Monomania radar: Sense and Sensibility 2007

Picture source: Solitary Elegance

While we are "half agony, half hope", waiting for Rupert Penry-Jones's Captain Wentworth to pierce our own souls tomorrow evening, here's more Jane Austen candy, fresh from the IMDB and its boards:

It appears the BBC has finally started shooting its new adaptation of Sense and Sensibility. We all know that Austen veteran Andrew Davies is responsible for the screenplay, but other details have now surfaced:

Director - John Alexander

Cast:

"Bad seed" Willoughby - Dominic Cooper, recently seen in The History Boys.

Edward "Good guy but second son" Ferrars - Dan Stevens, aka Nick Guest from BBC's The Line of Beauty and Lord Holmwood from Dracula 2006.

Question for those who have seen a picture of this guy: is it fair that the shy Edward Ferrars should be so much more attractive than Willoughby? I guess this production does not want us falling under the spell of the "roguester" for one second?

Elinor "Sense" Dashwood - Hattie Morahan. I thought she was very impressive on stage when I saw her playing the title role in Iphigenia at Aulis (National Theatre, 2004).

Marianne "Sensibility" Dashwood - Charity Wakefield, aka Miss Temple from Jane Eyre 2006.

"Hidden gem" Colonel Brandon - IMDB rumours point at either David Morrissey or Dougray Scott as Brandon. This blog would love to hear from anyone who can elucidate the mystery.

EDIT: Rumours are increasingly pointing towards David Morrissey - but until his name appears in the official cast list nothing is certain...

Further reading: see this post I wrote a few weeks ago.

ITV Jane Austen Season: Northanger Abbey

So it looks like Mansfield Park was not great, although possibly an improvement from the 1999 movie (I only managed to catch the last 30 minutes so I cannot be too categorical) .

But last night things seemed vastly improved: Northanger Abbey was a delightful and funny adaptation, with a smart screenplay by Andrew Davies, real chemistry between the lead characters and a good supporting cast. Admittedly these productions lack the sophistication and polish of the recent BBC offerings, but if ITV continues at this progressive rate, then we shall be able to reach Austen Nirvana next Sunday with Persuasion.

Here's a tiny little extract from Northanger Abbey, where Catherine Morland (Felicity Jones) and Henry Tilney (JJ Feild) take a country walk and muse about books vs. real life. Henry proves to be just the coolest clergyman in Austendom by professing (in his velvety smooth voice) that there's "more life and truth and feeling in a good novel than in 100 dull sermons". Indeed, bravo Tilney!
(NB: apologies for the audio delay, this seems to happen with all my youtube videos, sigh!)

Tea Tree: Part One

Last month I promised my next food and drink post would be less caloric and here's one that's not only completely zero cal, but also brimming with anti-oxidants:

Photo: a lotus flower blossoming out of a "green tea bouquet".

You are constantly being bombarded with articles praising the health related benefits of tea, in particular green and white teas.

You’ve been to Mariage Freres in Paris, to Yauatcha and the recently opened TeaSmith in London and left scratching your head over their extensive tea menus (sense of duty prevented you from choosing something as plain as Assam), featuring teas which range from green to white, from blue (yes, blue...) to red and black. But what's with the colour coding?

It all boils down (excuse the pun) to the fermentation of tea leaves: green and white teas are the least fermented, blue and black the most. As for red, it is not even "tea" strictly speaking: it comes from an entirely different plant, the red bush.


Thirsty for more tea knowledge? Then here's part 1 of my "Bluffer’s Guide to Tea". Starting with a look at green teas:

Green tea facts:

The tea leaves are dried but not fermented so they have a more refreshing taste than regular, black teas.

Sourced mainly from Japan and China, with each of these countries employing different methods for drying the tea leaves.

Reputed for being packed with anti-oxidants and vitamins (such as B and C).

Chinese Green teas:

There are, frankly, a gazillion different types - too many to list - of Chinese green teas. China is, after all, the birthplace of tea (NB: the Latin name for the tea tree is "Thea Sinensis" where Sinensis = Chinese). It is also the world's biggest producer of the stuff.

Chinese green teas come from a variety of producers and from different regions (see a map here). One interesting fact is that the Chinese tend to add flowery flavours to their teas: Jasmine is the most omnipresent variety (and mandatory in Chinese restaurants!), but other flavours like rose, lotus and orange blossom are not uncommon.

Also well known is the Oolong (pictured left), a semi-fermented Chinese green tea which tastes a little bit like the "roasted" Japanese Hojicha (see below). Perhaps for this reason, Oolong is itself quite popular in Japan where it is usually drank cold, as ice tea.




Japanese Green Teas:

The main varieties of Japanese green teas are:

Sencha - basic, no-nonsense green tea (i.e. the one you normally get in Japanese restaurants)

Matcha (pictured right)- this is ultra concentrated, powdered green tea which is vigorously whisked into hot water until it froths up. Very bitter (may prove challenging for beginners) but very healthy because of its 100% tea content.

