35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not Quite Du Maurier . . .But, Good, February 15, 2003
This review is from: Jamaica Inn [VHS] (VHS Tape)
In this mini-series adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's novel "Jamaica Inn", Jane Seymour stars as the confused yet ethical Mary Yellan, a young woman who finds herself confronting some unknown evil on the Cornish moors.
I will not critique Du Maurier's story--it is a great Gothic masterpiece which employs tone, description, plot and characterization to near perfection---read the book to enjoy Du Maurier's talent and imagination at its best.
This adaptation follows the novel much more closely than Hitchcock's earlier film. However, some twists were added to further dramatize an already tumultuous story. I must wonder why this was necessary and can only think, sadly, that the original story was thought too tame in the light of our 20th/21st century viewpoints of violence. In this version, Mary's parents are victims to the sinister plot that wraps Jamaica Inn in secret, making Mary's involvement all the more desperate and poignant. If one has read the book before viewing the film, this addition seems overdone, detracting from the original and eliminating the self-righteously ethical factor so important to Mary's character. In order to emphasize the romance in the plot, Mary's relationship with the landlord's brother tallys up more screen time when compared percentage-wise with the novel's presentation of the same interplay---there are actually more scenes in the book where the characters are together, yet the book allows you to speculate as it plays the romance off the tale of suspense and the film does not. Patrick McGoohan plays Joss with a little too much gruffness--we never really see the vulnerability and helplessness which lie beneath the surface and appear after he has soaked himself in rum. There are never any scenes with both Jem and Joss together---the necessary comparison made between the brothers is not allowed and hence, we do not quite see Mary's dilemma in her attraction to Jem or what might have attracted her Aunt in the past. Aunt Patience, played by Billy Whitelaw, would have been perfect as the once beautiful woman worn down by the knowledge of her husband's misdeeds. However,through her stern cautionary conversations with Mary, she appears too logically complacent, more a fully functioning partner to Joss rather than the frightened remains of the silly woman whose head was turned by him in the first place. Jane Seymour's portrayal of Mary includes the bit of pep that DuMaurier states but never fully demonstrates, yet she tends to be too saucy at times, playing the active willing foil to Jem's criminal antics rather than the shocked observer from the pages of the novel.
The film is most definitely capitalizing on Du Maurier's so-called reputation for escapist romance; yet the book is not a romance at all, but rather Du Maurier's grim testament to the status of women as dependent creatures, shoved here and there by their stronger male counterparts. Mary doesn't necessarily find love nor does love conquer adversity as we are meant to conclude from this presentation. There is no moral lesson scorching Du Maurier's pages. Du Maurier's vision was much more dismal---Mary, finally beaten,accepts her fate and plays second fiddle to Jem's maleness; she learns to acquiesce to her dependency. Despite these fundemental differences, the film as a romantic interlude, is still good; it fully depicts Du Maurier's Cornwall seeped in its weather and crowned by monoliths. The film's music tends to be a little melodramatic--it is of the Camille Claudel genre--I think an insiduous pan pipe along the Braveheart vein would have been a better contrast with the rain, gloom and terror than 'Transfigured Night' which doles out more of the same.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jane Seymour at her best!, October 21, 2004
This is far better than Hitchcock's version of "Jamaica Inn". Jane Seymour never looked more beautiful than in this compelling, beautifully filmed mini-series. The cast is great, the scenery breathtaking (just like Seymour!), & the combination of suspense & romance make this a winner! I don't know why it's not on dvd yet, but until then I suggest you buy this on vhs. It's that good! Just make sure you get the full version & not the single-tape version which is bad quality (EP).
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jamaica Inn remake., December 24, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Jamaica Inn [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I have seen both versions of this famous book and I have to say the newer one is by far the better version. It was much more true to the book and much more vivid for the veiwer. I loved it. I wish it was available for puchase. Jane was wonderful and Trevor Eve was great too. A definate must see.
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