In this conversation, Nick and Leslie review the Hallmark movie Sense and Sensibility. They discuss various aspects of the movie, including the representation of black people, costumes and set design, music, acting, and character development. They also talk about the plot, the relationships between the characters, and the overall directing of the movie. They share their scores for different aspects of the movie and provide a conclusion.
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You can listen to the episode here (or wherever you listen to podcasts) or read the transcript below:
Sense And Sensibility Review with Leslie Haas:
Nick & Leslie (00:00.102)
I was saying I'll do that any day of the week, but never never on a Wednesday So today I have with me Leslie the wonderful real tour Leslie Haas We have just a strictly professional relationship. Just kidding with my wife You've probably heard her on a lot of ads lately get used to that I enjoy having her support me and I like supporting her So, um, I
We're starting the first of something we plan on doing regularly throughout the year, particularly in the holiday season, and that is review Hallmark movies. Say hi, Leslie. Hi, everyone. OK. You can click that. You don't have to hold it. I know it fell in my hair. OK. All right. If you hold it like too close to your mouth, then it gets muscled. I'm sorry. We're also trying out some lapel mics.
It's my first time on a podcast, just like most people. Yeah. Well, you're doing great so far. Oh, thank you. Really. Minute in, and you've already nailed it. Okay, we're also on our second cup of coffee of the day, so keep that in mind. Our espresso machine broke, so we have just been... Let's not talk about depressing things right now. Okay. All right, so the movie we're reviewing premiered yesterday, just last night on Hallmark. It is part of their... Mahogany series.
Mahogany series. Yes. Wasn't it also January, I think they call it. I think it was Love -u -ary. Love -u -ary, sorry. Yeah. January would make sense for... Why didn't they do January? So these are all movies based on inspired by Jane Austen stories. So why didn't they do January instead of Love -u -ary? Oh, I don't know when it technically started and Valentine's Day's in February. I know, but January is a better pun than Love -u -ary. I don't know if it's all Jane Austen theme if that's what you're talking about.
I believe it is. No, there was what I'm saying is I believe there's other February love you wary new movies that are not based on Jane Austen. Oh, yes. There just happens to be a whole bunch based on in February. OK, well, maybe next year we'll get reruns of all the Jane Austen themes ones and call it January. I guess so. Or in August, they could do Augustin.
Nick & Leslie (02:22.95)
Austin, Austin guest like Austin, Texas. No, like Austin from Jane Austin. Oh, but August. Ignore me. Okay. All right. Sorry. So, um, let see. Got IMDB here. We both took notes. So sense and sensibility. Um, this one was directed by, wait, should we caveat a heavy red sense and sensibility? No.
So I'm going to have to review the story as I understand it. Correct. Via this movie. So that's why I wanted to caveat everyone in is that we have not read Since then sensibility the book, but do we own it? Of course we do. It looks beautiful on ourselves in the whole collection we have. I have seen the one I cannot tell you what year it was made.
- 96. Okay. I remember. Yeah. When in doubt, 96. When in doubt, which makes complete sense. I grew up watching Sense and Sensibility with Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, because my older sister was in love with that movie. So I had no option but to continuously watch it. It's a good movie. I enjoy it very much. From what I recall, it was directed by Ang Lee, who went after that he did, um,
The Hulk? Or did he do Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon directly after that? By the way, I am not into movies like he is. So I don't know. But I feel like the way this is, it's every director has to make a Hallmark movie. So just looking at IMDB, this comes to us from director Roger M. Bob. It was written by Tom Huddleston. No, sorry, Tim.
Tim Huddleston, almost Tom Hiddleston, but the letters were, Tim Huddleston and co -writing credit from Jane Austen. So I wonder if her estate gets any money for that? I don't know. I don't want to say domain. And IMDB suggests other movies like Dating Mr. Darcy, An American in Austin, Love and Jane. So that was the one that was on right beforehand.
Nick & Leslie (04:38.79)
The Love and Jane. Love and Jane. Okay. Yeah. Oh, it's a portrait like the Disney. Anyways. Oh, the silhouette. Yeah. So we get the storyline rated TVG. And so like looking at the cast on IMDB, they look way more gorgeous than they did in the movie. I mean, they're beautiful in their shots. Yes. Yeah. So, all right, let's go into our notes. The first note I have.
is black people. That's what I was telling you. It's mahogany. Oh, that's what mahogany means? If you're not familiar with the card hallmark line in general, there's a mahogany. And as well, I don't I unfortunately can't tell you years or how long, but they also now have it on their hallmark channel. But again, we've only been hallmark intense just until we've gotten Pete Bush. Am I allowed to say Peacock on here? Yeah, why not? I don't know.
