The Sense and Sensibility Screenplay & Diaries: Bringing Jane Austen's Novel to Film (Newmarket Pictorial Moviebooks)

Sense and Sensibility the Screenplay and Diaries collects Emma Thompson‘s screenplay for the 1995 film, adapted from Jane Austen’s novel, as well as Thompson’s diaries for the production of the film.

I really love the film, so when I heard that the script was published, and that there was even additional material in the form of Thompson’s diaries for the production, I knew I had to track it down. And I’m absolutely glad I did. The script itself is an extremely nice read, but the real treat are the diaries – a warm look behind the scenes with a wonderful sense of humor.

Read more on my blog: https://kalafudra.com/2019/07/21/sense-and-sensibility-the-screenplay-and-diarie...

You'd never guess from her production diaries that Emma Thompson was, at the time of filming, an Oscar-winning actress. She has such a witty, self-deprecating tone. When she complains about being forced to go to Cannes to promote another film, you're jarred right out of the whole thing. Oh yeah, Emma Thompson is quite a big deal.

In many ways, Thompson's production diaries are a tell-all. Thompson doesn't hide the frustrations of not getting the day's required shots, the cultural dissonance between the Taiwanese film industry that director Ang Lee is used to and the British film industry, or their money troubles (horses are apparently appallingly expensive). But Thompson is also careful in a very subtle way. Though she never ceases to show more complain about the weather or hotels, she never has a bad word for the actors or their performances. And you'd never know from the diaries that Thompson had just separated from her husband and was deeply depressed (the diaries are definitely laced with depression and gloom, but you'd be forgiven for thinking the shoot was just unusually miserable for everyone and not a reflection of Thompson's own personal unhappiness). You'd also never guess that Thompson would end up married to the actor who plays Willoughby, Greg Wise. Although her glowing descriptions of him (at one point she calls him an "adonis") do hint at her affections.

At any rate, the diaries are a marvel. Thompson may have been dangerously depressed during the filming of Sense and Sensibility, but her writing is full of wit and dark humor. Also, she won an Oscar for writing this movie, so there's a light at the end of the tunnel for her. show less

The film is one of my favorites, so this book is a lot of fun for me. I enjoyed the extra material that wasn't filmed or included in the final cut, particularly a longer first scene at the bedside of Mr. Dashwood and more evidence of Marianne's "romantic sensibilities." A favorite line from the screenplay not included in the film:
Marianne: (discussing her ideal beau) "I require only what any young woman of taste should - a man who sings well, dances admirably, rides bravely, reads with passion and whose tastes agree in every point with my own."

Adorable!

I hope Emma Thompson writes a memoir, her diary entries written while filming are absolutely hilarious. It really reminded me of Bossypants by Tina Fey, Thompson is that funny. She of show more course has her own voice, one that is her own, highly readable, humorous and insightful. The details she used were delightful and unique, from the specifics of a filming schedule, notes from Ang Lee or the many locations used in Sense and Sensibility, a beautiful film and a favorite. show less

This is the shooting script by Emma Thompson for the Ang Lee film of Sense and Sensibility as well as her diaries recounting the making of the film. Five stars for "amazing" as Goodreads would have it? For me yes. Of course, it helps if you are 1) A Jane Austen fan check 2) A fan of this film adaptation of her novel. check 3) Interested in the process of writing and film-making. check.

I am decidedly a Jane Austen fan. I don't just own all her novels, some I have in multiple editions. I've read all her completed novels more than once, as well as reading her two unfinished ones. I've read everything by Austen except some scraps of juvenalia and her letters (which I plan to get to). I know her writing well-enough to be able to recognize show more the differences between Austen's text and Emma Thompson's screenplay, which I think is an amazing adaptation. I loathed the Pride and Prejudice film with Keira Knightley, and a lot of the reason is that for me the additions, changes and omissions from the original jarred. With Thompson's screenplay, her words felt seamless, as if she plugged into Austen's head. For someone who knows the Ang Lee adaptation of it well, it's also interesting seeing the differences between the shooting script and what made it onto the screen. It's a great film, a favorite--one that not only made me cry more than once when I saw it in the cinema, but made me cry again in exactly the same spots when I rewatched on DVD. It was in fact one of the first DVD purchases I ever made, and I loved what a DVD brought to my experience--not just the ability to watch whenever I wanted, but additions such as the commentaries by Thompson and Lee.

