget it, but we (and Jane) also don't know what exactly was written and what exactly she's creating for herself. For fans of romantic comedies, it's not too hard to guess. But we still enjoy the humour and the romance that takes us there.
So disappointing
treeline16 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
This should have been a thrillingly romantic, sweetly funny movie that touched on loneliness and following one's heart to find real love. Unfortunately, it turned out to be an unfocused, unfunny, and decidedly unromantic story that is very unsatisfying.
Keri Russell looks like the perfect in-love-with-love Austen fan, but Jennifer Coolidge is coarse and annoying playing her usual dumb blonde. There were two men who could have fulfilled Keri's fantasies, but both of their parts were poorly written. Neither man was heroic enough to match Keri's idealized Mr. Darcy.
The whole set-up of the "amusement park," Austenland, was poorly realized and the rules for guests were confusing. Jane Seymour was unappealing as the Austenland owner; she should have been funny, but she wasn't.
I'm glad the book is better than the movie. But then, it would have to be.
Keri Russell looks like the perfect in-love-with-love Austen fan, but Jennifer Coolidge is coarse and annoying playing her usual dumb blonde. There were two men who could have fulfilled Keri's fantasies, but both of their parts were poorly written. Neither man was heroic enough to match Keri's idealized Mr. Darcy.
The whole set-up of the "amusement park," Austenland, was poorly realized and the rules for guests were confusing. Jane Seymour was unappealing as the Austenland owner; she should have been funny, but she wasn't.
I'm glad the book is better than the movie. But then, it would have to be.
Great premise, mediocre execution
jamesrupert201430 September 2021
Obsessive Jane Austen fan Jane Hayes (Keri Russell) invests her savings in a trip to the titular Austenland, a Jane Austen themed resort for a weekend of Regency Period LARPing and for promised romance. The intriguing concept, based on the eponymous novel by Shannon Hale, starts to fall apart when Jane meets her fellow-LARPer Elizabeth Charming, a loud and crude American (a quickly irritating Jennifer Coolidge). Despite a huge staff, a palatial venue, and sumptuous food, the resort seems to have only three guests (Jane, Elizabeth and Amelia (Georgia King, a Scottish actress playing an American playing a Brit who is quite funny in the role)). Needless to say, Jane's hope for an Austenian romance promptly shows up in a pair of potential suiters, 'stable boy' Martin (who is not fastidious about remaining in character) and 'aristocrat' Henry, (who seems to be as much of as snooty posh as his character). The film has fun with the acting within acting premise (in one case, actors play actors play actors in a play) but unfortunately (IMO) lacks any real wit or cleverness. Comedy is the most subjective of genres so I won't say the film isn't funny but I was bored and generally underwhelmed (although it did improve a bit in the third act). Jane's disappointment at being a 'low caste' guest at the resort reminded me of Linda's in the 'Bobs Burgers' (2011) episode 'Zero Larp Thirty'.
Liked the com more than the rom
SnoopyStyle3 July 2014
Jane Hayes (Keri Russell) is obsessed with her namesake Jane Austen and especially Mr. Darcy. She is alone and spends all her savings to participate in an Austen themed estate. The owner Mrs. Wattlesbrook (Jane Seymour) relegates her to be the dumpy Miss Erstwhile. Miss Charming (Jennifer Coolidge) is her fellow American participant except she doesn't anything about Austen. Mr. Henry Nobley (JJ Feild) is one of the characters and the Darcy type. Martin (Bret McKenzie) is the stable hand and isn't part of the play.
Writer/director Jerusha Hess made 'Napoleon Dynamite' with her husband. I'm not familiar with the Shannon Hale novel this is based on. Simply put, I like some of the comedy but the romance is too Austenest. In fact, I didn't care much about the romance or the Hollywood ending. The relationship has no chemistry and never given much of a chance in the movie. The comedy works mainly because of Jennifer Coolidge and the quirky behind-the-scenes jabs at the world of Austen. Whenever the facade falls away, there are usually a few laughs.
Writer/director Jerusha Hess made 'Napoleon Dynamite' with her husband. I'm not familiar with the Shannon Hale novel this is based on. Simply put, I like some of the comedy but the romance is too Austenest. In fact, I didn't care much about the romance or the Hollywood ending. The relationship has no chemistry and never given much of a chance in the movie. The comedy works mainly because of Jennifer Coolidge and the quirky behind-the-scenes jabs at the world of Austen. Whenever the facade falls away, there are usually a few laughs.
Embarrassingly bad, even to my low expectations
rch42729 July 2013
I was roped into a screening of "Austenland" by my well-meaning, Jane Austen-admiring wife. Ninety-seven minutes later, we left the theater shaking our heads. Not because we were offended by the idea of someone making a satirical movie about a modern young woman who was so obsessed with Jane Austen's milieu that she wanted to live in it, but because that ship sailed five years ago, in the form of "Lost in Austen" -- a movie that was everything this film was not.
Had I known in advance that "Austenland" was directed and co-written by the half-wit half-responsible for "Napoleon Dynamite", I might've stayed home. If ever comparing two structurally similar films threw into high relief the shortcomings of one of them, "Lost in Austen" does it to "Austenland". The latter comes across as a script written in two weeks by a rather stupid college sophomore as a class project. No line was too trite, no joke too juvenile, no humor too obvious to not get the full scenery-chewing treatment here.
