Watch The Jane Austen Book Club For Free

Thanks for the memories!

Must See Movie...

Don't listen to the negative reviews

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

A tap root into the subterranean strata of popularity in (1) Jane Austen and (2) "Sex and the City", both apparently having peaked at about the same time as this film was released. I'll bet Jane Austen never wrote such a clumsy sentence as the one I just finished writing. Five women -- all in varying degrees of domestic distress -- discover that they have a common interest in Jane Austen's novels and form a club to discuss them one at a time. They even invite a guy who pretty much holds his own. There are rough parallels between Austen's plots and the romantic careers of the club's members. I'll have to assume the parallels are there because they've been so often alluded to. I've never read any of the books. I've seen most of the available film versions but the characters and narratives are similar enough that I get them mixed up, just as I do with Dickens.You'll probably enjoy it more if you're already an Austen fan because some of the comments that crop up during the club meetings sound as if they make sense, although it may be going too far to suggest that the separation of eggs in the preparation of flan is symbolic of the divorce of somebody's parents. None of the performances really stand out but Emily Blunt is always oddly appealing and Maria Bello is precisely emotional enough.

Early on I sensed this film was totally infatuated with how clever, adorable, witty and wise it was. A Notting Hill misfire from the wrong side of the pond-I found the same flaws in that but at least it was clever enough to draw an occasional smile. Oh wait Lynn Redgrave did draw one but it was like laughing at people falling down stairs and you suddenly had to check yourself because you realized you were witnessing a small tragedy.The political initiatives were evident throughout from the younger man older woman mantra(even married man Smits leaves his wife for a comparably aged woman)to a beat you upside the head lesson in the coolness of being a California lesbian. I will admit that Emily Blunt was the one living entity to command my attention. Dressed like "a flight attendant"?-you bet, but boy did she pull it off-I'd fly with her to Detroit if that's what it took.

Based on the novel of the same name by Karen Joy Fowler, this film is about six Californians – five women and one man – who start a book club to discuss Jane Austen's novels. The various members are facing challenges in their lives, and the club and the books themselves prove therapeutic in helping them to deal with their own problems.I loved this gem of a movie. It had some very funny moments, but mostly it was sweet, utterly charming and moving. The cast had terrific chemistry, and the lifelong friendship between dog-loving control freak Jocelyn (Maria Bello) and recently separated Sylvia (Amy Brenneman) was completely believable. The remaining members of the cast – Maggie Grace as Sylvia's daughter daredevil daughter Allegra, Kathy Baker as the matriarchal six- time divorcée Bernadette, Emily Blunt as the buttoned up and discontented French teacher Prudie, and Hugh Dancy as the absolutely adorable Grigg – all fitted perfectly into their roles, and the main cast is rounded out by Jimmy Smits, as Sylvia's philandering husband Daniel, Marc Blucas as Prudie's insensitive husband Dean (although I thought Dean was a more likable character than Prudie!), and Kevin Zegers as a student who Prudie falls for. Jimmy Smits was actually my main reason for wanting to see this film, as I think he is rather lovely, but I was charmed by the whole cast, and Hugh Dancy has a new fan!I would heartily recommend this film, whether or not you are a fan of Jane Austen (you do not need to have read the novels to watch this film) – it's a definite keeper for me, and one I shall be watching again.

The rented DVD had tags of this being an all-star rom com. Those two words normally, especially when in conjunction with each other sends me running to the hills.With some preconceived notion that, by its very title and the nature of the 'club' in question, I felt this would be lifted up and above the usual trite that passes off as a humorous romantic movie these days.So - it wasn't quite as I expected, but then it wasn't as bad as I expected it could be, once I (sort of) knew what to expect.... Follow? It makes perfect sense that a cross-section (mostly women) of Californian people with time to spare and quite a few loose ends in their lives to tie up would follow Austen as their chosen book club author. That it doesn't try too hard to either be high-brow literature or an out and out banal people-in-need-of-therapy (a few don't, actually) sob session makes it all gently perceptive. How a common theme, which could be anything ie ten-pin bowling, can become a focal point in which folk can socialise and hopefully, put their lives into perspective. That that subject is in fact a world-loved and world-known author whose characters are so everyday, they can be transferred, by type, a few centuries forward and interwoven into the lives of readers any time - and anywhere. Just for the record, I'm not a follower of Jane Austen's works but do know the salient titles and a few of the key characters and I'm sure if you do, you'd get more from the film than maybe I did. Admittedly, I didn't recognise many (if any) of the cast but found the entire viewing experience a refreshing, often witty one that thankfully desisted obvious stereotyping. In short, yes worth the modest rental fee and for those who like such stuff, but with an added intelligence, go for it.