You think we're going to get demonetized because the cock isn't in? Anyway, because we've been having Peacock this last couple of years that we're able to watch it every time. I'm so sorry. And anyway, so the Mahogany line features cards specific to Black people. OK. So it's. So one note I have related to Black people that I did appreciate about the movie.
which I thought was a good idea that was kind of hurt by the terribly low budget, is they decorated some of the background scenes in the movie with like classical paintings of black people in like regalia. So it's like, you know, normally you'd see like a portrait of great uncle Hubert the third or whatever, but this is like a black person with like a white wig. And then like, I'm like, okay, look, it's like, they're trying to add to the realistic. Oh, I'm sorry. I was,
I did not notice that. Okay. But there are only two paintings and they kept showing up in different locations? Oh, no. Yeah, so we did notice that. First of all, usually when you have Hallmark, you, like, all their budget, I swear they save is for the snow and when it comes to the winter, the Christmas movies. But here, they spent money on drone footage, it felt like, of the actual estates and there were a variety of estates between Norland, Devonshire,
Nick & Leslie (07:06.726)
I can't think of what Willoughby's estate was called, but anyway, throughout those different - cottage? Or that was Norlin College? No, no, that was with the, on the Devonshire estate and it was, oh gosh, where did it go? Oh, Barton cottage. Oh, Barton. Yes. So they did have a variety, but they clearly were not like, well, the cottage one maybe, but the actual like big estate ones were real.
Yeah. Like that's where it was potentially one of them on the inside. I don't know if they actually filmed there or not in the inside. One of them kind of was clearly they rented out a bed and breakfast, but there's plenty of times that they've used the budget on like Airbnb places. So I wonder if like part of the reason that they got that high quality drone footage was there like, Hey location, if you go havesies on this drone footage rental.
you'll get to use it for promoting your bed and breakfast. But I didn't, I don't think it was, you know, granted this is just Hallmark budget. I felt like they had a good amount of budget for what the Hallmark movie is. Yeah. So, I mean, I did have a comment related to that is like the beginning of the movie, the costuming was gorgeous. Yes. And then it got weaker as the movie went on. Just as I felt like with the setting when I was like, oh, the scene, I felt like this is an Airbnb because that bed comforter,
did not go with that time period. Oh, no. A lot of it didn't. A lot of it felt like the White House kind of decor. I didn't think a lot of it, but towards the end, I felt the quality of the outfits. They're like, crap, we need to start changing these outfits. Let's tear up the ones that we originally made and start stuffing them, switching their fabrics, which is kind of disheveled seams. I'm going to guess thematically, they're supposed to be down on their luck or whatever.
Oh, I see what you're saying, but I felt it with all of them. Well, except for the ball. When they had the ball or whatever they called it, the whole dancing thing, there was a lot more costumes obviously involved because there was hundreds of people, I felt like in cotton, hundreds, maybe 50. So, a comment I had also from early on, when we first meet Edward, who is one of the potential love interests,
Nick & Leslie (09:25.03)
He shows up riding up to the estate on horseback. And it was hilarious to me that I could tell it wasn't shot with a telephoto lens. So the cameraman was probably no more than 20 feet away from this guy on the horse, but he's like crouching low and looking up. And so Edward has to like ride by on a horse pretending there's not a cameraman right there. And it just, it felt so awkward to me. I don't know why. Well, I just realized I've been on a horse.
a few times in my life. But it's like, are those Hallmark people, you know, they're not paid a lot and they're specific type of actors. Like, do they already know how to ride the horse? Hey, you get 10 minutes with this instructor on how to angle the horse or turn the horse so that you're not running into that cameraman that's 20 feet away. That's a good point. I don't know if I could have, you know, that quick of a turnaround of how to quickly steer a horse because you know, when you're on a group tour, those horses sometimes don't want to listen to you.
Well, well, speaking about that, there's a scene later on where what's the middle daughter's name? I guess I'm impressed. What's the middle daughter's name? Mary Ann. Mary Ann. When Mary Ann falls down the hill, I was in the bathroom. I missed that part. Was it a stunt person? Like, do they have a budget for stunt people? Or is it like, Mary Ann, you want to save this roll? You're going to roll down this hill. I mean, it was the like, fakest of grass. OK. Plush wise, maybe. I don't know. Who knows? Maybe they did like film in frickin England.
Oh, yeah, I'd like to know where this was shot. I would like to know where it like Bulgaria or someplace super cheap. Or else they had really nice grass. We're just used to Florida grass here. Yeah. As we're bundled up and it's, you know, 68 degrees outside. Another note that I wrote, which I feel like is a problem with Hallmark movies in general, too much music. Do they have to fill every moment of the movie with music?
Can't we just have people have like quiet conversations? So do you mean music in regards to the piano forte that was playing background music? What do you mean music? Background music, like the score. Like I feel like they rely too heavily on the score dictating the emotions that the audience needs to feel at that given moment. I feel like they don't trust the actors in the writing to deliver that emotion. I was just about to say it's probably because they don't trust all the actors. Cause again, we're talking about specific quality. We know there is.