Even within the film's internal logic, the protagonist made utterly no sense. Here's a young woman who is supposedly so obsessed with Austen, her writing and her virtues that she spends her life savings on an immersive week in that very environment, yet she caves-in within 24 hours, describes being indoors as "stifling", and is soon making out with a stablehand! The contempt she displays for Austen's mores is one more reason the viewer loses any sympathy for her. And honestly, she's not that special. Take away her obsession with Austen (and the film effectively does that within the first 20 minutes), and she's just another vapid college student who dresses like a slob.
Much has been written elsewhere about Jennifer Cooledge, the *other* American who supposedly paid for a week in "Austenland". I thoroughly enjoyed her as a minor character in "A Mighty Wind" and "Best in Show", but in those, she greatly benefited from the writing talents of Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy. Christopher Guest has had boils that could write more clever dialogue than Jerusha Hess is capable of. While I wanted to like Cooledge in this, there was simply no way to get beyond the fact that her character is the broadest broad who ever trod the boards.
One gimmick I've come to loathe in recent films was introduced by Sophia Coppola in "Marie-Antoinette" -- that of interspersing modern pop songs at length throughout the film. "Marie-Antoinette" somewhat worked since Coppola used the juxtaposition of modern songs to make the audience reappraise that late-18th century queen as a modern woman in modern material culture. "Austenland", on the other hand, just uses pop songs to tell the audience what it should be feeling at that moment. Every time this movie is screened, someone in the audience is going to whisper to their significant other "Hey! Remember when we used to make out to that Cure song?" -and move a little closer.
There are exactly three things I could find to like about "Austenland", for which I gave it one star each. The first is for the setting; West Wycombe is always lovely. The second is for Bret McKenzie, the roguish stablehand with a smooth, if improbable line for every occasion (he was far better, tho', in "Flight of the Conchords"). And the third is for J.J. Feild, whose earnest and understated performance is a welcome relief from all of the other in-your-face, turned-up-to-eleven performances. But ultimately, these three aren't nearly enough to save "Austenland" from being a mediocre and tiresome attempt at a romantic comedy. Jane Austen would've shuddered at the thought of such a film exploiting her name and work.
Had I known in advance that "Austenland" was directed and co-written by the half-wit half-responsible for "Napoleon Dynamite", I might've stayed home. If ever comparing two structurally similar films threw into high relief the shortcomings of one of them, "Lost in Austen" does it to "Austenland". The latter comes across as a script written in two weeks by a rather stupid college sophomore as a class project. No line was too trite, no joke too juvenile, no humor too obvious to not get the full scenery-chewing treatment here.
Even within the film's internal logic, the protagonist made utterly no sense. Here's a young woman who is supposedly so obsessed with Austen, her writing and her virtues that she spends her life savings on an immersive week in that very environment, yet she caves-in within 24 hours, describes being indoors as "stifling", and is soon making out with a stablehand! The contempt she displays for Austen's mores is one more reason the viewer loses any sympathy for her. And honestly, she's not that special. Take away her obsession with Austen (and the film effectively does that within the first 20 minutes), and she's just another vapid college student who dresses like a slob.
Much has been written elsewhere about Jennifer Cooledge, the *other* American who supposedly paid for a week in "Austenland". I thoroughly enjoyed her as a minor character in "A Mighty Wind" and "Best in Show", but in those, she greatly benefited from the writing talents of Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy. Christopher Guest has had boils that could write more clever dialogue than Jerusha Hess is capable of. While I wanted to like Cooledge in this, there was simply no way to get beyond the fact that her character is the broadest broad who ever trod the boards.
One gimmick I've come to loathe in recent films was introduced by Sophia Coppola in "Marie-Antoinette" -- that of interspersing modern pop songs at length throughout the film. "Marie-Antoinette" somewhat worked since Coppola used the juxtaposition of modern songs to make the audience reappraise that late-18th century queen as a modern woman in modern material culture. "Austenland", on the other hand, just uses pop songs to tell the audience what it should be feeling at that moment. Every time this movie is screened, someone in the audience is going to whisper to their significant other "Hey! Remember when we used to make out to that Cure song?" -and move a little closer.
There are exactly three things I could find to like about "Austenland", for which I gave it one star each. The first is for the setting; West Wycombe is always lovely. The second is for Bret McKenzie, the roguish stablehand with a smooth, if improbable line for every occasion (he was far better, tho', in "Flight of the Conchords"). And the third is for J.J. Feild, whose earnest and understated performance is a welcome relief from all of the other in-your-face, turned-up-to-eleven performances. But ultimately, these three aren't nearly enough to save "Austenland" from being a mediocre and tiresome attempt at a romantic comedy. Jane Austen would've shuddered at the thought of such a film exploiting her name and work.
hilarious, entertaining, over-the-top!
heyitsdan31 August 2013
I am not sure why this film has received such low reviews. The film opens up with Mrs. Wattlesbrook (Jane Seymour) holding a fake lamb and talking about Austenland, which I think greatly sets the tone for what type of movie this is going to be. Going into the film, I knew it had received a low score thus lowering my expectations greatly so I wasn't expecting much. It turns out I didn't need to lower my expectations, this film totally went over and above.
The critics and everyone leaving a low score have no sense of humor! It's over the top, exaggerated, hilarious, ridiculous, it's supposed to be that way! None of it is believable and once you allow yourself to enter the world of Austenland, you'll enjoy the film.
The theater possibly has a lot to do with the tone. We had a great audience, everyone was cracking up, loud uproars in all the scenes, it was hilarious. Miss Elizabeth Charming is hysterical! I really enjoyed Jennifer Coolidge's performance, she really did her usual thing and it was wonderful.