If you get used to Matcha you will soon find it marvelous with desserts, as it balances out the sweet in them. It can also be blended with cold milk for a refreshing summer drink or used as a cooking ingredient.
Picture source


Genmaicha (pictured left) - green tea with roasted rice and corn puffs, very flavorsome and refreshing. It tastes a bit like popcorn but in a good way, if you can believe me!

Gyokuro - very fine and rare green tea, with a subtle fruity flavour. Ultra high in antioxidants. It is reputed as one of the world's most refined (and therefore most expensive) teas.



Hojicha (pictured right) - made of roasted green tea leaves which, when brewed, become a lovely reddish colour. Hojicha is almost caffeine free. I would recommend it for coffee lovers trying to get into the green tea trend because of its strong roast scent.







Where to buy:

Each of the tea places mentioned in the second paragraph have a "tea counter" selling quality loose leaf teas.

Certain UK supermarkets sell a nice range of premium Chinese green teas from the Dragonfly brand.

Japanese teas like Sencha, Genmaicha and Hojicha are sold in most Japanese food stores around the globe. The premium stuff like Gyokuro can be sourced from Toraya or Mariage Freres.

Almost Strangers... on a Train

You've always wanted to act out your Jesse and Celine meet aboard train fantasy but the fear of rejection has kept you in check... or it may simply be that you're willing to park the Ipod and engage in intellectual debate or brush up on your French skills. But what if the person next to you is really dull or unwilling to converse?

If you are traveling within France, then a new passenger-matching service available in certain TGV routes might be the answer to your problems. As I read (with some amazement) in today's online Telegraph:

For a surcharge of £1, you can arrange to sit next to other passengers with similar interests. Fancy discussing the finer points of Freud, Wittgenstein or the socio-economic impact of the Kama Sutra on rural society? Or how about a game of cards, a serious chat about football or a Sudoku challenge? All possibilities save one are available to passengers who log on to www.idtgvandco.com and surf profiles of other passengers already booked on their train.

Will it catch on? Well, if it does the idea could soon spread over to planes, bars and - why not - supermarkets and bank queues... but no talking about the weather or you're out of the game!

The Things That Matter: Books

"Moins vous aurez de lecture a faire, mieux il faudra la choisir" (Rousseau, La Nouvelle Heloise)

Do you ever get the sinking feeling that with the passing of each day, month and year, so does your time to negotiate that ever increasing pile of books marked with a “read next”, "must really read" or something along these lines? Well, you are not alone:

Last month, this Brontëblog entry led me to a very interesting FT article on the topic of book abundance. The article contained some baffling facts:

• A book is published every 30 seconds

• Approximately 10,000 new novels are published every year

• The number of books in the world is growing at 5 times the rate of the human population

• Even if you read full-time (NB: well, there's a challenge...) you'd need 163 lifetimes to get through all the books currently offered on Amazon

• If you were born in England in the 17th century, when there were about 2,000 published books available, you could have read them all and felt extremely well-read. These days, as Mexican critic Gabriel Zaid says in his thought-provoking So Many Books: “Books are published at such a rate that they make us exponentially more ignorant.” (NB: I might as well add that many other modern life distractions - blogging included! - and generally longer working hours also contribute to this result)
  

The article follows on discussing the merits of certain "books about books" - that is, books which propose to help us sift through our next quality read. As I am for anything that will alleviate my neurosis of "never again being able to find a book as enjoyable as my last outstanding read", I picked what seemed their most practical and comprehensive recommendation: Bloomsbury's Good Reading Guide, which I have started to use. Heaven knows what evils it may do to my "must read" pile!

And speaking of my last rewarding read, I was truly delighted with "The Things That Matter", which I also found due to my Brontëblog addiction (see their interesting review here).

The Things That Matter is another book about books which could well have featured in the FT article: Columbia University professor Edward Mendelson analyses key stages of life (birth, childhood, growth, marriage, love, parenthood and the future) through a series of classic British novels written by women authors (Middlemarch, Frankenstein, Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre to name a few). He does so in a clear, accessible and compelling manner (his style vaguely reminded me of Alain de Botton's in "The Art of Travel").

Mendelson puts each novel into context and then explores similarities or differences amongst them. For instance, he compares the notions of "control", "unity" and "equality" discussed in, respectively: Frankenstein, Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre. And he goes further by bringing these superlative classics into parallel with one's personal experiences. This not only helped me find a deeper connection with each novel, but also extract from them valuable lessons and advice.

I must confess, however, that my connection timed out in the last 2 chapters ("To the Lighthouse" and "Between the Acts" both by Virginia Woolf). I am not sure whether I was less interested in the chapters' themes or in the books themselves, neither of which I had read.

Then again, in The Things That Matter, acquaintance with the reference novels did not seem a pre-requisite to enjoyment: I was absorbed in the analysis of Frankenstein despite not having read Mary Shelley's novel. And why haven't I? You guessed it: it is still in that endless book pile...

Becoming Jane: in defense of the underdog

C'mon Jane, pick the underdog instead! (Picture source: www.telegraph.co.uk)

Maybe there’s more of the benevolent Jane Bennet in me than I would like to admit (for I, like many, have always looked up to her more prominent sister) but last night, while watching the movie Becoming Jane, I could not help caring more for the feelings of dejected suitor Mr. Wisley (Laurence Fox) than for the unfolding Austen/Lefroy drama.