Nick & Leslie (11:45.614)
movie quality acting, theater acting, Hallmark specific acting. What is that called? Like TV episodes? Soap opera. No, not so that soap opera is a different act, sitcom acting. So Hallmark is its own genre and acting. And so I think you do have to use the materials around you to juice it up. Okay. Well, I'm going to get that because they don't really.
Again, this might be a problem with the Jane Austen story and maybe how it's awkwardly unfilmable, but I feel like she's like, oh, hi, pleasure to meet you, Edward. Five minutes later, we're going to get married and have babies. So they don't let the relationships develop. They don't let anything exciting happen. I mean, they make everything happen way too quickly. It's like Leslie was saying, it's like Anna from Frozen. Yeah, I characterize Mary in The Middle Daughter as she was giving Anna from Frozen energy in regards to.
We finished each other's sandwiches and the quick of, but that was also how, what things were then yet you could have an engagement for four years or you're married in two seconds because if you aren't married by, I don't know, 17, it feels like sometimes in these stories that you are a spinster and especially how they show that ad as Eleanor, the oldest sister to my...
like feeling is like, you know, the oldest sister still isn't married yet either to like help take care of them. Uh, since the brother screwed them over, but, um, you know, they're going to latch on quick. They don't want to be spinsters and then you'll be penniless living in someone else's cottage, not on their land. So they're going to hook up with the first one that supposedly has a good fortune coming since they don't have a dowry to give since again, the brother, what's the brother's name? John.
took it all away. So I missed it because of Franny. I missed the beginning because I was cleaning the kitchen. So what's the plot in the beginning of the movie? So the father, he's on his deathbed. He looks very much alive and awake, you know, so he's in that part where he's just about to die. So he's like alert and oriented. All the kids, not all the kids, the daughters and the wife are surrounded. He's saying like, I love you. Three daughters and the wife are in the scene.
Nick & Leslie (14:05.158)
And so he passes away and so they're in their mourning period and they're talking about what's going to happen with them because the estate doesn't go to them. It goes to the oldest male, which is their the son, John. And John has promised to take care of them and to that they'll be given a certain fortune. Dowry can still live at Norland where they're currently at, which is a very large estate.
So John wasn't a cousin, he was like their brother? Correct, he was their oldest brother. Whenever he came in saying, sisters, I love you, and I was like, I corrected it, saying, oh, that's right, he's a brother, not a cousin. He was the only white person in the family? I was mixing it up with Pride and Prejudice.
I'm sorry, you didn't see the father was white. Oh, okay. Okay. I'm like, it's weird that the oldest son is white and everyone else in the family is like, okay, so the dad was the dad was white. Okay. I guess they don't want us to ask these questions in these kinds of movies. Kill off the white people. I shouldn't take that up, please. Oh, good. My microphone. Anyway, so then that's when it shows them.
Also introducing the character Fanny, Fanny Ferris, which is his wife, Edward's sister. But we don't know that yet. Anyway, so they're talking about Fanny like, oh, we'll be with John and Fanny. And then so they're coming up, Fanny and John are in a carriage, is the next scene them talking about saying, well, John's just quiet, Fanny's there telling him what to do, saying.
You're gonna basically kick your family out. We've always wanted to live at Norland. We're not gonna let your your sisters be there It's our place and so they get gigantic My gosh, I know 36 bedrooms 40 bathrooms probably actually that's chamber pots. I don't know what they really did back then at that time anyway, so They so the sisters and the mom
Nick & Leslie (16:14.694)
are on the steps of Norland as the carriage pulls up and they greet each other. Probably they couldn't get permission to film inside. Probably because they couldn't get permission to film inside. So, and then the next scene is they're, you know, like walking up the steps saying like, sorry, fear loss. And then Fanny like makes a comment about, I can't wait to be in here and change things up. And then they're at.
Excuse me. And then they're at like dinner or luncheon or something like that. And Fanny starts bringing up about, oh, the place and it's gorgeous, by the way. And she's like, oh, it needs so many repairs, taking a look around, things need to be updated. And then so she like hits John kind of he goes, yes, that's gonna be less money that because this place needs all the fixing up that we can't give you as much for your monthly allowances and we won't be able to do like a dowry for you.
And then that's when, oh, we had, did we meet Edward by then? I remember he just came horse and back, came up via horseback, horseback, riding on horseback. Oh, right. So that's when we first met. Oh, Margaret and Mary Ann. Wait, that was Willoughby. Are talking about the fall? No. Anyway, we had met Edward by then because he was at the dinner.
