When Anne was 19, her baronet father persuaded her to break off her engagement with Naval Captain Wentworth, because he was too low-class for her.  Now Anne is 27, her family has fallen on hard times, and when Wentworth comes back into her life, she fears that he still resents her past behavior.

CRITIQUE

Persuasion is a 2007 BBC take on the novel by Jane Austen, previously filmed for television in 1960, 1971 and 1995.  The result is predictably talky and a little dry, while budgetary restraints make it seem a bit small and static as well.  Yet it holds together fairly well what it is; though there isn’t a lot of plot here, the central relationship has enough intriguing moments to keep one involved until the final frame, and it is worth a rental for those in the mood.

The script just right into the plot here, with Anne’s family forced to rent out their mansion because of problems with debt; Anne has been living with her snobby father and sister, stuck in their entitled, overspending ways.  Anne is stunned to learn that the house will be rented by an Admiral, whose brother-in-law Captain Wentworth was once engaged to Anne, until her father and others persuaded her to break it off because he wasn’t from a noble family.  Wentworth has since become rich, and sure enough he shows up.

The problem is that Anne clearly still loves Wentworth, and he still loves her, so the trick of the plot is how to keep them apart until the end.  But this is pulled off pretty well; Anne fears that Wentworth wants nothing to do with her, while Wentworth makes it clear that he wants a woman who knows her own mind and won’t be persuaded otherwise.  A nice conflict also appears in the form of Anne’s handsome cousin; Anne family starts pressuring her to accept a match with him, while Wentworth also has no shortage of suitors as well, leading to further conflicts and misunderstandings that need to be sorted out along the way.

The result isn’t finessed quite as well as it could be; there are some key moments that are superficially handled.  But it is still easy to get caught up in the story, and though Rupert Penry-Jones is given frustratingly little to really do as Wentworth, actress Sally Hawkins pretty much carries the film in the role of Anne.  The result is an involving tale that works well enough to be worth sampling, particularly if one is unfamiliar with the tale.

THE VIDEO

This screener of Persuasion came without any visual specification details.  The picture quality is okay, without ever being anything special. 

THE AUDIO

Persuasion came without audio details as well.  Dialogue, music and sound effects come through clear.  There are English subtitles.

THE EXTRAS

There are no extras.

FINAL THOUGHT