Sisterly Bonds

If one were to make a film adaptation of the work of Jane Austen, Regency England, and the bond of sisters, a male, Taiwanese director doesn't immediately stand out as the ideal person for the job. But, such is the brilliance of Academy Award winning director, Ang Lee. In his English language film debut, 1995's Sense and Sensibility, the director crafted a film that still ranks as the best film version of Jane Austen's work (Sorry, Joe Wright) and one of the best film's of the 90s. Not being English and steeped in the legend and reverence of Austen, he was able to look at the material through a fresh pair of eyes. And he has stated that his culture is all about repressed emotions, which people don't understand in the same way they did during Austen's time. It allowed him to get inside the psyche of these characters, who hid their true feelings, and capture the heartache of unrequited and unspoken love. And, yes, at it's heart Sense and Sensibility is very much a love story. But, the love that holds the film together is not romantic love, but the relationship between sisters– sensible Elinor (Emma Thompson) and wildly romantic Marianne (Kate Winslet)–that is the heart of the film.

I have highlighted three scenes that I feel best capture the relationship of the two and the growth it undergoes.

The Tease

Elinor: I do not attempt to deny that I think very highly of him. I greatly esteem him. I like him

Marianne: Esteem him? Like him? Use those insipid words again and I shall leave the room this instant.

Elinor: Very well. Forgive me. Believe my feelings to be stronger than I declared, but further than that you must not believe. 

After the death of their father, the Dashwood sisters are left virtually penniless as all his money and estate, by law, belong to his son of a previous marriage. Their half-brother and shrewish sister-in-law Fanny (Harriet Walter) have come to their soon-to-be-home, displacing the life the girls of the only life they have known. Elinor's repressed emotions are also put in an uproar as she begins to form an attachment to Fanny's visiting brother Edward (Hugh Grant). 

Up until this point, Marianne, who very much wears her heart on her sleeve, has been sulking about the home (all melancholy, downward looks and dreary piano songs). This is the first real, intimate interaction the sisters share with each other in the film. Marianne has gone to Elinor's room to inquire about her sister's affections. 

Marianne believes that real love is the kind that is hot to the touch and burns you with emotion. Elinor, careful with her emotions, is not outwardly showing her devotion the way Marianne prefers. Marianne gently teases her sister in this scene–berating Edward's lack of passion for reading poetry and for the limpid response Elinor gives when asked if she loves him. 

The scene quickly illustrates how each feels about the other. Despite all Marianne's teasing, she is devoted to her sister, even saying that she can't imagine living without her when she marries. Thompson and Winslet have a naturalness with each other and a playfulness that feeds off each other. Ang had them live together during the production so they could deepen their relationship off-screen, thus making the bond that much more believable onscreen. 

Heartbreak and Understanding after the jump