And when he was saying how long that he was going to be there and he was like, Oh, you know, I will be here. And that's when Fanny interrupts no more than a month. Like she could dictate it because it was her property all of a sudden. Um, but Edward's like, one to two months is when I would like to be here. And then, uh, Edward brought up about the charm of the place he was, Oh, but you know, because of its historicalness, it should be preserved and it's kept up its charm. And then.
That's when John, who clearly can't think for himself, pipes up and goes, yeah, I do like this old charm. We shouldn't change anything. So here's the money. So this is just an aside. I know Fanny is a dirty word in England. At one point, Jane Austen, I assume, is British. At what point did that become like a normal name for a woman to have to become a dirty word? Not that you have the answer to it. Just...
Nick & Leslie (18:40.902)
I don't know, I guess fanny pack. What's, oh, like the bag? Yeah. Because it's used like that in America. When you said fanny pack, my first thought was political action committee. Like a super PAC to raise funds for. Anyways, OK. OK. I had too much money. So when we first meet Edward on that horse scene, Margaret just pops out of nowhere, the youngest daughter, and starts like threatening him with a fake wooden sword. Oh, actually.
Children are weird actors. So one of my notes is the actress is probably 15 years old, but if she's playing like a nine year old and it's very uncomfortable. It is uncomfortable. Yeah. Yeah. And then the fact that like Edward plays along with her, that reminds me of something that like it's kind of like a screenwriting one -on -one thing is like, if you have a dislikeable character, you need to have them.
take care of a stray cat. Oh, yeah. Which is something that happens in Madame Web. So that's what that reminds me. Oh, So like, not that he's unlikeable or anything, but like, we see him for 30 seconds and he instantly plays with a little kid. So that's supposed to be our audience going, OK, he's a good person. And now the middle sister is going to have a crush on him because he's so sweet to the younger sister. Which grosses me out. But we're not. And I'm like, that's lazy writing. It's lazy writing. We're not into children. I get it.
And so when I see they're like, oh, we have to be lovey -dovey to a child or just the way he interacts with her. And I'm like, this scene still could have been better, but you know, it's the trying to hook you in to his character. I get it. It was also Hallmark rules. 20 seconds. Hallmark rules. It have great if he just ripped that wooden sword out of her hand, chucked it into the woods and they just kept walking. All the time. Yeah. So that's what we do with our dogs. But yes, you always have to come back to Hallmark quality. So they get kicked out of the house.
And then they move into the some other land that's owned by Mr. Middleton. We'll pause it for that second because what I'm going to talk about is in regards to the mother and so her character and feeling that they're now becoming poppers, peasants, since they're having to leave Norland and that the oldest daughter, Eleanor,
Nick & Leslie (21:01.862)
had to do the - Played by Susan Lawson Reynolds. Yeah. Yeah. But to where she had to go and do the work and like go around asking family, hey guys, we're about to be kicked out of our home since the mom's like, we're going to be out of here in a week, a week to go where who knows? Cause she has no money in her bank accounts. Oh yeah. I thought it was weird that they use the term bank accounts. That just didn't seem period acting. We're like, did they have -
I think it'd be like, oh, we don't have enough shillings in our ledger or something like that. Not bank accounts. Right. Exactly. Like you don't have the debit cards. Not the debit cards. Not rejected down at the CVS. Debiting. Yeah. Anyway, so, um, and you know, Eleanor puts the word out like, Hey, is anyone able to house us? You know, brother's kicking us out. Dad died. Um, and the mom's like, why did you tell everyone our situation? That's like,
disgusting. And she's like, well, mom found us a place to live. One of our, I can't quite remember the relationship. I'm always going to default to cousin, but I can't remember anyway. So everyone's a freaking cousin because they're all related to each other majority of the time through that where they are in war together. So they, this one person's like, Hey, my wife just died. You can come and stay with me. I had this empty old cottage that you can go and live in. And then the mom's like, Oh,
Cottage, disgusting, what are we peasants? Anyway, so they move into the cottage of John Middleton. This is what want to pop in. John Middleton, my note is Mr. Middleton gives off community theater energy. So I know he felt like he was hosting like a like a Christmas carol. He's like, oh, come on down, children. Welcome to the estate. So this is again, didn't read the book, but I feel like it's going from the energy of the movie done.
earlier that Emma Thompson, all that, because in that, I remember the Middleton and his mother -in -law that's still with him are very gossipy, rumor -milly, like just want to spill and start the tea. So they're very theatrical in their characters. So potentially maybe they're like that in the book to where they're very flamboyant over the top in regards to what they're talking about. So maybe they were picking that up because it reminded me.
