Becoming Jane

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Becoming Jane

PG

2007

2h 0m

Biography

Romance

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

58%

Tomatometer

140 Reviews

74%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

Though Jane Austen's financially strapped parents expect her to marry the nephew of wealthy Lady Gresham, the young woman knows that such a union will destroy her creativity and sense of self-worth. Instead, she becomes involved with Tom Lefroy, a charming but penniless apprentice lawyer who gives her the knowledge of the heart she needs for her future career as a novelist.

Critics Consensus

Although Becoming Jane is a well-crafted period piece, it lacks fresh insight into the life and works of Jane Austen. The film focuses too much on wardrobe and not enough on Austen's achievements.

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Debbie Day

Premiere Magazine

11/03/2016

3/4

"The reality of love's disappointments enriches the film's heroine, who never married in real life, and brings a 200-year-old figure into living focus."

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Richard Roeper

Ebert & Roeper

08/14/2007

Not only is that a huge stretch of the facts, it makes for a dull and overly familiar melodrama.

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Richard Schickel

TIME Magazine

08/10/2007

Hathaway never makes us think the woman could write anything more complex than a diet book.

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James Croot

The Post NZ

01/31/2022

Director Julian Jarrold ticks all the right boxes - stunning costumes, gorgeous scenery and dishy lead.

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Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse

01/31/2021

3/5

An affecting portrait, in a Masterpiece Theatre kind of way, of the early years of one of the world's most beloved authors.

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Robert Gottlieb

The New York Review of Books

08/23/2018

Its surface is plausible enough, and Hathaway's performance is persuasive enough, for us to indulge in the delusion that we're actually encountering the famously elusive Jane Austen.

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Cate H

@RT24724691 Jun 2

I thought that it was really good, but the ending was SO sad. Though I am a regency romance girl, so It was pretty good.

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thiago s

@Thiagostone 03/28/2025

Filme mais ou menos, o roteiro é fraca, o filme tem cenas fracas, a história é mais ou menos, o elenco é bacana, mas quase ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, e os personagens são mais ou menos.

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annette Z

@RT27888167 03/23/2025

very old fashionesd and kind of boring

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Pinkie P

@RT43200966 09/23/2024

Mostly emotionally sterile

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Eye C

@ECinc 03/22/2024

An underrated movie that not too many people know about it, and this is sad, I like it a lot, I think that Anne makes a wonderful job once again.

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amelia n

@AmeliaNightingale 01/28/2023

Even if it isn't a particularly history-focused portrayal of Austen, the story is very compelling, the characters rather well-rounded and the costumes and makeup - amazing.

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Julian Jarrold

Director

Anne Hathaway

Jane Austen

James McAvoy

Tom Lefroy

James Cromwell

Mr. Austen

Maggie Smith

Lady Gresham

Julie Walters

Mrs. Austen

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Synopsis

Though Jane Austen's financially strapped parents expect her to marry the nephew of wealthy Lady Gresham, the young woman knows that such a union will destroy her creativity and sense of self-worth. Instead, she becomes involved with Tom Lefroy, a charming but penniless apprentice lawyer who gives her the knowledge of the heart she needs for her future career as a novelist.

Director: Julian Jarrold
Producer: Robert Bernstein, Graham Broadbent, Douglas Rae
Screenwriter: Kevin Hood, Sarah Williams
Distributor: Miramax Films
Production Co: UK Film Council, Scion Films, Blueprint Pictures, HanWay Films, Bord Scannán na hÉireann / The Irish Film Board
Rating: PG (Mild Language|Brief Nudity)
Genre: Biography, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 3, 2007, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 26, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $18.7M
Runtime: 2h 0m
Sound Mix: Dolby SRD
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)