After yet another failed relationship, Jane decides to blow her entire savings on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to a Jane Austen —themed resort in England. The resort seems like the perfect escape from 21st-century life. The guests at Austenland, which is run by the prickly Mrs. Wattlesbrook Seymour , are assigned pseudonyms, dress in period costume, and conduct themselves like ladies of the Regency era.
They live without modern conveniences though the plumbing is modern. Activities offered at the resort include needlepoint, riding, reading, shooting, and entertaining the other guests through musical performances or theatrics. At the conclusion of each guest's stay, a ball is held The highlight of the resort is the score of attractive young gentlemen actors who attend to the female guests--though no touching is allowed. Upon her arrival, Jane realizes that, while she could only afford the cheapest "copper" package, the other guests—including Ms.
Although she quickly befriends Martin, the resort's chauffeur, Jane is treated with disrespect and disdain by Mrs. Wattlesbrook, who prefers the resort's wealthier guests despite their ridiculousness.
While the other guests are given a wide choice of elaborate costumes and shown to luxurious rooms, Jane is given a plain dress and a sparsely-decorated chamber in the "creepy tower" of the servants' quarters.
At dinner on their first night, Jane and Elizabeth are introduced to the gentlemen of the house: Colonel Andrews Callis , a silly and obsequious character who seems to love his job, and Mr.
Henry Nobley Feild , Mrs. Wattlesbrook's sternly handsome—albeit unenthusiastic—nephew. They are also introduced to another platinum level, long-term guest, who has been given the name Lady Amelia Hartwright King. Amelia and Elizabeth flirt openly with Nobley throughout dinner, while Jane finds him rather disagreeable.
Their argument mirrors the one had by Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy upon their first meeting in Pride and Prejudice. Ultimately, Jane is humiliated by Mrs. Wattlesbrook and leaves the table. Throughout her experience at Austenland, Jane becomes somewhat disenchanted with the Regency era.
She is self-conscious of her costume and treatment, bored without technology, and her modern independence is often at odds with expected behavior. The silliness of the guests and actors also acts as a mirror to her own formerly-obsessive behavior. Jane again feels left out the following morning during a walk around the grounds. After leaving the group to seek solace with a book in the stables, she is discovered by Martin McKenzie.
Martin flirts with her, but the two are interrupted by Elizabeth, Nobley, and Colonel Andrews, who arrive with news of an upcoming hunt.
Martin's attentions to Jane during the pheasant shooting incites Nobley's jealousy; Jane's surprising skill in turn incites Amelia's. When Jane is forced to walk back to the house in the rain, she is rescued by Nobley. That evening, Jane becomes bored of the group's card games and leaves the house for a walk around the grounds. She runs into Martin; after flirting and witnessing the birth of a foal in the stables, they kiss.
The following afternoon, Jane convinces Martin to break the rules: they take a rowboat out on the canal and spend the afternoon together. The following day, the party is disrupted by the sudden arrival of another actor, the handsome and flashy Captain East. Everyone except Nobley is impressed by the Captain, who in turn seems taken with Jane. Martin witnesses the Captain making a pass at Jane from a distance. The prime offender among the actors is the usually welcome Jennifer Coolidge , who delivers another variation of a buxom middle-age ditz whose libido knows no bounds as a wealthy guest insistent on breaking decorum whenever it rears its head.
My audience, packed as it was with members of an Austen appreciation society, practically shrieked "squee" in unison when the actress best known as Stifler's mom from the " American Pie " franchise showed up. But try as she might—so much so that it is impossible not to chuckle occasionally—Coolidge is mostly reduced to shouting inappropriate Anglo-isms, such as crying out, "The British are coming," atop a horse or mangling the phrase "right-o," and making goo-goo eyes at the actors playing the swains.
Perking up matters considerably, however, is the film's star, Keri Russell , bright, sparkling and instantly relatable as ish singleton Jane Hayes, who would probably wrap her Austen-themed apartment in a Union Jack tea cozy if she could. With her love life a shambles because she is more attracted to her life-size cardboard replica of Firth's Darcy than any real male, Jane decides to live out her dream and invest all her savings in a trip to Austenland.
The use of Jane Seymour is emblematic of much that is wrong with "Austenland. Wattlesbrook, the proprietor of the resort who decides the storyline for each guest, and can easily amuse simply by hoisting a stuffed lamb while in period costume.
But the movie never quite explains why she runs such a place and what she gets out of it, especially as she becomes hell-bent on humiliating Russell's Jane who had the misfortune of buying a bargain package and suffers for it at every turn. And while Seymour's mistress of the manor forbids any modern gadgets such as cell phones on the premises, somehow glue guns are OK during a bonnet-crafting session.
Matters look up when Jane—given the fictitious surname of "Erstwhile" during her stay, which is about as subtle as the movie gets—happens upon her potential Darcy JJ Feild as Mr. Nobley, who benefits immeasurably from being allowed to play his role straight. Also a plus is scruffily handsome Bret McKenzie —the Kiwi funnyman of the folk duo Flight of the Conchords who won a Oscar for his song from " The Muppets "—as Martin, the estate's twinkly-eyed handyman who pitches forbidden woo with Jane.
Now unchained from the grind of daily journalism, she is ready to view the world of movies with fresh eyes. Keri Russell as Jane Hayes. JJ Feild as Mr. Henry Nobley. Bret McKenzie as Martin. Jennifer Coolidge as Miss Elizabeth Charming. Photos Top cast Edit. JJ Feild Mr. Henry Nobley as Mr. Henry Nobley. Bret McKenzie Martin as Martin. Rupert Vansittart Mr.
Wattlesbrook as Mr. Jane Seymour Mrs. Wattlesbrook as Mrs. Ayda Field Molly as Molly. Ruben Crow Chad as Chad. Demetri Goritsas Jimmy as Jimmy. Parker Sawyers Alexander as Alexander. Sarah Niles Delilah as Delilah. Tracy Higgins Prudence as Prudence. Goldy Greaves Constance as Constance. Bernadette Chapman Portence as Portence. Jerusha Hess. Jerusha Hess screenplay Shannon Hale screenplay based on the novel by.
More like this. Watch options. Storyline Edit. Austenland is a romantic comedy about something, single Jane Hayes, a seemingly normal young woman with a secret: her obsession with Mr.
But when she decides to spend her life savings on a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-crazed women, Jane's fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become more real than she ever could have imagined.
Rated PG for some suggestive content and innuendo. Did you know Edit. Trivia Most of Jennifer Coolidge Miss Elizabeth Charming's lines were made up on the spot; according to the producers, it was almost impossible to get her to memorize the script.
Goofs During the final ball scene, where Mr Nobley and Jane Erstwhile dance together, there is a shot of the string ensemble in the background where the extra "playing" the violin is just waving the bow above the strings with a clear and visible gap between the two.
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