Part 1: Don't Watch Persuasion; Watch EMMA.
A comparison of two Jane Austen adaptations, four years after we received the latter brilliant film by Autumn de Wilde
Prologue - February 20, 2024
On February 21, 2020, we received a gift: one of, if not the most, brilliant adaptations of a Jane Austen novel to date. Several weeks after the release of EMMA., the world shut down to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Around this time, I had been going to the theaters as much as I could. It was part of how I was taking care of myself in the early stages of acute grief. However, I didn’t manage to see EMMA. before theaters closed down, much to my disappointment.
Instead, I remember a night early on during the lockdown when my mom and I rented the new release on Amazon Prime. We figured $20 was a fair price, cheaper than two movie tickets! And we wanted to support The Arts at a time when it looked like everyone in the industry was about to take a big hit.
We loved EMMA. so much that we watched it twice. In 24 hours.
Two years later, I saw the trailer on Netflix for another Jane Austen adaptation: Persuasion. It seemed to be posing itself as another EMMA. — quippy, with Dakota Johnson breaking the fourth wall for witty side commentary, dialogue that appears to be dry and humorous, lively strings in the background, and highlights of an eccentric father’s oddities.
Watch the Persuasion trailer, and then watch the EMMA. trailer. It’s striking how much the people behind Persuasion wanted us to get the sense we got from EMMA. Except that while the Persuasion advert is filled with dialogue, the EMMA. trailer convinces me that it’s a film I want to see with virtually none.
Even as I research the two movies now, I see that EMMA. received a score of 86% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 71% on Metacritic. Persuasion scored 31% Rotten and 41% on Metacritic. There are reasons why.
In 2022, I wrote the draft below. However, my resolve in publishing faltered when several friends told me they really liked Persuasion and asked if I had seen it. I held off finishing my write-up. But I think we’re far enough removed now to soften the blow of my opinion (and others’) that EMMA. is worth watching while Persuasion is not. (Or, conversely, watch Persuasion to get a sense of what is a non-cohesive, confused film that doesn’t deliver.)
One disappointment I have in waiting so long to share my potentially unpopular opinion is that I really did hope to dissuade people from wasting their time two years ago, as Netflix pushed the EMMA. try-hard. Still, I do believe the comparison is helpful today, as I try to make sense of not only these two films but also of Jane Austen adaptations more broadly.
And I hope that, at the end of the day, you will watch EMMA. because it really is delightful. To make this comparison readable, I’ve split it into two separate pieces! I also link two really good reviews from critics. Stay tuned for part 2 tomorrow.
Part 1: July 2022
The night we tried to watch Persuasion
I don’t often open Netflix in my browser these days. Many of the shows and movies I’m watching are on Hulu. I recently did so, though, probably for Stranger Things. And I was met with an auto-play trailer for a new Netflix film, Persuasion. (Netflix knows me.) The film looked enticing, with sweeping vistas, moody colors, and Dakota Johnson breaking the fourth wall with quippy remarks.
I added Persuasion to my list and tucked it away in my mind to watch on a cozy evening. The perfect Saturday evening arrived and, after a busy day, my housemates and I settled in for a movie night. (I had convinced them that the new Jane Austen adaptation was worth a shot, even though I couldn’t vouch for it.)
Persuasion opened with a montage of awkward kissing scenes and voiceover. We squirmed a bit, but made it through. About three minutes in, we had already experienced far too many contemporary colloquialisms, along with Dakota Johnson spilling wine on herself, tipsy and sad. Five minutes in, and one of my friends starting saying, “This movie is terrible. This is so bad.”
We gave it a few more minutes, and at nine minutes we called it quits. No one wants to sit through a movie when you know one of your fellow viewers is hating it. And even though I wanted so badly to give it a chance, I had to agree with him. Persuasion completely failed to hook us, and it was getting worse and worse.
It was definitely a disappointment. I’ve enjoyed Dakota Johnson of late. Which is a surprise, since her big break was Fifty Shades of Grey (which I certainly did not watch). I thought she was earnest and winsome in The Peanut Butter Falcon, excellent in The Lost Daughter, and I’m hoping to see Cha Cha Real Smooth soon.1 I so wanted Persuasion to be good! I was rooting for it!
But it wasn’t the right film for the night. My friend and fellow writer, Maggie Hernandez, suffered through Persuasion so the rest of us don’t have to.2 Here’s what she had to say in a delightful analysis on Facebook:
I was expecting modern language and for it to feel like a modern rom-com, maybe a little like Bridget Jones. I was not expecting it to be boring. Half way through the movie I was wondering when the movie would ever end. The guy playing Wentworth (Cosmo Jarvis) was dull, uninteresting, frumpy looking, just nothing like Wentworth at all. I didn’t care if Anne Elliot got together with him or not. The pacing was weird and slow. There was no build up. By the time we got to the letter I just didn’t care anymore. Which is a real shame because the first 20 min were really enjoyable and promising.
I actually really enjoyed the breaking of the fourth wall. Dakota Johnson did a fabulous job as Anne Elliot. Mary Musgrove and Sir Walter Elliot were delightfully terrible. This was the kindest portrayal of Lady Russell I’ve ever seen. I liked seeing the friendship and love between Anne and Lady Russell.
But those delightful moments were few and far between. The rest of the movie felt like a slog, full of weird conversations between Anne and Wentworth about their feelings that never happened in the book and added nothing to the story. I feel like those conversations were meant to add to the suspense of “do they get together or not??” But instead that added to the general confusion of the film and took away from the emotional impact of Anne and Wentworth finally realizing they’re loved by one another.
Well, readers, I think that just about sums it up and should convince you not to waste your time.3 Instead, if you haven’t seen it yet, I would suggest you watch EMMA. (2020). In fact, even if you’ve already seen it, you should watch it again!
When I convinced my housemates on that July Saturday evening that our replacement film for Persuasion should be EMMA., it was at least my third time viewing, and was as enjoyable as the first.
Neither of my friends had seen the newest adaptation of Emma, and since I was the one who picked Persuasion, they were skeptical of my next choice.
“You’ve seen this before?” they interrogated. “And you liked it?”
I assured them it is very good and I’m happy to report that they both, one male and one female, enjoyed it very much. They laughed and cringed and sighed and cheered at all the moments the filmmaker intended. It was a success. I think they won’t question me the next time I suggest something for movie night.
Thank you for reading my overview of Persuasion! Stay tuned for part 2 tomorrow, in which I try to persuade you on the virtues of EMMA.!
Never actually saw this one. Let me know if you have and what you thought!
Spoiler: I did eventually finish Persuasion, to see if I was missing something, and after doing so, still agreed with my friend Maggie. It was baffling, a mess, and definitely not my cup of tea.
And yet, if it does not, I would encourage you to check out Constance Grady’s Vox review. It’s a scathing dress-down of the whole ordeal — quite worth five minutes, in my opinion!
I hate that Fifty Shades exists, but somehow, I still love Dakota Johnson and I think Cha Cha Real Smooth is one of the best movies of 2022