Nick & Leslie (23:24.87)
That's when I remembered like, oh, that's right. Hugh Grant was in this movie because the way Edward was acting was just like Hugh Grant. Oh yeah. He's like, Oh damn it. I was like, so there's, there's no way they, I don't know. Maybe Jane Austen did really explain the character of Edward in the book and his mannerisms of like his gait, his mutter, his static speech sometimes. So staccato, not static. My next note is, uh,
Every now and then you'll see like a servant bring something in and out of a room They look so uncomfortable in those clothes like they don't take normal steps They look like they're trying not to fall because they're wearing platforms and these tights. They're like, oh It's hilarious watching the servants try to walk right in the costumes and also they looked very French the servant uniforms. I Don't know if you noticed that I don't know what it was like then I know so I mean, who knows maybe they all went to the French Academy of
how to place them out. Cause yeah, I remember in kind of going off and it's the TV, Gilded Age. Thank you. And Gilded Age. And they were like, Oh, they know how to serve in the French style and be like that one from the olden time, the mean woman whenever they had to invite the people over. Anyway, you guys know what talking about. Okay. Yeah.
I also wrote down impressive hair. So I know they're all wigs, but like it looked like Afro -American hair, but still done up in like fancy British style. I don't know. I thought they were cool looking wigs. Again, like costume budget. Like they did really well on that, you know, hallmark wise. Then I wrote down only one room because every scene that takes place in that cottage.
is just the one parlor where the piano is? Okay, so yes, the cottage is smaller, but it does also occur in the other movie because that's their one room. You know, they talk about being the mom talks about being peasants and so small, they're only in there. They're only able to entertain this one room that has the piano forte in it. So they go to that. So what's a piano forte?
Nick & Leslie (25:41.126)
It's a piano, I think. That's just old. I don't know. I mean, forte means strong. Is there 88? I know, loud. But like, is it... Is there still 88 keys? I don't know. Is it just because it can't go in certain ranges? It's not like a harpsichord. But... It's a piano, a piano forte. Let's see, I wrote... Where's the corrections for this? Oh.
Oh, and then we meet Colonel Brandon. My note is that he is gorgeous. Honestly. And it looks like he just squirted in a whole bottle of vizing before each shot. He looks like he's constantly about to cry. Someone must have had a cat on set and he had allergies the entire time. But he was beautiful. But that was the point too, that... Was he allergic? Oh, wait, hold on. No, I'm thinking of Willoughby. Sorry.
Alan Rickman, yes. I mean, I loved Alan Rickman. Still do RIP. Anyway, he was so good in there. But yes, that's supposed to be Alan Rickman. But Colonel Brandon, oh my goodness. He was gorgeous. And then I wrote John Willoughby is gorgeous. But so and he's supposed to be more like better looking than Brandon. But I didn't think they did that well. But he's gorgeous. Yes. But I would prefer Colonel Brandon over.
So like the Brandon Willoughby dynamic is almost identical to the dynamic of the other two suitors in Pride and Prejudice. I was shocked that Sense and Sensibility is like 80 % the same story as Pride and Prejudice. And it's like, you know how they say like Taco Bell has like 10 ingredients in the back and each dish is just them rearranging what order to put those Taco Bells on a tortilla, I mean those ingredients on a tortilla.
That's kind of what I'm getting from these two Jane Austen stories. It's like there's always, you know, they went to war. It's like there's the guy who's a dick, but he's secretly nice. Then there's the guy who's nice, but is secretly a dick. And they all know each other because they are in the war together. Yeah. They don't specify what war like Colonel Brandon. He's like, Oh, I went to war and got distinguished and came back home. I don't know. I want to know more about the 100 year war. Maybe what was going on? What religious war was going on back then? When did this book?
Nick & Leslie (28:06.47)
the Habsburgs, I don't know. Do you want me to ask Fancy Lady? No, it's okay. Those are just questions that will be out there. Oh, John and Marianne have an unchaperoned picnic. There's a lot of unchaperoned dates in this movie. Oh, by the way, we didn't say which John. We've been calling him Willoughby. Oh, sorry. I don't think anyone's following the plot. Well, no, but don't get like, oh, we referenced John before, John the brother.
So you're like, oh good brother and sister are having no they've been kicked so will it be will it be? Yeah, so will it be and Brandon are both potential suitors for Mary Ann the middle daughter and I just thought it was interesting that John and Mary Ann Sorry, will it be and Mary Ann have an unchaperoned picnic? Are you sure the little sister wasn't out there but just gallivanting around she wasn't in any of the don't remember any of the shots the camera angles Okay. Well, I believe she's was supposed to be there
And then here's my note, painting of a black guy, because I noticed that in the background of all your shots. And then I noticed that painting show up in a different location. I wrote two timing Edward. Oh, that's right. At the picnic, they were saying, oh my glasses. They were saying like, who's your favorite artist? Who's your favorite poet? And I was like, oh my God. Yeah, that's cute. OK. Two timing Edward. That's when we find out that Edward is such a man whore. Like.
