In a Downton State of Mind

Downton Abbey is about to hit American televisions again this winter and I can't wait!  Not only because my British relatives and friends have already seen most of this season and I have been trying to avoid spoilers like the plague, but also because I LOVE period dramas.  I find other time periods so fascinating for so many different reasons.  What we were women and men like then?  What did they wear?  Culture?  But I always seem to gravitate most towards Britain's history.  Maybe because I am self proclaimed anglophile and maybe because they have so much history how could you not be fascinated by it? So here are some of my favorite and must-see British Period Dramas:

Bright Star

The real life romance of Poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne.  It's 1818 and these two shouldn't really like each other.  John is a quiet, smart, sometimes aloof (though I think more shy) poet focused on his work.  He is an artsy type that wouldn't know a petticoat from a bonnet.  Fanny Brawne on the other hand is beautiful, charming, fashionable, but has more depth to her than you would expect.  Maybe this is where don't judge a book by it's cover would come into play for both of them.  John teaches Fanny poetry and a budding romance develops quick and deep, but alas short-lived.  This was not a story I was familiar and what an amazing job by Jane Campion, who you may know from the Piano and the most recent Golden Globe nominated Top of the Lake.

Becoming Jane

What girl doesn't love Jane Austen?  In my opinion she invented the foundation for every romantic comedy I have ever seen.  But who knew she had a romance of her own?  I love this movie, despite Anne Hathaway. Oh Anne has her very own blog dedicated just to her Anne Hathaway Blog, but for me this movie is all about James McAvoy and his character Thomas Lefroy.  It is unproven that this romance even existed but to think that Pride and Prejudice might have come from her real life and to see this on the screen was amazing.  My breath catches in my throat every time I see this scene and moment 1:19.  The look he gives her just makes me melt.  The chemistry of the two actors is authentic and palpable and I watch this movie whenever I need a romance injection.

 North and South

I'm taking a little bit of liberty here as this isn't a film but the fact that you get such build from this story makes it my absolute favorite BBC miniseries ever!  It is based on Elizabeth Gaskell's 1855 novel about the North of England when industrialization was taking place.  This is probably the most boring description about the most fantastic romance between Margaret Hale, a demur daughter of London bred scholar, and Robert Thornton, a tough hard-working mill owner from the North.  Margaret and her family must move to a fictional Northern town called Milton so different from their Southern estate that it takes the whole family by surprise how different the North and South really are.  Robert falls in love immediately but gets shunned by Margaret before she truly realizes what being a good man means.  I want to give more away but I won't because the story deserves better and makes me wish I could watch it for the first time all over again.  Richard Armitage is an outstanding romantic lead and makes me wonder why he doesn't play roles like this more often!

Persuasion

Photo Courtesy of imdb.com

Sigh...my favorite Austen novel.  How could I write a blog about period dramas and not include Jane? There is just something about a lost love only to be found again based on the content of one's character that makes me love this book and film.  Something about second chances, mistakes of youth, and rediscovering love.  There have been many adaptations but my favorite is the 2007 version starring the wonderfully British Sally Hawkins and Rupert Penny-Jones.  Sally Hawkins plays Anne Elliot so well, you want to root for Anne, and feel her pain when she sees Captain Wentworth after so many years.  Anne doesn't say a lot but you can feel her silent torture and regret from a look or a breath.  Jane Austen takes these characters on an emotional journey that I am more than willing to follow.  There was a time when matches were made based on family history, social standing, and money.  But what happens when the one person you love is the one person you think you can't have? Read it, watch it, read and watch it again, I persuade to do so.

If you haven't seen Downton yet (have you been living under a rock?) catch up before the new season starts.  Immerse yourself in a time that's not your own and enjoy these British Period stories from a video store.

The British do Holidays the Best

Sorry America, but the British know how to do Christmas and they do it good.  It's about the 3 F's family,  "footy" (that's soccer for you Yanks) and food.  Do you know what Christmas Crackers are? Well, they are not food and they are pretty amazing.  They are these cardboard tubes filled with a little gun-powder that pop when you pull them apart.  Inside are many treasures, value differs depending on the ones you buy, a joke, and a magical crown that you wear on top of your head during dinner.  I look pretty good in a hat, if I say so myself, so I love rockin' my Christmas crown!

Photo courtesy of teaandsympathynewyork.com

And of course when I think of the Holidays I think of spending my time off curled up on my couch with my doggies and kitty watching some great movies.  Here are my favorite British Holiday films:

Love Actually

Who doesn't love this movie?  Well written, cast, and edited.  Some noteworthy performances from Keira Knightley, Andrew Lincoln (pre-Walking Dead fame), Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Liam Neeson, Hugh Grant, and many more stars.  It makes you laugh, cry, and realize everyone needs a little love on Christmas. And knowing movies, I think you can guess what I've chosen as one of my favorite scenes.  That's right,the musical cover, and one of the best versions of this Mariah Carey hit


Bridget Jones's Diary

A re-imagining of Jane Austen, a British romantic comedy staring Colin Firth as Mark Darcy, holiday time in England, this could be known as my perfect movie.  Initially there was some concern over Renee Zellweger being cast as Bridget (or maybe that was just me!), but I think she does a great job. You have to want to root for Bridget even in her worst moments and I never stop liking Renee in the film.  I think any woman can relate to Bridget.  She says the wrong thing at the wrong time, does the wrong thing at the wrong time, but has a great heart, and all she really wants is a good man to love her even if she drinks, eats, and smokes a little too much! This is definitely a swoon-worthy scene where Colin Firth's character Mark Darcy tells Bridget how he likes her...just the way she is!  Oh, if there were more Mr. Darcy's...

The Holiday

Heartbroken at Christmas, house-swapping vacations, Jude Law & Kate Winslet in the same movie, yes please!  This movie takes place in LA and England but the English actors and the scenes in England are the best part for me.  Kate Winslet's cottage in this movie is what I think of, in my head, when I picture "ideal English cottage!"  Jude Law steals the show as the hunky widower who falls in love with Cameron Diaz.  I don't want to ruin the movie if you haven't seen it, but there is a reason why Cameron Diaz's character is a little stand-offish about love.  However in my favorite scene you find that she may have more in common with her wooing widower's kids and fit in this family better than she could have ever imagined.

So grab a blanket, sip a Cuppa', and enjoy these very British and very awesome movies in this Holiday story from a video store.