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This sendup of British costume dramas visiting a Regency-era theme park, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, is a pleasant romp that works, writes Marlow Stern.

With the runaway success of the British TV drama Downton Abbey, audiences have developed a ravenous appetite for stately period costume dramas.

Jerusha Hess’s Austenland,making its premiere at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, isn’t that kind of movie—rather, it’s a randy send-up of period fare and its overly devoted acolytes.

Jane (The Americans’ Keri Russell) is a 31-year-old woman stuck in a thankless job who just can’t seem to find the right guy. The reason why, however, is because she is dangerously obsessed with all things Jane Austen—from her pink, Regency-era bedroom right down to a creepy, life-sized, cardboard stand-up of Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy situated by her apartment door.

In order to satisfy her Jane Austin itch—and potentially find her own Mr. Darcy—Jane spends her life savings on an all-expenses-paid journey to Austenland, an adult theme park where, for a very hefty sum, female Austen fanatics live out their wildest fantasies in a 19th century British manor filled with dashing, chivalrous, dapper young men. Joining Jane on her quest is Elizabeth (Jennifer Coolidge), a busty, airheaded woman who she meets at Heathrow that’s in it because, well, she wants to get laid in a corset. The entire Austenland operation, meanwhile, is lorded over by the rigid Mrs. Wattlesbrook (Jane Seymour), who treats Jane like a second-class citizen since she only shelled out for “the bronze package.”

Despite an immediate attraction to Mr. Henry Nobley (JJ Feild), a mysteriously guarded fellow in the Darcy mold, Jane soon falls for Martin (Flight of the Conchords’ Bret McKenzie), an endearing goofball who, when he’s not belting out female power ballads in his shack, serves as Austenland’s stable boy and all-around Boy Friday.

Jerusha Hess, longtime screenwriter for her brother, Jared Hess, directs Austenland. The two have collaborated on the screenplays for all of Jared’s films, from Napoleon Dynamite on. Unlike Jared’s very deadpan oeuvre, this is a broad, commercial comedy bursting at the seams with fish-out-of-water jokes—mostly courtesy of the hilarious Coolidge. With her sizable bosoms about to explode out of her corset, Coolidge’s crude, rude, and lascivious behavior would seem outré in 2013, let alone the Regency era and, whether she’s sewing her glove into her patchwork or sexually harassing her prey — who just so happens to be the gayest gentleman in the house — Coolidge steals every scene she’s in.

But the film is still anchored beautifully by Russell who, as she exhibited in Waitress, and for years on Felicity, is an actor that inspires such a tremendous degree of goodwill, you can’t help but root for her. Yes, Hess’ film has its faults. Plenty of the jokes don’t land and the middle of the film, as Jane is torn between Martin and Nobley, drags a bit. But I reckon there will be plenty of women, and a few men, too, who will have a gay ol’ time in Austenland.

Source: http://www.thedailybeast.com/

Men have fantasy-baseball getaways and rock-star camp. For women? There’s a Jane Austen vacation.

At least so it goes in the fictional Austenland, Jerusha Hess’ romantic comedy of the same name about a place where fans of the author can take a holiday in an English manor. There they live out a “Fantasy Island”-style getaway filled with bodices, high tea and men as fine-looking as Mr. Darcy.

Based on Shannon Hale’s novel, the film’s main character is Jane Hayes, a down-in-the-dumps thirtysomething (Keri Russell) who memorized the first three chapters of “Pride and Prejudice” at age 13 and isn’t always sure where the playacting stops and true romance begins.

“I want something real,” Hayes says at one point. She seems to find it when she strikes up a connection with Martin (Bret MacKenzie), a man who works at Austenland but is not part of the re-enactments.

Much of the action centers on the camp and its list of colorful characters, both tourists and the actor employees who populate the resort. Jennifer Coolidge co-stars as the brassy Miss Elizabeth Charming, another Austenland visitor who has never read any Austen but loves the get-ups. And Jane Seymour plays the opportunistic woman who runs the resort, in a movie that both plays off and with the trappings of Austen-mania.

Hess is a co-writer of Sundance phenomeon “Napoleon Dynamite,” which husband Jared co-wrote and directed, and that film’s playfulness is much on display here. (Among the campy touches are musical montages featuring swoony throwback pop ditties like Belinda Carlisle’s “Heaven is a Place on Earth” and Roxette’s “Must Have Been Love,” which add to the film’s romantic whimsy.)

“My husband, Jared, doesn’t make romcoms so he couldn’t help me with the kisses,” Hess quipped after the screening. Continue reading Sundance 2013: Can Stephenie Meyer get Twihards to ‘Austenland’?

Overexposed material is fresh and fun in Austenland, an unlikely take on Jane Austen lore that sends Keri Russell to a sort of Regency Westworld, acting out romantic fantasies with fellow vacationing Brit-lit addicts. Funny, reasonably romantic and wholly commercial, Jerusha Hess’s debut should hold fans over until someone musters the nerve to do another straight-on remake of Pride and Prejudice.

Russell plays Jane Hayes, a socially awkward Austenmaniac whose sad little spinster pad is stuffed with teapots and tokens of love for Mr. Darcy. She sells her car to travel to Austenland, an English theme resort whose stuffy doyenne (Jane Seymour) promises every visitor a Persuasion-worthy romance with an actor on staff.

Some of those actors play their parts more convincingly than others — which is only fair, since some guests fall far short of PhD-level fandom: A wealthy American (Jennifer Coolidge) has never even read the books; she’s just here because she thinks she’d look great in “those wench dresses.” Producers get their money’s worth from Coolidge, who for the first half hour can’t open her mouth without bringing down the house. When she bellows “right-o” in a desperate attempt at an English accent, the final vowel becomes multiple syllables, something the word “diphthong” hardly begins to describe. (Not that the actress has to speak to steal a scene, as evinced in a hilarious needlepoint gag.) Continue reading Austenland: Sundance Review

As a movie pitch “Austenland” seems like a no-brainer. A devoted and sadly single Jane Austen fan (appropriately named Jane and played by Keri Russell) decides to spend her life savings to visit Austenland, an immersive vacation resort which promise her a personal Mr. Darcy experience. Of course, nothing goes as planned, but our heroine still finds love where she wouldn’t have expected it. Throw in some quirky British characters trying to pull off the 19th Century in the 21st Century and you have numerous comedic opportunities. Based on the novel by Shannon Hale and co-produced by Stephenie Meyer, Jerusha Hess’ “Austenland” should quickly evoke a bidding war that will make the numerous studios regret passing on the first time around.

The proceedings start off slowly with Jane finding resistance from her best friend who believes she’s making a huge mistake and, instead, should spend her money on a “life changer” vacation. Jane heads off to England anyway and soon meets a fellow guest, the goofy and a little out there Miss Elizabeth Charming (Jennifer Coolidge). Upon arriving at Austenland, Jane is sad to discover she’s only paid for the copper package which means she’ll be living in servant quarters (don’t worry, it looks better than you think) and has a much less glamorous wardrobe. Hess focuses a bit on Coolidge at first to generate the laughs, but as soon as we meet the residents or hired actors at the Manor things get much more interesting and comical. Continue reading Review: Keri Russell and Jennifer Coolidge charm in potential breakout hit ‘Austenland’