Sense and Sensibility (1981)

What's different

I'm already losing track of the book after two adaptations. I had to look up several things in the text after watching the BBC's second Sense and Sensibility miniseries, and I was surprised at how many of the scenes that felt off to me were actually taken verbatim from Austen. Some things don't translate well from page to screen, and creative liberties are sometimes justified.

As for what was changed for this miniseries, some trends are beginning to appear. The timeline will probably be shortened in every adaptation, but there are a few key points in the story where condensing may be irresistible. In both the 1971 and 1981 adaptations, Colonel Brandon and Willoughby leave for London on the same day; in the book, their departures are over a week apart. In both adaptations, Edward stays at Barton Cottage for one night only; in the book, his visit lasts a week. In both adaptations, the Palmers and the Miss Steeles show up at Barton Park pretty much simultaneously, and the Dashwoods meet them all on the same day; in the book, the Palmers' and the Miss Steeles' visits to Barton Park do not overlap.

Another trend is deleting poor Margaret Dashwood, who may never make it to the screen. Lady Middleton fares a little better since she gets to keep two of her three children in this adaptation, and one of them even appears on screen briefly.

"See, I told you my kids were real."

Another trend is giving Lucy new hobbies. In the book, she spends an evening making a filigree basket for Annamaria Middleton. In the 1971 miniseries, she was knitting a scarf for the Middletons' only existent child, whose name I can't remember. In the 1981 series, she's "dressing a doll" for Annamaria. I'm taking bets on what handicraft she'll take up for the next adaptation.

Brandon's tragic backstory is heavily edited and now goes like this: Once upon a time, there was a woman he loved (who was definitely nothing like a sister to him) who was forced to marry another man (who was certainly not his brother), and her husband was unfaithful to her (not at all the other way around). The story ends there, but somehow Brandon got a ward out of this... Whatever, we can pretend that makes sense!

Speaking of pretending things make sense... Willoughby shows up to Cleveland near the end to see Marianne, but in this adaptation, he has no idea she's sick. He rides all the way from London, stopping only long enough to get hammered, and shows up at night in the middle of a downpour — for no reason! Why the big rush? How does he even know she's at Cleveland?? They were supposed to have already left to go to Barton, so even if he knew their plans when they left London, he had no reason to think they'd still be there. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Overall, this adaptation is a little looser than the 1971 miniseries but still quite accurate to the book. It has some entirely fabricated scenes and dialogue, but these mostly serve to make a point more strongly or develop a character more effectively. For example, added dialogue between Elinor and Edward makes it clear that they're into each other. Added dialogue between Lucy and Edward makes it clear that they are not into each other.
 

"Please stop talking to me."

What I liked

Not much.

This adaptation is decidedly not my fave, but it does have one major win: I like this Marianne. Her age is stated as 17 or not quite 17, just like in the book, and she behaves like a teenager.

Darn teens, always crying in the woods.

Her relationship with Willoughby is portrayed accurately, including their impertinence and over-familiarity.

"Hahaha old people suck! We're so young and in love!"

And her 180 degree personality shift is very toned down, which checks off one of my wish list items. A lot of her shift is based on wanting to impress Colonel Brandon, which is similar to how it was handled in the earlier miniseries. She does give her speech to Elinor about her illness being her own fault and regretting her previous behavior, but it comes out conversationally and feels more natural than in the book.

Other positives in this miniseries are Fanny and Robert. In the first ten minutes of watching, I literally made a note that says, "Fanny is a TURBO BITCH." Unfortunately, her part is small, and the overall level of bitchiness in this series is much too low for my taste. Fanny does have some of the best lines, though.

Robert makes it onto the like list simply because he has more screen time in this series. His ridiculous speech about how he loves a humble twelve-room cottage is included, and he's a very amusing idiot.

Being this fabulous is a full time job.

What I disliked

Let's start at the beginning, by which I mean the title screen:

Has anyone ever had less fun on a seesaw?

What the fuck is up with the seesaw? They're just sitting there, staring mournfully at each other. Why?!

The ridiculous seesaw is a pretty accurate omen of what's to come in the series. It's full of moments that I wish were funny but have had all the humor sucked out of them somehow. Most of the characters feel very accurate, but none of the humor comes through. Take the Palmers, for example: Mrs. Palmer is giggly, and Mr. Palmer is rude, but instead of being funny, it's excruciating. I feel Marianne and Elinor's pain in having to spend any amount of time with these people.

Plenty of other characters also come across as just wrong or off in some way. Elinor seems to have a stick up her ass for most of the series.

"Goddammit, she fell down the fucking hill. Bitch never listens."

Lucy is weaksauce in this adaptation. Her jabs at Elinor are too subtle for my taste, and it seems like she could actually love Edward right up until she marries Robert. She mostly just simpers.

Colonel Brandon, I hate to say it, is kind of a creep. This series stays faithful to all the characters' ages, and that doesn't come across so well these days. It doesn't help that Brandon's ward is the same age as Marianne, which makes you wonder if he wants to bone every teenage girl that reminds him of his ex. His total lack of interest in anyone close to his own age reminds me of Leonardo DiCaprio, which may be the only time those two people get compared.

The series also commits hard to a professor-student vibe between Brandon and Marianne at the end, making some basic instruction in the works of Shakespeare and a few loaned books the foundation of Marianne's budding feelings for him. Professor-student relationships are always great and not at all creepy, right?

My final complaint is that they TOTALLY CUT my favorite scene from the book. At no point in this series does Mrs. Jennings think Colonel Brandon just proposed to Elinor. Will I ever get to see that comedic masterpiece play out on my TV?

Adaptation wish list 

1. Is it funny? — Nope.
2. Is it bitchy? — Yes, but in the wrong places.
3. Is Brandon less pathetic? — Yes, but he's creepy instead.
4. Is Marianne more believable? — Yes!

Overall, this adaptation is not great. Marianne (played by Tracey Childs) is the one bright spot in an otherwise forgettable viewing experience.