Lady Amelia Heartwright, Colonel Andrews, Captain George East all are so ridiculous and entertaining. The actors all did an amazing job. I honestly have not laughed that hard in a film in a long time. I'm talking laugh out loud, bursting, crying, snort kind of laughing. Even my husband enjoyed himself and found many of the scenes very entertaining.
I know I haven't talked much about the actual movie but bottom line: it's HILARIOUS. Go in with an open mind, allow yourself to be silly, let go of how "unrealistic" it is, and you'll be in for a treat.
The critics and everyone leaving a low score have no sense of humor! It's over the top, exaggerated, hilarious, ridiculous, it's supposed to be that way! None of it is believable and once you allow yourself to enter the world of Austenland, you'll enjoy the film.
The theater possibly has a lot to do with the tone. We had a great audience, everyone was cracking up, loud uproars in all the scenes, it was hilarious. Miss Elizabeth Charming is hysterical! I really enjoyed Jennifer Coolidge's performance, she really did her usual thing and it was wonderful.
Lady Amelia Heartwright, Colonel Andrews, Captain George East all are so ridiculous and entertaining. The actors all did an amazing job. I honestly have not laughed that hard in a film in a long time. I'm talking laugh out loud, bursting, crying, snort kind of laughing. Even my husband enjoyed himself and found many of the scenes very entertaining.
I know I haven't talked much about the actual movie but bottom line: it's HILARIOUS. Go in with an open mind, allow yourself to be silly, let go of how "unrealistic" it is, and you'll be in for a treat.
Hopeless, Due Mostly To Lazy Writing
maxskyfan-928 September 2014
Warning: Spoilers
Plot
Jane Hayes (Keri Russell) is a Jane Austen nut who is in love with Mr. Darcy, the romantic male lead in Jane Austen's "Pride & Prejudice". She is intimately familiar with this story, for she has read it countless times and has continuously viewed the mini-series with Colin Firth and even has a life sized cardboard cutout of him as Mr. Darcy in her apartment. She believes the next logical step for her is to go to Austenland in England. Once there she becomes familiar with the males actors that she is supposed to form a relationship with, including the actor who is acting a lot like the fictitious Mr. Darcy, but she finds herself sneaking around with the guy who works in the stables. Now she is torn between sticking to the script and being engrossed by her fantasies or should she venture out and break away with this real relationship.
Character Development
The growth that the protagonist goes through is fairly predictable because she is such a Jane Austen fanatic you knew something was about to change, yet the change was more or less symbolic and did anything but dazzle me.
Acting
Keri Russell does a fine job for the most part. This role didn't really showcase her talents, because I have seen a better performance out of her in the feature length cartoon 'Wonder Woman' (2009). As Jane Hayes she didn't have much to say or a great deal to react to. Most of who she encountered were these broad stroke characters that are less lifelike than the ones out of you would find in the average comic book. They were loud and literally get in her face. Jennifer Coolidge played one of these vacuous characters. I don't know if she is supposed to be funny because she is so hopelessly annoying, but for me she was just plain annoying and oh so boring.
Overview
Not as enjoyable as I thought it would be with Keri Russell at the helm. I fault the writing more than anything else. The pace was just too slow and the other actors didn't really do an acceptable job supporting Russell who went along admirably. I thought that there would be more of a connection to Jane Austen's books which makes me question if the creators spent much time reading them in the first place. There was just so much material that could have been used and it is a shame it didn't make its way to the screen. The exchange between the characters played more for cheap laughs than anything else. I was hoping for the types of conversations right out of "Pride & Prejudice" and instead of that there is one guy taking off his shirt and an incredible awful play production that one of the characters wrote. It really felt like amateur hour. Yet there was one nice turn in the end that surprised me and made me think that the writing didn't fall asleep completely at the wheel. But by this time I was so underwhelmed that it almost didn't matter.
Jane Hayes (Keri Russell) is a Jane Austen nut who is in love with Mr. Darcy, the romantic male lead in Jane Austen's "Pride & Prejudice". She is intimately familiar with this story, for she has read it countless times and has continuously viewed the mini-series with Colin Firth and even has a life sized cardboard cutout of him as Mr. Darcy in her apartment. She believes the next logical step for her is to go to Austenland in England. Once there she becomes familiar with the males actors that she is supposed to form a relationship with, including the actor who is acting a lot like the fictitious Mr. Darcy, but she finds herself sneaking around with the guy who works in the stables. Now she is torn between sticking to the script and being engrossed by her fantasies or should she venture out and break away with this real relationship.
Character Development
The growth that the protagonist goes through is fairly predictable because she is such a Jane Austen fanatic you knew something was about to change, yet the change was more or less symbolic and did anything but dazzle me.
Acting
Keri Russell does a fine job for the most part. This role didn't really showcase her talents, because I have seen a better performance out of her in the feature length cartoon 'Wonder Woman' (2009). As Jane Hayes she didn't have much to say or a great deal to react to. Most of who she encountered were these broad stroke characters that are less lifelike than the ones out of you would find in the average comic book. They were loud and literally get in her face. Jennifer Coolidge played one of these vacuous characters. I don't know if she is supposed to be funny because she is so hopelessly annoying, but for me she was just plain annoying and oh so boring.