Who knew? So that's when we find out he was secretly engaged to their another cousin that just pops out of nowhere. Lucy Steele. For four years they've been secretly engaged. I mean, take a hint. It's been four years. We'll pause for a second. So remember how we talked about Fanny was, is the sister of Edward and Fanny had a conversation with the oldest daughter of the Dashwoods, Eleanor Dashwood, saying that, um,
Dashwood's the name of the main family. Correct. Okay. I was trying to get that in there. So Fanny was telling Eleanor like, oh, it is my job that my mom has given me to make sure that Edward and Robert, the other brother, marry well. And - Why is that her job? I don't know, because females do things right. Isn't she the villain of this whole movie? The point is women get shit done. Okay. Okay.
Nick & Leslie (30:32.144)
Yes ma 'am. Anyway. Yeah, you can cuss. Okay. So that's when Eleanor knew that she didn't have a chance with Edward because of Fanny's conversation that Fanny would because Fanny goes, I'll never allow a marriage for my brothers to do this. I know who even knows if Fanny's like the oldest and I don't know. But so clearly that that's laid out there that Fanny will never get it. And then that's whenever Fanny I'm sorry.
That's when Eleanor meets the Steele sisters because the mother -in -law Miss Jennings of John Middleton, that's the estate they're staying at in Devonshire, invites the Steele sisters over to all join in for who knows, be it's gossip or fun or whatever, but like, oh, I thought we'd just have a good girls time. And then so that's when Lucy Steele,
meets Eleanor and for some reason Lucy Steele decides to confide in Eleanor where they just met. Just met. It's like girls best friending in a club bathroom. Exactly. And all of a sudden she's like, so I've been engaged to this guy that no one knows about for four years and his name is Edward Ferris. And so Fanny is Fanny.
Eleanor is trying to like cover her shockness up for surprise. And so to make sure I'm following this.
Nick & Leslie (32:09.238)
So, uh, so, okay. How are the Steel Sisters related to Fanny?
They're not related to Fanny. They're not related to To my knowledge. They're just friends. No, they don't know each other. Okay, that's why I corrected myself when I said Fanny and Eleanor. Okay. Okay, so this is what happened. Yeah. Do you know who Miss Jennings is? No. Miss Jennings is the mother -in -law of Sir John Middleton, who owns Barton Cottage, where the women are staying. The Dashwoods are staying.
Oh, right, right, right. Right. So Miss Jennings was like, Oh, okay. She's like over the top anyway. So when they were like having their luncheon and they're like, she goes, here are the Steele sisters. I invited them because I thought it would be such a great time. All of us together. You Davenshire girls, Dashwood girls with the Steele sisters, same age, fun, like
yet we'll have a grand old time. You're here to entertain me because Miss Jennings feels like everyone around her is for her entertainment. That's why she's like spilling the tea and being gossipy and like being anyway. So that's how the steel no one at this time I believe is related to each other. Who knows? Maybe someone's a cousin, but that's here nor there at right now. So Lucy steel is the one that's married. I'm sorry, engaged to Edward. She confides that.
in Eleanor Dashwood and they have a conversation about it. Okay? Okay. All right. Yes. And then later on Fanny finds out because the youngest steel sister spills the beans. Okay. Gotcha. Thank you. For some reason, I thought everyone was marrying their cousins, but thank you for clarifying. I mean, potentially I can't say what the lineage is.
Nick & Leslie (34:12.55)
All right. My next note is a two timing. Edward Mexican food is a rearrangement of ingredients. Kiss from a rose. Yeah. Where did this was this at the big the ball? Yes, it was at the ball. There was a cellist paint playing kiss by the rose. Yeah. Kiss from a rose on the brick by seal by seal. He's still alive or he passed. He's.
Nick & Leslie (34:44.55)
I don't know. I know he was in the movie Pop Star. He got mulled by wolves. That's maybe that's why I'm confused. Okay. And then so when, um, um, it wasn't, yeah, when Mary Ann finally gets a letter from Willoughby saying, Hey, I'm no longer interested in you and your stank ass. Wait, who said that? Oh, when Willoughby sent a letter to her. was brought by the tiniest of white men.
Because when he jumped down, it was next to be if it was Willoughby or he was next to maybe Colonel Brandon or Edward. He was so tight, not Edward.
Nick & Leslie (35:26.726)
Edward was white. Yes. That's what's messing me up right now. So he must have been next to Colonel Brandon. I don't know, but he was so tiny. Maybe he was the jockey that was teaching them all how to horse ride. He's like, I'll do it for free if you put me in the movie. Anyways, so I thought it was funny that like, while Willoughby is breaking up with Marianne in this letter, he signs that you're obedient and humble servant. Oh, which by the way, he gifted her a horse.
