As I’ve already mentioned a few times in class, there have been more than twenty cinematography versions of Jane Eyre, including from the silent film era. I thought I’d do a little research so as to find out who they were, and what I observed was that the actresses who depicted Jane throughout time have been very different, physically. I only found 14 of the actresses with pictures, but I’d like to share them with all of you and hear your opinions. I’ll start with the oldest, which is from more than ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO, 1910 to be exact!
1. Mabel Ballin, 1910
A 23 year old Jane, one of the youngest
Janes…
2. Virginia Bruce, 1934
Platinum blonde Jane!
24 years old...
3. Joan Fontaine, 1943
Yes, the one from your books!
Saint Jane! 26 years old.
4. Daphne Slater, 1956
Only a profile photo,
unfortunately…
She was 28 years old.
5. Mia Goossen, 1958
Super styled Jane..
She was 33 yrs
here, the oldest Jane of them all!
6. Sally Ann Howes, 1961
Hmmm… interesting hairdo
for Jane. Looks like it’s loose,
which would have been
impossible for the times.
She was 31 yrs old here.
7. Anne Bell, 1963
Is this another blonde
Jane? She was 23 at
this time.
8. Susannah York, 1970
Red-Headed Jane; she was
31 years old when she took
on this role, which still
gives me hope that I can
be Jane one day too! ;)
9. Sorcha Cusack, 1973
Scared Jane? She was
24 yrs old here, but
doesn’t she look a bit
older?
10. Zelah Clarke, 1983
29 years old.
11. Charlotte Gainsbourgh, 1996
French Jane. 25 years old.
12. Samantha Morton, 1997
20 years old… wow she’s
the closest one so far in
age! Youngest Jane!
13. Ruth Wilson, 2006
My favorite Jane! 24 years old.
And finally….
14. Mia Wasikowska, 2011
New Jane, 21 years old.
So, what do you think? Which actress looks like your idea of Jane Eyre the most?
TRIVIA: Out of the 14 Janes shown, 4 of the actresses have names that begin with the letter 'S' and two are named Mia. Only one is named Jane, 'Joan' in French.
Only 2 of the actresses can be considered to be close to Jane's age in the book (Samantha Morton and Mia Wasikowska with 20 and 21 years of age respectively), the rest are between the ages of 23 and 33, considered a bit too old to portray Jane, a teenager.
Jane Eyre is generally considered to be 'plain', but most of the actresses depicting her are or were considered beautiful in their time.
Jane is generally considered to have plain brown hair, although the book doesn't really specify. However, most of the actresses have always been brown-haired, with the exception of Virginia Bruce (blonde) and Susannah York (red-head)... the rest of the actresses have either dyed their hair brown or worn wigs (as is the case of Wasikowska).
Hi Teacher! I do think the last four actresses are closer to the image I have of Jane Eyre. The one I liked the most was Charlotte Gainsbourgh, because of the expression on her face in the picture. Something like: "Should I love him? Should I believe him? Should I stay or should I go?"
ReplyDeleteHahaha! Excellent analysis of the photograph Pablo! She (Charlotte G.) is, actually, considered to be one of the best Janes by many people because of the way she looks and acts in the movie. The movie she was in though, was criticized a lot because they changed many things. I personally thought it was boring! :)
ReplyDeleteToo bad we can't watch 2-3 movies (the 1996 version with Charlotte G., the 2006 one with Ruth Wilson, and the 2011 with Mia) to compare, so you guys can really have a feel for the different interpretations! Hmmm... the only way to do that would be to do so on our own free time, like a Sunday, so I don't think most people would be interested. Oh well, one movie will have to be enough! :)
I agree with Pablo, because the novel presents us a "poor Jane" who nobody love, nobody take care....
ReplyDeleteCharlotte Gainsbourgh
ReplyDeleteHello - I feel I should point out that your first reference is incorrect. The actress in the 1910 version of "Jane Eyre" was Irma Taylor (20 yrs old) and Mabel Ballin was in the 1921 production when she was 34 years old.
ReplyDelete