The Jane Austen Book Club

The best way to describe this movie is by saying that is an easygoing charming film about the lives of five women that while they read Jane Austen books their lives resemble the stories in the books. Of course the last one they read is Persuasion so you can guess the end of this drama/romance.

A good ensemble cast with the best role going to Emily Blunt with a character that allows her to perform extremely well. So you have here Prudie (Emily Blunt) a young wife with a husband that pays her not much attention, Jocelyn (Maria Bello) that wants to be alone, Bernadette (Kathy Baker) the oldest that has been married six times and is looking for the seventh, Sylvia (Amy Brenneman) that her husband leaves her for another woman, and Allegra (Maggie Grace) that is Sylvia’s daughter, lesbian and loves extreme sports.

I suppose this is a girly movie, but most critics are inviting men to go and see it and some male viewers that saw it are commenting they like it. Well, I can imagine men seeing this movie if they like nice and smart dramas with many references to Jane Austen books, but without being a literature class as you would not learn anything about Jane Austen books, except the names.

The movie ends with a gala library dinner and all the women have a partner, except one. Can you guess? Yes, the only one that doesn’t have a partner is Allegra. Hmm… do not know how many people will notice this, but I certainly did. There are some mild or totally PG lesbian interest scenes, but with the end I will definitively not give it the label.

Definitively is not a masterpiece and you have some critics comparing it to a made for TV movie, which yes it seems like a movie from Hallmark or Lifetime channel. But is entertaining if you want to see an all female ensemble cast and especially Emily Blunt performance.

Think that the book by Karen Joy Fowler is more interesting than the movie.