That was weird. That he was gonna take care of. He hoping she'd show up at his stable and write it. And then I wrote bank accounts, because I thought that was funny. Then I wrote the actress who played Eleanor was very good. Very good. She was really good. She was good. But maybe she also just stands out because everyone around her was not good. I think that's... Well, Marianne was played just like Kate Winslet in the other one as well. To where she clearly is.
like damsel in distress, damsel, sorry, sorry, in distress and very easily wooed. And then my last note was second choice because Edward shows up and he's like, oh no, I'm not going to marry that person that I promised I'd marry four years ago. I'm going to marry you instead. And she's all excited to be his second choice. That's all. Yeah, they didn't end with the wedding. Yeah, they kissed and then the movie ended.
And it's like I know Hallmark movies have to end with a kiss but like also I don't think they could kiss without them being actually married. Oh, no, they did get married. I'm sorry. They kiss and then we saw the wedding. They were wearing blue and white. I fell asleep the last five minutes. There was everyone's wearing blue and white. Hallmark, if you watch this, can you start your movies at seven Eastern Standard Time and not eight? Like nine, nine thirty I'm out. So now I remember they're standing on the balcony because they couldn't get rights to film inside the building.
They kiss and the camera zooms in and then a priest teleported behind them and then it zooms back out and you're inside a wedding chapel and they've got different clothes on so it's really a cut but it was really well matched cut and you know, so you're like, oh they're kissing and then he's like, oh you're the deepest voice Chaplain I'm gonna kiss the bride but I'm like they're already kissing and then the chemo pulls out and I was like, oh that's fun trick But it was very startling. Was it one or two weddings? Was it a double wedding?
Nick & Leslie (37:53.094)
I think it was just one wedding. But I remember The other one's a double wedding. I remember Mary Ann, or no, it was Eleanor. Eleanor was wearing... Wait. Eleanor got with Edward, right? Yeah. Okay. So it was Eleanor's wedding. That's right. Mary Ann did get proposed to earlier on. By Colonel Brandon. Yeah, Colonel Brandon. Okay, so what are some of your notes? Oh, wait. Did we talk about... Oh. The...
Sister Marianne Meg just gets written out of the store Margaret. Sorry. No, she goes by Meg. Okay. Well, I feel like she did she stopped being a character basically 30 minutes into the movie Right. She just plays piano in the but we we didn't talk about Marianne getting sick from like the infection from her ankle and refusing to
eat, eat and just hanging out in the rain and just hanging out in the rain, somehow able to stand and walk all the way out there when she like needed people to help her all the time. So twisted ankle somehow turned into her almost dying. And the doctor's like, he's like, bitch, I don't know, I'm going on to my next patient. Oh, well, yeah, she doesn't want to eat. So she's not going to get better. And then calls and then Eleanor to save the day and calls the.
us, Mother and Meg, to come to them. Brandon was the one who saved everyone by going to pick them up. Like, thank you so much, Colonel Brandon, for picking up my family and bringing them to me. Yes. So, you know, it takes someone dying, I guess, for them to realize that someone else loves them as always. So Hallmark was like, we can use this story to our advantage. Anyway, so there was that. I guess they didn't want to bring in the leeches, though.
to drain out her infected blood. Anyway, so I thought the budget that they had appeared to be very well done in regards to costumes, the drone footage to making us feel like we are inside those mansions in my opinion, as well as the lighting. I think they did a great job for their lighting in regards to having us tell what time of day it was.
Nick & Leslie (40:11.59)
and actually not know if they were outside or what. I was like, they did a great job. And like the rain scene, I'm sorry. It's always fake snow that we see. It's clearly that whenever we're at a Hallmark movie. There must have been someone off camera with a hose just pointing it at the air like you do when you're a kid. Who knows? But they did a good job in the lighting. You could see the rain, see the good drops, but they were also over.
Mary Ann in that scene too. That's what I was trying to also get to about Mary Ann standing in the rain. That scene was a good scene for Hallmark and like the perspective that they gave of that camera shot. Yeah, so the lighting. Any other notes you had? No, I'm just replaying Kiss from a Rose. Kiss from a Rose or by a Rose? Kiss from a Rose. I think.
I think it's from. Okay, so these are my scores that I'm giving it. Oh, scores. Oh, I didn't do scores. So for writing, I gave it four, because I thought the overall story was dumb. The biggest issue I had is like they meet a character and immediately fall in love with the character after their first conversation. So then you're just saying Jane Austen's writing. Well, Jane Austen's book is probably more than two hours worth of content. Okay, this movie's only 90 minutes, so.
That's what I'm saying. Like it was badly adapted. Okay. I guess you didn't get, yeah. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. Yes. I understand now. I'm sorry. Badly adapted. I haven't seen the Kate Winslet. That's what like probably more realistic development of crushes on people and stuff. Yes. These flowers aren't from the hot box. Hot house. You'll know the referencing.
Acting, I gave it a four out of ten. It would have been three, but I really liked the actors who played Eleanor. Everyone around her was terrible. Margaret did a terrible job of acting like a nine -year -old. You know, the best child, that's a weird word, actor or whatever is just, I'm gonna go back to who played on...
