When I first heard director Zeffirelli was going to film Bronte’s classic novel, I immediately thought that he was an odd choice for the project. Zeffirelli has a tendency of making everything look beautiful and I did not think he could adapt a Gothic tale. I was also surprised about the casting of William Hurt as the mercurial Rochester. Now that I have finally seen the movie, I’m convinced that I had good reasons to be concerned. What I did not know is that despite the fact that Zeffirelli fails to capture the brooding texture of the novel (and Hurt is indeed a strange casting choice), I think this is a highly successful movie. It is just a different reading of a famous tale. If you are hung up on the idea that movies must be replicas of the book they are based on, then you will probably hate Zeffirelli’s interpretation. But on its own, I think the film works marvelous well.
The story’s mystery is somehow downplayed, while the romance is amplified, and I think this approach works great. As for the acting in the film, I think Hurt is simply superb. I have seen many actors play this part, but Hurt is the only one who does not come across as an overbearing ham. Hurt finds Rochester’s soul, and the film benefits greatly from his deeply felt performance. Charlotte Gainsbourg is also great as Jane. The lovely music score by Claudio Capponi and Alessio Vlad, and the excellent cinematography by David Watkin are memorable contributions to the film. I never thought I could say this about the film, but I think it is definitely my favorite film adaptation of Bronte’s classic tale (Robert Stevenson’s 1944 version is good too). Don’t listen to the whiners – this is a wonderful movie.
