Sense and sensibility - 1995

Oh do I love this film! I had not seen it in years, maybe ten years I dare say, and I was not sure of what I would have felt now, rewatching it, but now I know. I felt exactly the same love, sigh and tears as the first time. I loved the same things and, if possible, I was even more swept away by it now than I was back then. Oh the emotions, and the great acting! Emma Thompson is so so great here, one of her best performances. Kate Winslet and Hugh Grant were good, Hugh Laurie had  a smaller part but of significance, and Alan Rickman was fantastic, it moved my heart from the first time to see the emotions on his face! and his voice! and the love for her so evident!
It differs from the book but don't be mad at me if I say that yes, it does, but for the good. They changed what modern-me could never like about it and made it right!
It starts with the same old story that only males inherit, because the fortune goes from father to son, not from father to daughter, it's the law... How stupid and unfair.
So now we have Mr Dashwood dying and he has only one son, but also three daughters from his second wife, and he makes his son John promise that he'll look after them. John's wife Fanny talks him out of it, so the 3000 he wanted to give them go down tragically quick and he decides for much, much less! So the second Mrs Dashwood has now to leave her own house because it is now John's.
Now, Fanny's really really unpleasant, but I really don't think that John is good and she's bad. It's not that simple. What I think is that he's just like her, plus a bit of a coward, so he's greedy as she is, and happily jumps at the chance to keep everything.
Mrs Dashwood has three daughters: Elinor (according to the credits, but to me it sounded more like Helena), Marianne and little Margareth. When Fanny's brother Edward comes to visit, immediately he looks different from her: shy, kind, simple. Elinor and Edward are alike in many ways. You can see how she appreciates his kindness, his way with Margareth. Mrs Dashwood understands something is happening and talks about it to Fanny, who makes it clear that if ever Edward were to marry below him he would he disinherited. Hastily Fanny plots to send Edward to London, to divide them. The Dashwood women move to a nice cottage given to them by some relative, a cousin of some sort I think. Not sure if they have to pay for it, but in any case, even if they have to, it's the best offer they've managed to find, a generous one. Mrs Jennings and his son.. well, son-in-law, I seem to remember, John, are nice people and very loud ones. Marianne plays the piano and sings for them, and at that moment a friend of John's comes in: it's Colonel Brandon, who is immediately gripped by Marianne's voice and beauty. It's a beautiful scene, when he stares at her oblivious of anything else. Of course she's very young, and he's not so much, so she doesn't fancy him at all. It seemed impossible to me when I saw this the first time, but thinking about it it's kinda understandable, if we base it on  the actors age different which is 29 years...
One day she hurts her ankle running while it was raining, and young handsome Willoughby who lives nearby comes to her rescue and brings her home in his arms. Done! She's already madly in love with him, of course. He's young and cute and strong and he just saved her, more or less, so he's the one she thinks about constantly from now on. Poor Colonel Brandon sees that, but wants only her happiness, the adorable man. Elinor is a bit worried for her because Marianne makes no secret of her feelings, not with him not with anyone, but Marianne despises her sister's coldness and thinks that the most important thing in life and in love is the passion!
One day, after asking to talk to her in private, instead of proposing he says he must go away to London, looking rather guilty, and Marianne is desperate!
When Mrs Jennings propose to take Elinor , Marianne and Lucy Steele, relative of some kind, to London, their mother agrees, Marianne is ecstatic, thinking only of seeing Willoughby again, but Elinor is not happy because Lucy just told her that she has been secretly engaged to Edward for the last five years! I didn't like this Lucy one bit, and I'm not sure of her sincerity at all, although it could be possible.. anyway, as soon as they're in London Marianne writes to Willoughby to let him know she's in town. Not sure how they addressed their letters in those times, though. She gives it to a servant to deliver, but how can he know where to find him? Willoughby didn't give her his address before leaving her, now, did he?
