{Period Drama} Chick Flick List

A few of days ago, the latest offering from Masterpiece Classic was the topic of conversation in the "S" Family Chat. My soon to be sister-in-law mentioned that she needed something to watch while her husband was out of town and was asking if anyone knew much about Downton Abbey. It got me thinking. Dangerous, I know! What would I recommend if she were asking me for a good chick flick to watch? And I remembered that a few years ago I complied a list of movies for a friend. I'm going to post the updated list here for fun. Do you have a favorite? What did I miss?

Bronte sisters:

Jane Eyre 

• (2011) ~ Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender
• (2006) ~ Ruth Wilson,  Toby Stephens
• (1997) ~ Samantha Morton, Ciaran Hinds
• (1996) ~ Charlotte Gainsbourg, William Hurt 
• (1983) ~ Zelah Clark, Timothy Dalton

Wuthering Heights 

• (1998) ~ Orla Brady, Robert Cavanah {I don't think I've seen this one...}
• (1970) ~ Anna Calder-Marshall, Timothy Dalton 

Charles Dickens:

Little Dorritt (2008) ~ Claire Foy, Matthew MacFadyen

Bleak House (2005) ~ Anna Maxwell Martin, Charles Dance, Gillian Anderson

Nicholas Nickleby (2002) ~ Anne Hathaway, Romola Garai,  Charlie Hunnam

David Copperfield (2000) ~ Hugh Dancy, Anthony Andrews

Our Mutual Friend (1998) ~ Anna Friel, Keeley Hawes, Paul McGann, Steven Mackintosh 

Jane Austen:

Emma

• (2009) ~ Romola Garai, Jonny Lee Miller
• (1996) ~ Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeremy Northam
• (1996) ~ Kate Beckinsdale, Mark Strong

Pride and Prejudice

• (2005) ~ Keira Knightley, Matthew MacFadyen
• (1995) ~ Jennifer Ehle, Colin Firth

Sense and Sensibility

• (2008) ~ Hattie Morahan, Charity Wakefield, Dan Stevens
• (1995) ~ Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet

Mansfield Park

• (2007) ~ Billie Piper, Blake Ritson {It does not follow the book, only ok.} 
• (1999) ~ Frances O'Connor, Jonny Lee Miller {I've seen this movie and really liked it, but [and that is a big but!] this movie, unlike the book, has bad stuff in it. When I watched it for the first time, I had someone with me who skipped past the bad stuff so I didn't have to see it. When I check this out from the library, I skip it still. Just a heads up!}

Persuasion 

• (2007) ~ Sally Hawkins, Rupert Penry-Jones
• (1995) ~ Amanda Root,  Ciaran Hinds 

Northanger Abbey

• (2007) ~ Felicity Jones, JJ Feild
• (1986) ~ Katharine Schlesinger, Peter Firth {Super cheesy 80's music is a bit distracting.}

Elizabeth Gaskell:

Cranford and Return to Cranford (2007) ~ Judy Dench, Claudie Blakley, Francesca Annis, Simon Woods

North and South (2004) ~ Daniela Denby-Ashe, Richard Armitage

Wives and Daughters (1999) ~ Justine Waddell, Bill Paterson, Francesca Annis

Louisa May Alcott:

Little Women (1994) ~ Susan Sarandon, Winona Ryder

Oscar Wilde:

The Importance of Being Ernest (2002) ~ Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Frances O'Connor

An Ideal Husband (1999) ~ Jeremy Northam, Cate Blanchett, Julianne Moore, Rupert Everett

George Eliot:

Daniel Deronda (2002) ~ Hugh Dancy, Romola Garai, Hugh Bonneville

Middlemarch (1994) ~ Juilet Aubrey, Rufus Sewell

Mill on the Floss (1978) ~ Philip Locke, Judy Cornwell, Barbara Hicks

Thomas Hardy:

Under the Greenwood Tree (2005) ~ Keeley Hawes, James Murray

Mayor of Casterbridge (2003) ~ Ciaran Hinds, Juliet Aubrey, Jodhi May

Far From the Madding Crowd (1998) ~ Paloma Baeza, Nathaniel Parker

Tess of the D'urbervilles (1998) ~ Justine Waddell

Return of the Native (1994) ~ Catherine Zeta-Jones, Clive Owen

Others

Downton Abbey (2010, 2011) ~ Hugh Bonneville, Dan Stevens, Brendan Coyle, Michelle Dockery

Larkrise to Candleford (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011) ~ Brendan Coyle, Julia Sawalha, Claudie Blakley

The Young Victoria (2009) ~ Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend

Bright Star (2009) ~ Abbie Cornish, Ben Whishaw

Miss Austen Regrets (2008) ~ Olivia Williams, Greta Scacchi

Becoming Jane (2007) ~ Anne Hathaway, James McAvoy

Amazing Grace (2006) ~ Ioan Gruffudd, Michael Gambon, Romola Garai, Benedict Cumberbatch

Master and Commander (2003) ~ Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany

Victoria and Albert (2001) ~ Victoria Hamilton, Jonathan Firth 

Lorna Doone (2000) ~ Richard Coyle, Amelia Warner

The Winslow Boy (1998) ~ Rebecca Pidgeon, Jeremy Northam, Nigel Hawthorne

Horatio Hornblower (1998 - 2003) ~ Ioan Gruffudd

Mrs. Brown  (1997) ~ Judi Dench, Billy Connolly

Twelfth Night (1996) ~ Helena Bonham Carter, Imogen Stubbs, Toby Stephens

The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982) ~ Anthony Andrews, Jane Seymore, Ian McKellen

Jane Eyre {2011}

I absolutely love Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. It is one of my favorite books.  

It has been adapted for film several times, and it is being adapted again to be released March 11.  I am disappointed that it is rated PG-13.  While this book is admittedly dark at times, it does make a powerful moral statement.  I hope that has not been disregarded in this adaptation.

Finally

I have been waiting for what seemed like FOREVER since I heard Disney was making this movie! But...

I went to see Tangled during my Christmas break. Girl's night with Mom, Stacey, Madilyn, and Emma. Yeah!

I loved it so much that I have pre-ordered it. {I love Amazon!}

And I have to admit I like when the kiddos come over so we can all sit and watch the trailers over and over. {Garrett likes the horse... I do too!}

I went and I saw...

2x in 3 days.

New Chick Flicks

Yeah, fun chick flicks that are rated PG!

1) Bright Star. This is already out in theaters, but I have not seen it yet.

2) The Young Victoria. (December 18, 2009)

3) Emma. (The next Masterpiece Classics season.)

Thanks Google images for these fun pictures.