Overview
Not as enjoyable as I thought it would be with Keri Russell at the helm. I fault the writing more than anything else. The pace was just too slow and the other actors didn't really do an acceptable job supporting Russell who went along admirably. I thought that there would be more of a connection to Jane Austen's books which makes me question if the creators spent much time reading them in the first place. There was just so much material that could have been used and it is a shame it didn't make its way to the screen. The exchange between the characters played more for cheap laughs than anything else. I was hoping for the types of conversations right out of "Pride & Prejudice" and instead of that there is one guy taking off his shirt and an incredible awful play production that one of the characters wrote. It really felt like amateur hour. Yet there was one nice turn in the end that surprised me and made me think that the writing didn't fall asleep completely at the wheel. But by this time I was so underwhelmed that it almost didn't matter.
Very disappointing
bbewnylorac14 December 2013
Warning: Spoilers
I wanted to like this film. It's a nice idea -- take a young American woman named Jane who is obsessed with Jane Austen's England, and put her in a reality holiday experience in the English countryside, set in Austen's era. But the movie, for me, doesn't work, and plods along with little thrill or pace, or indeed much plot. I almost walked out of the cinema, several times. The setting and costumes are fine and some of the actors such as Bret McKenzie and JJ Feild work well as handsome male leads. I felt Keri Russell was the wrong actor as the female lead. She seemed too pert and bland. She didn't have much chemistry with her love interests. But essentially I felt the script was the problem. It seemed to focus on creating individual, pretty scenes rather than connecting them in a clever way. It was flat, and needed perhaps the input of a comedian. It needed zing and wit. For example, there is a scene where everyone puts on a play, but it doesn't work. It doesn't make sense and it's not funny. Jennifer Coolidge, the buxom comedian from Legally Blonde, just wasn't as funny as she has been before on screen. Her scenes are rushed and not sharp enough -- it's the same with several other supporting characters. One woman is supposed to be a bad guy, but in most of her scenes she's quite sweet and helpful, so it doesn't make sense for her to suddenly turn into a villain. By the time the final scenes came around, I really didn't care what happened to Jane and that speaks volumes about the film.
Watched Four Times within Twenty-four hours
jadediamond7 September 2019
When this movie first came out, I thought it looked stupid so I wouldn't give it a chance. When I was watching the 1995 BBC version of Pride & Prejudice on DVD, this was one of the previews for the movie. I checked it out and I enjoyed this silly, romantic comedy. The entire cast was phenomenal and over the top. Keri Russell's Jane Hayes thought she was nuts being obsessed with Jade Austen Pride& Prejudice all her life and she was thrown into a world called Austenland where the characters were so nuts they made her look sane. After having a midlife crisis after her loser ex boyfriend tells her he's the best shot she has at marriage. She goes nuts and spend her lifesavings to go to Austenland where she's promise to have her own Austen inspired romance. In Austenland, the line between reality and fiction becomes very blurry. JJ Feild who plays Henry Nobley, the Darcy of the group, kills it with his facial expressions and his reactions to the ridiculousness of their situation. The great thing about this movie is that it's one of those movies that each time you watch it, you find something new. It's not a straight romantic comedy with one note. It flips the script on you and gives you many twists and turns so you never truly know how it plays out. It's a cool movie to watch, then rewatch and catch things you didn't catch the first time around. But I really enjoyed this movie. The entire cast was amazing. Jennifer Coolidge as Miss Elizabeth Charming, a rich legally dumb blonde who has a heart of gold and is Jane's comedic sidechick. Bret McKenzie as the likable charmer Martin. James Callis from another Austen inspired property the Bridget Jones series plays the flamboyant Colonel Andrews. Georgia King was hilarious as another rich blonde named Lady Amelia Heartwright. Ricky Whittle who plays the sexy Captain East and also a soap star who is so sexy, he'll take off his shirt, revealing his six pack, and use it as a handkerchief to watch a ladies' mouth. Jane Seymour plays Mrs. Wattlesbrook with ease. Ayda Field is in the movie for five minutes but she nails it. It was an enjoyable movie and every actor gets their moment to shine. If you are a serious Austen fan and hate any unpure version adaption of Austen's work, you'll going to hate this movie. But if you love her work and don't mind giving sillier adaptions a chance, then you'll like or dare I say love it. And probably secretly admit to yourself only, you wish Austenland really existed. Oh, and may sure you watch the ending credits. It's a nice treat!
Surprisingly funny
rhyous19 December 2014
I was looking to find a movie my wife would enjoy. I didn't care what we saw, as long as we saw something.
I expected to be bored and to get an extra dose of cheesiness from this film.
I laughed a fair amount, which was unexpected. Really, the juxtaposition of Jennifer Coolidge's (Miss Elizabeth Charming) humor with Keri Russell's (Jane Hayes) seriousness really made the show.
The setting added to comedy and doubled up on the serious vs. funny contrast. Jane Seymour's (Mrs. Wattlesbrook) serious and very authentically snobby character in the absurd Austenland vacation spot, allowed for great emotional swings to humor.
All in all, when you plan to be board and instead find yourself laughing plenty, you have to thank the writers and producers.
I expected to be bored and to get an extra dose of cheesiness from this film.
I laughed a fair amount, which was unexpected. Really, the juxtaposition of Jennifer Coolidge's (Miss Elizabeth Charming) humor with Keri Russell's (Jane Hayes) seriousness really made the show.
The setting added to comedy and doubled up on the serious vs. funny contrast. Jane Seymour's (Mrs. Wattlesbrook) serious and very authentically snobby character in the absurd Austenland vacation spot, allowed for great emotional swings to humor.