Nick & Leslie (42:31.302)
Tim Allen Santa Claus, the main elf manager. Oh, Bernard. No, the woman. The girl who went on Cripple Crabble. Oh, the Santa Clausus, the series. Santa Claus, not Clausus. Sorry, the Santa Clausus TV series, the head elf. Is it still pluralized? Yeah, because it's supposed to be their family. They're the Clausus. I did not pay attention. Oh.
No, no, no, plural, not possessive. You don't have to say that out loud. It's okay. Anyway, yeah, she was also in station 11. She's wonderful. Oh, that's right. But she's a child playing an adult. That's different than a tween playing a child. Well, she should get used to playing younger. I don't know. Just. But anyways, a lot of people brought the acting down. Eleanor is what made it not a three. Eleanor in the storyline having to take care of everyone.
And having to carry this whole thing. Oh, sick Mary Anne was not believable in the least. She was like, I'm sick. That's exactly the hell I think she was supposed to be playing. Directing, I did have three written, but you reminded me of the rain scene. I'm like, OK. Even if it was someone just spraying a hose into the air. They sprayed it very well. They sprayed it very well. And that shot was lit well. That might have been a second unit director. Like they call in someone for the more complex shots.
Overall directing, I'm giving a four out of ten. So fours across the board. And that was Sense and Sensibility. Once again, directed by Roger M. Bobb, written by Tim Huddleston and Jane Austen. Brought to you by Hallmark Mahogany. Yeah. I wonder if there's any fun, fun trivia. Ah!
Countries of origin, United States, Canada, Bulgaria, Ireland. Oh my gosh. Okay, Ireland. She fell down the hill in Ireland. Yeah, I guess so. Bulgaria must have been where the castles were. A lot of this must have just been... What? Oh, the production company is UFO International Productions. So we both saw it at the same time. Yeah, that's There's the drone footage. Huh, isn't it visual effects? And that's just interesting. IMDB's got some weird things you see when you're looking at...
Nick & Leslie (44:57.222)
this stuff. We can add it to your 2024 movie list. I will. I will. Because women are beautiful. Yeah. Your headshots. I do want to see some trivia because I'm sure there's interesting stuff, but I doubt anybody wrote any trivia for this. It was just released yesterday, last night. It was its premiere. I mean, IMDb has it as a 5 .9 out of 10. That is generous, I gotta say.
Nick & Leslie (45:28.71)
All right, well, thank you all so much for listening to our nonsense and get ready to hear more of it when the holiday movies come out. Thank you. So do you know the subject of the next Hallmark movie that's part of Love Your Erie? See, I thought it was another Jane Austen one, but now I don't know. Like, I don't necessarily, I'm not exactly excited about adaptations of historical stories unless they modernize it. Because then I won't be staring at the lack of budget. I mean, I... Oh.
See, I still like seeing the period movie of it. I mean, who doesn't like a good British thing? Oh, they all did very, I don't know where the actors are from, but I thought they had good British accents. Yeah, I'll give them that. Yeah. Except for the community theater guy. He sounds like an American guy pretending to be British. I think, yeah, cause that, ooh. I'm gonna see where that actor's from. Yeah.
Let's see, so he played Mr. Because our British accents, any accent we do turns into a Jamaican accent. I, you know, hello, hello, hello. Just like that. They did good. So that was. Edward Bennett, Sir John Middleton, Sir John Middleton. He doesn't even have a picture on IMDB. Oh, he's British.
Oh, he's British, okay. Born in Honeyborne Worcestershire, England. That sounds delicious, actually. He was in War Horse Napoleon from last year. Whirl Shakespeare Company loves labors lost. Okay, well, doesn't mean he did a good job in this movie.
All right. So tonight's movie is probably also Jane Austen. Maybe. Yeah. We'll let you know about it in the next one. But it was fun. Yeah. This has been fun. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. And I guess that's the end there. Yeah. Oh, tell them where they can follow you if they want to learn more about you and what you do. Oh, and when I do, you are please visit my website at Tampa Bay Homes for Sale dot real estate.
Nick & Leslie (47:41.542)
again, Tampa Bayhomesforsale .realestate. You can follow me on Leslie Haas FL on Instagram and Leslie Haas Realtor on Facebook. My email address is lesliehaasfl .gmail .com. And Haas is spelled with two A's. That's why I paused. H, A as in alpha, A as in alpha, S as in zero. All right. Thank you very much. Bye. Bye.
Outro
Chain Assembly: Art for profit sake is recorded through Riverside FM, distributed through Spotify for podcasters, and edited on Adobe Audition. The music is provided by Old Romans. If you learned anything useful or found this podcast helpful, please rate and review us five stars. If you want to learn more about me or my art, head over to ChainAssembly.com.
