Key Takeaways
- Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esme Creed-Miles star as sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood.
- Director Georgia Oakley emphasizes the sisters' symbiotic relationship and mutual learning.
- The film explores the Dashwood sisters' contrasting views on love and their evolving bond.
In a fresh adaptation of Jane Austen's classic novel, 'Sense and Sensibility', Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esme Creed-Miles bring to life the sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, respectively. The film, directed by Georgia Oakley, aims to celebrate sisterhood and self-discovery over the traditional 'sense' and 'sensibility' dichotomy.
Oakley, who also wrote the screenplay, highlighted the dynamic between the sisters, stating, 'Whereas in our version it’s so much more symbiotic and it’s about the two sisters learning from each other.'
The cast, including 15-year-old Bodhi Rae Breathnach as the younger sister Margaret, found a sense of camaraderie on set. Breathnach, who described the experience as both surreal and welcoming, said, 'I’m really grateful that, out of all the people I could have had to be my two sisters, that I had those two, because it really was like I had siblings.'
Herbert Nordrum, who plays Colonel Brandon, one of the sisters' suitors, echoed the positive atmosphere, describing his first experience on a British period drama as 'surreal and welcoming'.
Fiona Shaw, who previously starred in a 1995 adaptation of 'Persuasion' and will appear in the upcoming 'Pride and Prejudice' Netflix series, sees Austen's work as relevant today. Shaw commented, 'Austen just gets us, you know? She’s both forgiving and unforgiving, and she’s also celebrating life.'
The film follows the Dashwood sisters as they navigate their own romantic interests and the societal expectations placed upon them. Their contrasting views on love repeatedly put their relationship to the test, leading to a deeper understanding of each other.
The adaptation, which marks more than three decades since Emma Thompson's Oscar-winning take on the Austen classic, is set to begin its global cinematic rollout on September 23.
Oakley's approach to the adaptation is to focus on the sisters' journey of mutual learning and growth, rather than strictly adhering to the original characters' labels of 'sense' and 'sensibility'.
In the book … Elinor’s character is a sense character, Marianne is a sensibility, and Marianne kind of gets judged by the society and she has to learn from Elinor.
Georgia Oakley, Director
Esme is just such a sort of singular person, which is kind of how I read Marianne when I first read the book.
Georgia Oakley, Director
I’m really grateful that, out of all the people I could have had to be my two sisters, that I had those two, because it really was like I had siblings.
Bodhi Rae Breathnach, Actor