This is in no small part due to Laurence Fox’s subtle performance: combining the social ineptitude of Mr. Darcy with hints of Colonel Brandon’s romantic melancholy and constancy, Fox, in his few onscreen minutes, convinced me there was more to his character (an entirely fictional creation, I am led to understand) than the dullness Austen observes. His Wisley comes across as a shy but affectionate man trying to come out of his shell (and as a character screaming to be more developed on paper!). What a shame that the screen Jane Austen fails to pay due regard to him until it’s too late. First Impressions indeed.

As Fox's Wisley seems to borrow so much from underrated hero Brandon, it is only fitting his performance should slip by almost unnoticed. At least the Telegraph condescended to mention him as “endearingly forlorn”, but another reviewer completely missed the mark by comparing Wisley to Pride and Prejudice’s Mr. Collins - if anything, the movie implies Collins would have been inspired by a 3rd suitor (that temptress Austen!), John Warren.

And the rest of the movie? I found it a charming and well acted production, but not a dazzler. For this I blame the screenplay: Anne Hathaway and James McAvoy seem up to the task, their acting is convincing, the supporting cast is robust, all the elements of a great story are there, and yet.

I agree with critic Cosmo Landesman’s assessment: “you do not feel sadness or anger that Jane and Lefroy are denied a chance of happiness”. I certainly did not. Rather, I came out of the theatre fancying Jane Austen would have modeled her legendary Darcys and Brandons out of an acquaintance with someone like Mr. Wisley, leaving dashing Tom Lefroy (or his onscreen version at least) to inspire certain traits in the Wickhams and Willoughbys of her universe.

Laurence Fox period piece trivia:

Not the first time he acts in a movie also starring Maggie Smith (see Gosford Park)
Currently dating Billie Piper (who is soon appearing as Fanny Price in ITV's Mansfield Park)- an Austen household indeed!
Cousin to actress Emilia Fox (Georgiana Darcy in the 1995 P&P)

A few movie quotes on jobs, careers & labouring

Picture source: webmuseum

Lloyd Dobler: I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that.

Hansel: I wasn't like every other kid, you know, who dreams about being an astronaut, I was always more interested in what bark was made out of on a tree. Richard Gere's a real hero of mine. Sting. Sting would be another person who's a hero. The music he's created over the years, I don't really listen to it, but the fact that he's making it, I respect that. I care desperately about what I do. Do I know what product I'm selling? No. Do I know what I'm doing today? No. But I'm here, and I'm gonna give it my best shot.

Mr. Newberry: What have you been doing with your life?
Marty: Uh... professional killer.
Mr. Newberry: Oh! Good for you, it's a... growth industry.

and also:

Debi: You're a psychopath.
Marty: No, no. Psychopaths kill for no reason. I kill for *money*. It's a *job*. That didn't come out right.

Nick Naylor: [out loud] "I just need to pay the mortgage."
Nick Naylor: [to self] The Yuppie Nuremberg defense.




Will: I find the key is to think of a day as units of time, each unit consisting of no more than thirty minutes. Full hours can be a little bit intimidating and most activities take about half an hour. Taking a bath: one unit, watching countdown: one unit, web-based research: two units, exercising: three units, having my hair carefully disheveled: four units. It's amazing how the day fills up, and I often wonder, to be absolutely honest, if I'd ever have time for a job; how do people cram them in?

Rabbi Jacob "Jake" Schram: Really? Anna Reilly. What is she doing now?

Father Brian Kilkenney Finn: She - She's, like, analyzing synergies, or synergising analogies, or, or some such thing. I couldn't follow it. She's, like, this very high-powered business - You know.

Rabbi Jacob "Jake" Schram: Woman?

Father Brian Kilkenney Finn: Woman, yes. Thank you.

Buddy: What I am concerned with is detail. I asked you go get me a packet of Sweet-N-Low. You bring me back Equal. That isn't what I asked for. That isn't what I wanted. That isn't what I needed and that shit isn't going to work around here.

Guy: I, I just thought...

Buddy: You thought. Do me a fucking favor. Shut up, listen, and learn. Look, I know that this is your first day and you don't really know how things work around here, so I will tell you. You have no brain. No judgement calls are necessary. What you think means nothing. What you feel means nothing. You are here for me. You are here to protect my interests and to serve my needs. So, while it may look like a little thing to you, when I ask for a packet of Sweet-N-Low, that's what I want. And it's your responsibility to see that I get what I want.




Warner Huntington III: You got into Harvard Law?
Elle: What? Like, it's hard?




Blue Collar Man: Excuse me, I don't mean to interrupt, but what are you talking about?

Randal Graves: The ending of "Return of the Jedi".

Dante Hicks: My friend here is trying to convince me that any independent contractors working on the uncompleted Death Star were innocent victims when it was destroyed by the Rebels.

Movies: Say Anything - Zoolander - Grosse Pointe Blank - Thank You for Smoking - About a Boy - Keeping the Faith - Swimming with Sharks - Legally Blonde - Clerks