All in all, when you plan to be board and instead find yourself laughing plenty, you have to thank the writers and producers.
Boy, do we have a vacation for you!
luckybucksproductions26 February 2014
Oh, sorry, wrong movie - or not.
While I was watching Austenland, I could not help but think of Westworld (1973), about a couple of friends who spend a week in an adult theme park that get to indulge every fantasy they could only dream of from the movies or TV. Austenland seems like a place tailor-made for Delos, only without robots. However, while Westworld was a clever, but grim satire about man's darker impulses in the science fiction genre with a message that was consistent from beginning to end, Austenland is an over-the-top, outrageous spoof in the genre of romantic comedy that threatened to collapse under the weight of its own silliness the whole way through.
Keri Russell plays Jane Hayes, a thirty-something single woman obsessed with all things Jane Austen, especially the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice and Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. Her best friend makes a bet with her to give up her Austen obsession after Jane's trip to Austenland. Jane flies to the UK and quickly meets a kindred, if crazy spirit who was renamed Miss Elizabeth Charming (Jennifer Coolidge). Because Miss Charming is rich, she gets the luxury of choosing her own name and being part of the landed gentry and nobility of Austenland. Jane, being more working class and buying the cheapest travel package, gets stuck in the servants quarters as "poor with no fortune to speak of". She doesn't get to choose her own name and is given the surname of "Erstwhile". You can see right away where this story is going.
I kept getting frustrated with Jane's character because of her complaints about 19th century life. For a girl so seemingly obsessed with Austen, she got a rude awakening that the fantasy didn't match the reality, which I suppose is an integral part of the storyline. There was one scene where she vowed to take charge of her own destiny followed by a slow-motion clichéd fashion show/music video montage that showed her acting like a cross between a wannabe supermodel/seductress that was going to do things her way, come hell or high water. She came off as fake, irritating, and inauthentic. I didn't feel much sympathy or feeling for her; she was not the most warm or fuzzy character, nor was she as "hot" as the male characters in the movie described her to be, or had any sort of intelligence to speak of.
Jane is torn choosing between two suitors - randy and rebellious stable boy Martin (Bret McKenzie) and the stand-in resident Mr. Darcy named Henry Nobley (JJ Feild). We find out they're both actors at the theme park and you're never quite sure if there's a real rivalry between the two men for Jane's affections or if it's all just an act for the guests' amusement. Austenland does succeed in keeping your suspense regarding this aspect of the story. If it wasn't for JJ Feild's understated and even-handed performance amongst all the sheer craziness, there's no way this film would've succeeded. I also enjoyed the fun comic relief of Jennifer Coolidge and Jane Seymour as stern and villainous Mrs. Wattlesbrook, the owner of Austenland. I would've liked to have seen more of her in the film.
I give the filmmakers props for creativity as the sets and costumes were very vibrant and colorful, if ostentatious at times. I appreciate a good spoof or satire as much as the next person, but I felt the noble message about not living life in a fantasy and enjoying the reality of your own existence was lost until the very end. By then it was too late to really root for Jane. I wanted to root for her the whole way through, but I felt it was 95% spoof and 5% deeper meaning, when it should've been the other way around. The pop songs played as part of the movie's soundtrack was distracting and annoying.
I'm really being kind to give it 5 stars. It should be less, but I feel the filmmakers had the most honest intentions for this film. It wasn't what I expected it to be and it could've been so much more. I'll just stick with the original Austen books and regular film adaptations till someone comes up with a more clever and subtle Austen-themed comedy.
While I was watching Austenland, I could not help but think of Westworld (1973), about a couple of friends who spend a week in an adult theme park that get to indulge every fantasy they could only dream of from the movies or TV. Austenland seems like a place tailor-made for Delos, only without robots. However, while Westworld was a clever, but grim satire about man's darker impulses in the science fiction genre with a message that was consistent from beginning to end, Austenland is an over-the-top, outrageous spoof in the genre of romantic comedy that threatened to collapse under the weight of its own silliness the whole way through.
Keri Russell plays Jane Hayes, a thirty-something single woman obsessed with all things Jane Austen, especially the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice and Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. Her best friend makes a bet with her to give up her Austen obsession after Jane's trip to Austenland. Jane flies to the UK and quickly meets a kindred, if crazy spirit who was renamed Miss Elizabeth Charming (Jennifer Coolidge). Because Miss Charming is rich, she gets the luxury of choosing her own name and being part of the landed gentry and nobility of Austenland. Jane, being more working class and buying the cheapest travel package, gets stuck in the servants quarters as "poor with no fortune to speak of". She doesn't get to choose her own name and is given the surname of "Erstwhile". You can see right away where this story is going.
I kept getting frustrated with Jane's character because of her complaints about 19th century life. For a girl so seemingly obsessed with Austen, she got a rude awakening that the fantasy didn't match the reality, which I suppose is an integral part of the storyline. There was one scene where she vowed to take charge of her own destiny followed by a slow-motion clichéd fashion show/music video montage that showed her acting like a cross between a wannabe supermodel/seductress that was going to do things her way, come hell or high water. She came off as fake, irritating, and inauthentic. I didn't feel much sympathy or feeling for her; she was not the most warm or fuzzy character, nor was she as "hot" as the male characters in the movie described her to be, or had any sort of intelligence to speak of.