I think just the letter in the Appendices by Imogen Scrubbs (Lucy Steele) is worth the price of this book. And Thompson is great company in her diaries. I loved her description of film-making: The beginning of a film is like watching a huge newborn centipede trying to get up on its hundred legs and go for a walk. So yes, even given my familiarity with the material, I found reading this book well worth my while and keeping on my shelves. show less

This is really two books packaged as one.

Part one, the screenplay, is a delight. Thompson keeps a lot of Austen, but also inserts her own subtle physical humor and I wish we had seen it all filmed in its entirety. She makes it seem historically accurate without adding all the slang that trips you up in Heyer. I'm really wanting that screenplay of My Fair Lady she was supposedly working on to be be filmed.

Part two, the diaries, really solidify Thompson's comedic talent. The escalating frantic pace of the filming schedule is panic-inducing to people like me and increases my respect for people who can keep it all straight and deliver a fantastic performance on top of it. The side remarks regarding Greg Wise are also interesting(given show more that they are currently a couple).

If you're waiting for the "however," you have reached it. There is a decent amount of swearing and references to things that wouldn't have been printed in Austen's book (the Hugh G. scandal of the time and other similar topics). *Which is merely pointed out so that if you are a mother thinking that this will be as "clean" as Austen you may want to be aware(and also aware that, though Austen doesn't deal directly with topics like this, Wiloughby is still Wiloughby and Lydia is still Lydia). Since I prefer my fiction and non-fiction without said topics/words, I probably won't reread this one. But it won't hamper my enjoyment of the film.


*the first copy I got from my library had them all conveniently marked out in black pen. show less

Nominated for seven Academy Awards®, the 1995 movie Sense and Sensibility remains one of my most cherished interpretations of a Jane Austen novel. Everything about this film project seems to be touched with gold; from the award winning screenplay by actress Emma Thompson; to the incredible depth of British acting talent: Kate Winslet, Alan Rickman, Gemma Jones, Harriet Walter, Greg Wise, Hugh Grant and Emma Thompson; stunning film locations in Devonshire; and the fine brush-work of the Taiwanese director Any Lee. The movie touched many and introduced Jane Austen’s classic story of two divergent sisters searching for happiness and love to millions. I never tire of viewing it, basking in its beautiful cinematography, enjoying its show more thoughtful performances and marveling at its exquisitely crafted screenplay – both reverent to Austen’s intensions and engaging to modern audiences.

Reading The Sense and Sensibility Screenplay & Diaries written by Emma Thompson and introduced by the movie producer Lindsay Doran was such a pleasure. What a labor of love this movie was for both actress/writer Thompson and producer Doran who spent fifteen years to bring it to the screen. This highly acclaimed film won the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar and Golden Globe in 1996 for Thompson and the praise of hundreds of film critics and fans. Her acceptance speech at the Golden Globes was so witty and Austen-like that the film clip is a perennial favorite on Youtube. This book contains the complete screenplay, over fifty photos of the actors and scenes from the film and Thompson’s candid and often hilarious daily entries of what it was like to be involved in this incredible project. Here is a great excerpt:

Tuesday 11 April: No one can sleep for excitement. Costume designers John Bright and Jenny Beavan wish they had three more weeks but have done truly great work. The shapes and colours and inimitable. Lindsay’s already in Plymouth frantically trying to cut the script. It’s still too long. The art department object to us bathing Margaret in the parlour. Apparently they always used a kitchen or bedroom in the nineteenth century. Perhaps the Dashwoods are different, I suggest, unhelpfully.

“Thompson’s rare and personal perspective makes The Sense and Sensibility: The Screenplay and Diaries an irresistible book for students of film and Austen devotees, as well as for everyone who loved this extraordinary movie.” This is a must read for Jane Austen and period movie fans, and I highly recommend it.

Laurel Ann, Austenprose show less

I bought this long ago and have read it before, but I wanted to read again while watching the movie. There were a few changes or skipped dialog, but it was fun to do. I also enjoyed the diary Emma Thompson wrote. It's amazing how well the film turned out when she felt awful so much of the time.