Anyway, she writes and writes again, but no answers from him. Finally they go to a party: Elinor meets Fanny with her other brother Robert: not very cute and kinda slimy, if that's the right word. He seems interested in Lucy because he asks her to dance, and when her party is leaving he offers to take her home himself so she could stay longer... good, isn't it? :-)
Marianne sees Willoughby and yells his name, and walks to him with everybody's watching! She immediately notice something's wrong with him, but he's evasive to her questions and hurries to leave to another room. Following him, the two sisters see him in the company of a young lady who looks like money from hair to toes. Marianne is taken away and later on after writing him again she will receive a letter from him saying she must have misunderstood his friendship, so sorry, and he also sends back her letters and hairs. She's heartbroken, but still thinks nobody can understand her, specially not her cold sister. When Elinor bursts out about her broken heart is a touching moment. I know when a film is right the moment I share the same emotion, at the same moment, in the same way. As she said that I had tears in my eyes and I looked just like Marianne.
Actually, I'm not 100% sure that Elinor's outburst happens at this moment, after that letter from Willoughby. Maybe it was just before the party, since she could actually speak...
Still heartbroken, Marianne takes a long walk, not caring about the rain or the wind, to look at Willoughby's house. Elinor is very worried, and Colonel Brandon goes looking for her. He comes back with her in his arms, both soaked wet, just like Willoughby did once, only poor Brandon is panting like hell because he was so worried it looks like he ran all the way.
Elinor asks Mr Palmer to call a doctor because she looks very ill. The doctor too looks worried! One of my favs moments is now, with Colonel Brandon so very worried, when he says: "what can I do?" and of course Elinor tells him he's already done a lot, but he goes "give me an occupation or I shall run mad" which might seem like a normal thing, nothing so special, maybe, but said by Alan Rickman always has its effect on me :-)
Elinor is desperate and cries at Marianne's bed praying her to try, and to not leave her. When morning comes, Marianne wakes up and calls her sister. Elinor calls the doctor who takes her pulse... and smiles, no need for words, that smile says it all :-)
Colonel Brandon is back bringing her mother who rushes to her bed. A thing that touches me is that when they come Elinor runs to her to tell her that Marianne's going to make it and to hug her... and it seems to me like she needed it so much, always doing the big sister, the responsible one, and all that, but even her needs her mom's hug from time to time...
The colonel is going away , to leave the family alone, but Marianne calls him to say thank you! Good! Poor colonel, she never appreciated him enough!
Now that all's well, he often visits them at their cottage, and reads for her. That was important for her at the beginning of the movie when they met Edward and she kept criticizing the way he read because she thought it was not adeguate. Surely now she could not find nothing against Brandon's voice, could she? No, in fact she was sorry when he stopped to go away :-) This is the big  big change compared to the book, because in the book Marianne married him because she had to, and learned to love him with time. She was given to him for all he had done for them, but here in the film they spend time together, to give her time to know him better and grow fond of him before the marriage !
Better, isn't it?
Now, it would all be good if not for poor Elinor's heart in pieces because they heard news that Mr Ferrars married Lucy. One day, Marianne is playing the piano that the colonel sent her as a gift (he's very rich) when a horseman approaches: Edward. They receive him kindly, of course, and inquire about "Mrs Ferrars" because of politeness. To the general embarrassment he answers about his mother, so Mrs Dashwood tries to be more explicit asking him about "Mrs Edward Ferrars" and now it's him who looks a bit taken aback. "You haven't heard?" well no, we had not, no. So he explains that Lucy married Robert, his brother, it's not clearly known if really for love or because Edward had been disinherited (well, he had been because he wanted to keep his word and marry her, actually..) anyway she's "Mrs Robert Ferrars" now!
Elinor stands up : "so... you're not married?" - "No" - and she loses it. Emma Thompson was so amazing here, simply amazing. Elinor bursts out crying, simply can't stop, after so many days of repressing her feelings and her love and believing it to be impossible and over and now this!
Her family goes quickly out to leave them alone while he talks over her crying because it was clear that she wasn't likely to stop too soon. He tells her he thought she only thought of him as a friend, but now that he's free he's decided to let her know anyway that he loves her.. awww :-) So happy for Elinor :-)
At the end both sisters marry the man they love :-) Good :-)
Can't really explain why, but I never liked much the final scene when just-married Brandon throws money into the air for the people to take. I understand he's rich, and so happy, and it can be a good thing for the people, but there are other ways, this throwing-scene never agreed with me.