Jane is torn choosing between two suitors - randy and rebellious stable boy Martin (Bret McKenzie) and the stand-in resident Mr. Darcy named Henry Nobley (JJ Feild). We find out they're both actors at the theme park and you're never quite sure if there's a real rivalry between the two men for Jane's affections or if it's all just an act for the guests' amusement. Austenland does succeed in keeping your suspense regarding this aspect of the story. If it wasn't for JJ Feild's understated and even-handed performance amongst all the sheer craziness, there's no way this film would've succeeded. I also enjoyed the fun comic relief of Jennifer Coolidge and Jane Seymour as stern and villainous Mrs. Wattlesbrook, the owner of Austenland. I would've liked to have seen more of her in the film.
I give the filmmakers props for creativity as the sets and costumes were very vibrant and colorful, if ostentatious at times. I appreciate a good spoof or satire as much as the next person, but I felt the noble message about not living life in a fantasy and enjoying the reality of your own existence was lost until the very end. By then it was too late to really root for Jane. I wanted to root for her the whole way through, but I felt it was 95% spoof and 5% deeper meaning, when it should've been the other way around. The pop songs played as part of the movie's soundtrack was distracting and annoying.
I'm really being kind to give it 5 stars. It should be less, but I feel the filmmakers had the most honest intentions for this film. It wasn't what I expected it to be and it could've been so much more. I'll just stick with the original Austen books and regular film adaptations till someone comes up with a more clever and subtle Austen-themed comedy.
Mostly a very silly Rom-Com but Keri Russell makes it interesting.
TxMike30 May 2014
Warning: Spoilers
I will admit I fell in love with Keri Russell when she was 20-ish playing a 20-ish young lady in the TV series "Felicity." To me she has as close to the perfect looks and personality that I could hope for in a young lady, and I have enjoyed all her roles. She is the reason I saw this one, now as a 30-something sort of pushing 40.
Keri Russell plays Jane Hayes, a Jane Austen fan since she was quite young. In fact once we see her room, as her good friends observes she has become a Jane Austen addict. Plus, she is mostly poor and drives a Tercel.
(As an aside, I drive a Tercel, mine is 19 years old and running strong. I found it humorous when near the end of the movie her friend advised her to buy her Tercel back, presumably she sold it to finance her trip depicted here.)
The trip is to England to a getaway called "Austenland." There Jane Austen fans dress as Austen characters, meet various actors in various Austen characters, and spend a few days pretending they are in Austen's world.
This wouldn't be a Rom-Com if there were no romance and that comes in the form of JJ Feild, and American actor playing a Brit who is playing Mr. Henry Nobley, sort of the Darcy character. Problem is he really does fall for her and she has trouble sorting that out, even when he follows her back home after the vacation is over.
Jennifer Coolidge does her usual shtick as one of the vacationers, I can take her in small doses and had she been the featured character I would not have watched all of it. Oh, she is a good actress, but she is usually cast in these ultra goofy roles as here and I simply don't like them.
Overall a somewhat dull and lifeless movie, I enjoyed it only for Keri Russell. Miss Elizabeth Charming
Keri Russell plays Jane Hayes, a Jane Austen fan since she was quite young. In fact once we see her room, as her good friends observes she has become a Jane Austen addict. Plus, she is mostly poor and drives a Tercel.
(As an aside, I drive a Tercel, mine is 19 years old and running strong. I found it humorous when near the end of the movie her friend advised her to buy her Tercel back, presumably she sold it to finance her trip depicted here.)
The trip is to England to a getaway called "Austenland." There Jane Austen fans dress as Austen characters, meet various actors in various Austen characters, and spend a few days pretending they are in Austen's world.
This wouldn't be a Rom-Com if there were no romance and that comes in the form of JJ Feild, and American actor playing a Brit who is playing Mr. Henry Nobley, sort of the Darcy character. Problem is he really does fall for her and she has trouble sorting that out, even when he follows her back home after the vacation is over.
Jennifer Coolidge does her usual shtick as one of the vacationers, I can take her in small doses and had she been the featured character I would not have watched all of it. Oh, she is a good actress, but she is usually cast in these ultra goofy roles as here and I simply don't like them.
Overall a somewhat dull and lifeless movie, I enjoyed it only for Keri Russell. Miss Elizabeth Charming
About being a die hard fan and forgetting the reality
Reno-Rangan3 May 2014
Based on a novel of the same name which is directed by the first timer. It was not a time traveler fantasy drama like 'Midnight in Paris', but it exhibits the lifestyle and cultural difference between two different centuries.
According to the story the past was brought to the present by restoring with detailed customs that forgotten where modern people can enjoy the true experience. I don't know whether it happens in reality, but good as in a movie.
A simple idea is good for a novel to write, as a movie, it did not fall back a much which chronicles a middle aged American woman who is obsessed with Jane Austen novels. She travels to Jane Austen theme park in England, looking for a life changing experience with full of romance. Would she get what she was looking is the movie progresses with the intense story till the end.
Well made movie that a bit different than usual concept. Kinda enjoyed it mainly because of the main role that played by Keri Russell. She was the true fan of 'Pride and Prejudice' story and how her latest visit to Austenland transforms her back to the reality was shown in quite a nice approach. Not a rocket science, easy to predict the scenes. The point is the place where movie sets in and variety of roles with the delightful atmosphere captured throughout helps us to stick.
According to the story the past was brought to the present by restoring with detailed customs that forgotten where modern people can enjoy the true experience. I don't know whether it happens in reality, but good as in a movie.
