Emma Thompson scores a double bull's-eye with this marvellous adaptation of Jane Austen's novel . Not only does Thompson turn in a strong (and gently humorous) performance as Elinor Dashwood--the one with "sense"--she also wrote the witty, wise screenplay. Austen's tale of 19th-century manners and morals provides a large cast with a feast of possibilities, notably Kate Winslet, in her pre-Titanic flowering, as Thompson's deeply romantic sister, Marianne (the one with "sensibility"). Winslet attracts the wooing of shy Alan Rickman (a nice change of pace from his bad-guy roles) and dashing Greg Wise, while Thompson must endure an incredibly roundabout courtship with Hugh Grant, here in fine and funny form. All of this is doled out with the usual eye-filling English countryside and handsome costumes, yet the film always seems to be about the careful interior lives of its characters. The director, an inspired choice, is Taiwan-born Ang Lee, who brings the same exquisite taste and discreet touch he displayed in his previous Asian films (such as Eat Drink Man Woman). Thompson's script won an Oscar. --Robert Horton, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Austenmania is well-served here, but are these productions missing something? Sense and Sensibility, directed by Ang Lee with a screenplay written by Emma Thompson, made up one part of the holy trinity of Austen productions which aired in 1995. That crowning year for Austenmania began with the BBC production of Persuasion in April 1995 (starring Amanda Root and Ciáran Hinds), followed by the impeccable BBC version of Pride and Prejudice (starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle) in September and October, and was capped off in mid-December by this film version of Sense and... more info
Sensational I must admit I was put off watching this for many years because I have never been a fan of Emma Thompson, Kate Winslett or Hugh Grant and the fact that all three were in it was a definite turn off. I finally watched it one rainy windy afternoon when there was nothing worth watching on tv and was captivated. Fine acting, fine script, beautiful costumes, wonderful settings - well worth watching and I'm sorry I didn't do so sooner. One of the few examples of a film living up to the book.
Faultless. The magic of the movies allows a story of no obvious relevence, to touch your soul.
The triumph of sense and sensibility being the delicate and acutely observed range of emotion in a period setting.
The cast illustrating the gift of an actor who can lift a character from the page and render them in a truely memorable film.
I love this film, you've got to watch it.
Looks on tempests but never shaken...... This is a truly delightful adaptation. Fron the beginning it captures the atmosphere and spirit of the era with a good script, excellent costmes and beautiful settings. Quite a lot of the dialogue has been plucked directly from the pages of the novel, and most of that which hasn't has been written so closely to Austen's style that it sounds like it should be Austen. The cast are all excellent (with one exception, which I will come to). Kate Winslet is perfect as the beautiful, emotional Marianne, Alan... more info
![Sense And Sensibility [1996]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/510555G52WL._SL160_.jpg)