A simple idea is good for a novel to write, as a movie, it did not fall back a much which chronicles a middle aged American woman who is obsessed with Jane Austen novels. She travels to Jane Austen theme park in England, looking for a life changing experience with full of romance. Would she get what she was looking is the movie progresses with the intense story till the end.
Well made movie that a bit different than usual concept. Kinda enjoyed it mainly because of the main role that played by Keri Russell. She was the true fan of 'Pride and Prejudice' story and how her latest visit to Austenland transforms her back to the reality was shown in quite a nice approach. Not a rocket science, easy to predict the scenes. The point is the place where movie sets in and variety of roles with the delightful atmosphere captured throughout helps us to stick.
A cute romantic comedy under the radar...
roxannerubash30 May 2015
I only heard of this movie because of a trailer on another Netflix rental. From the get-go I appreciated that the background story of the heroine isn't drawn out. Instead, you get the gist and are immediately thrown into this wacky, modern spin-off of Jane Austen novels. This movie perfectly walks the line of romantic comedy and random humor that really made it enjoyable. The lovable "plain Jane" is likable and you really aren't 100% sure who her real "Mr. Darcy" is until the very end. I watched this with my fiancé who laughed just as much as I over the off-the-wall acting, random fake birds, and unexpected piano renditions.
If you love a slightly cheesy romantic comedy with British literature romance references thrown in, you'll enjoy this and so should your boyfriend...just tell him Stifler's Mom is in it!
If you love a slightly cheesy romantic comedy with British literature romance references thrown in, you'll enjoy this and so should your boyfriend...just tell him Stifler's Mom is in it!
Over the top, but feel good
SyoKennex11 October 2017
Austenland is a 2013 comedy romance film. Jane, obsessed with Pride and Prejudice, can't seem to find her perfect gentlemen. Mr. Darcy just makes every man who comes into her life seem trivial and boring. Running out of hope, Jane travels to a Jane Austen themed amusement park, hoping to find her perfect gentleman.
I cannot say why I enjoyed this so much. There was just something about it that was just so over the top and hilarious, that I couldn't help but laugh and find it funny. The acting was well done, but still over the top, but I'm definitely looking at Keri Russell as an actress to look more at in the future. I was very surprised by her acting skills, even though over the top, she did it well and brought utter life to the character of Jane, and it was absolutely brilliant.
I didn't think too much of the rest of the film past Russell's performance. The humour and romance wasn't quite my type or to my enjoyment, but as I said, because it was so over the top, I couldn't help but laugh.
However, it's rare that a film does over the top well, and I think Austenland is a perfect example of what can happen when a director gets that right. The actors all worked together, and everything just became perfect for this film in particular. I don't think another rom-com could have pulled it off as well as Austenland did.
This is a really good feel good film and I would recommend it to those who love a good rom-com. Although not my style, I could definitely see myself watching this again during a break up or a similar toned part of my life.
I cannot say why I enjoyed this so much. There was just something about it that was just so over the top and hilarious, that I couldn't help but laugh and find it funny. The acting was well done, but still over the top, but I'm definitely looking at Keri Russell as an actress to look more at in the future. I was very surprised by her acting skills, even though over the top, she did it well and brought utter life to the character of Jane, and it was absolutely brilliant.
I didn't think too much of the rest of the film past Russell's performance. The humour and romance wasn't quite my type or to my enjoyment, but as I said, because it was so over the top, I couldn't help but laugh.
However, it's rare that a film does over the top well, and I think Austenland is a perfect example of what can happen when a director gets that right. The actors all worked together, and everything just became perfect for this film in particular. I don't think another rom-com could have pulled it off as well as Austenland did.
This is a really good feel good film and I would recommend it to those who love a good rom-com. Although not my style, I could definitely see myself watching this again during a break up or a similar toned part of my life.
Just Plain Awful
coverstory29 August 2013
I saw this film this afternoon, prepared to be delighted by the concept of a young woman spending her life savings to immerse herself in an Austen experience, and found it to be so trite, stupid, and otherwise dreadful I would not have stayed to the end if I had been alone. The inconsistencies of the characterizations (except for Jane Seymour, who was exactly the same in every scene), the dopiness of the concept (the use of a huge, elegant manor is supposed to be supported by exactly three guests), the tiresomeness of the set pieces, and the utterly vulgar, dismal script left wide open an opportunity for someone else to actually do it again, only next time making it worth watching. I agree with an earlier reviewer who contrasted it to "Lost in Austen," a clever, funny, well-plotted production, and found "Austenland" to have none of those qualities.
For some ladies, like me, going to Austenland is twenty times better than Disneyland
inkblot1120 September 2013
Jane Hayes (Keri Russell) has been most unfortunate in love. Her boyfriends up to this moment have left her cold to romance. Perhaps, it might be observed, Jane is rather selective in her search, for she is looking for the second coming of Mr. Darcy. A fan of Austen since she was thirteen, her small apartment is decorated in the Empire fashion, with a large cutout of Colin Firth in his role as Darcy. So, when a former flame comes to her place of work, telling her that he is her last, best hope, Jane hatches a desperate plan. She will sell her car and use all of her savings to buy a trip to Austenland, a dream adventure place in jolly old England. When she arrives, flush with excitement, she gets a small dash of grief. The snobby manager (Jane Seymour) chides Jane for buying the basic package, gives the American a plainer room than the other guests, and gives her the moniker Miss Erstwhile, which Jane instantly dislikes. Nevertheless, the place is lovely and the actors quite intriguing, especially one, Mr. Nobly (J.J. Field) who has the Darcy role. Alas, he brushes her off, true to the book. Thank goodness fellow guest Miss Charming (Jennifer Coolidge) becomes her bosom friend and provides great comic relief. Yet, when Jane receives criticism at dinner, she bolts out to the grounds where she meets someone who turns her head. This is Martin (Bret McKenzie), hired to take care of the horses and play a servant. Though there is really no mingling between guests and servants, Martin soon becomes Jane's special savior time and time again. Could he be the romance she has waited for all of her life? But, wait, could Mr. Nobly actually be paying more attention to our Jane? Things are becoming muddled! This lovely movie will be a joy to Austen's fans and beyond. How many superhero films have to be released, however, to merit a ladies' flick like this? Quite a few, Hollywood seems to be saying. Therefore, it is this viewer's hope that all women will rush to the closest theater to embrace Austenland in a big way. It has sumptuous costumes, a clever script, a wonderful setting, a skilled direction and enough references to the great lady herself to please most everyone.
believe in love and your dream will come true
criebeauty22 July 2017
I just watched Austenland on TV, this is the very first time i saw the movie and i'll watch it later for more. The plot was amazing, Jane goes to her dreamland to find a perfect man to love. She found one and one more and she's leaving her reality into a dream that she doesn't believe before. She never expect a perfect man can find her,but in Jane Austen's theme park she has to face her dream come true. Finally, she think deeply and realize all dreams are build to serve her needs of a perfect man. Jane leaving her dream into reality and has a great experience with her passion. And in the last ironic scene, she found that her dream comes into her real life. A perfect man to love and having guts to admit that she's his fantasy.
Gak!
wordsmiths_communication5 March 2014
Did you ever watch the first five minutes of a movie, and realize that for every ten more minutes you watched, your IQ would drop eleven points? Austenland is such a movie. When Tweedle Dumb and Tweedle Dumber were standing there at the airport and the "nineteenth century" taxi arrived, I knew if I saw the rest of this film I would wind up brain-dead. It isn't funny, except in ways that awful movies are funny in an unintended sort of way. In other words the writing, acting and directing are so bad you laugh your tutu off. Austenland is such a movie. There are wonderful comedies out there, fantastic period dramas and historical masterpieces. Austenland is not one of them. Avoid!
One of those rare films of which adaptation is way better than the original
tinuviel_mrv26 January 2015
Warning: Spoilers
For any Jane Austen fan, I think this film provides the ultimate fest. It is witty, fun and charming with lovely scenes, music, cast and great directing.
I love the modernisation of the original story -spoiler- (as in the 'It's getting hot in here' scene) as well as the additions, like the gun-firing and saving the lady in distress under the rain scenes.
-Spoiler- Plus, making Knobly a real-life character rather than an actor -as was the case in the novel- is well thought of. It raises the level of realism of the whole plot.
I have read the book only recently, after watching the film and I think the director did a great job filling in the gaps of the novel. With her aid, the story became perfect which previously I think had many deficiencies in plot.
Watch the film and I assure you, you won't regret it ;)
I love the modernisation of the original story -spoiler- (as in the 'It's getting hot in here' scene) as well as the additions, like the gun-firing and saving the lady in distress under the rain scenes.
-Spoiler- Plus, making Knobly a real-life character rather than an actor -as was the case in the novel- is well thought of. It raises the level of realism of the whole plot.
I have read the book only recently, after watching the film and I think the director did a great job filling in the gaps of the novel. With her aid, the story became perfect which previously I think had many deficiencies in plot.
Watch the film and I assure you, you won't regret it ;)
Light, campy fun
blatherskitenoir19 October 2020
Look, it's not perfect, it's not high Thea-tah!, or some perfect ode to Jane Austenites, but, frankly, it isn't trying to be.
It is a silly, light hearted, rom-com, with a bit (ok, a good amount) of stupid, campy fun.
As "Elf" is to Christmas films, so is "Austenland" to Jane Austen romances. You will catch yourself reaching for this when you can't stand anything serious and want a silly pick me up that won't make you feel stupid.
This is also the film you put on at parties with your gal-pals when you can't agree on what to watch. Your smart/nerdy friends will like the Jane Austen references, your emotive friends will enjoy the sweet, PG level, romance of Mr. Nobely, your raunchy friends will love the eye candy, and your friends with the humors of 12 year old boys will laugh hilariously at every line which falls from Miss "Charming"'s crude mouth.
There are no glaring technical flaws to get in the way of enjoyment; the costumes are gorgeous and the settings richly detailed, and the directing and acting solid.
Not what I expected
macho_mz13 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
As a happy owner of the book Austenland, I was very excited for this movie to be released. I thought it was cast very well and had a lot of potential. Unfortunately, I left the theater more than a little disappointed. I figured with a book this short, it would be fairly easy to adapt, but they seemed to change whatever they wanted for no particular reason. The main character, Jane, is supposed to be a romantic young lady with an unfortunate (but humorous) history of failed romances who compares every man to Mr. Darcy; this movie made her a freakishly obsessive fan who seems to have difficulty distinguishing fiction from real life. That extreme made her less endearing and more of a joke, which sums up most of the movie. I can only assume they thought the movie wouldn't be taken seriously so they decided to be in on the joke. There were a few moments that I did enjoy, but overall, this book could have been adapted a great deal better.
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