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Every Jane Fairfax Ranked and Rated

“Jane Fairfax was an orphan, the only child of Mrs. Bates’s younger daughter. The marriage of Lieut. Fairfax, of the — regiment of infantry, and Miss Jane Bates had had its day of fame and pleasure, hope and interest; but nothing now remained of it, save the melancholy remembrance of him dying in action abroad—of his widow sinking under consumption and grief soon afterwards—and this girl. By birth she belonged to Highbury: and when at three years old, on losing her mother, she became the property, the charge, the consolation, the fondling of her grandmother and aunt, there had seemed every probability of her being permanently fixed there; of her being taught only what very limited means could command, and growing up with no advantages of connection or improvements to be engrafted on what nature had given her in a pleasing person, good understanding and warm-hearted, well-meaning relations.” … “Jane Fairfax was very elegant, remarkably elegant; and she had herself the highest value for elegance. Her height was pretty, just such as almost everybody would think tall and nobody could think very tall; her figure particularly graceful; her size a most becoming medium, between fat and thin, though a slight appearance of ill-health seemed to point out the likeliest evil of the two…and then her face—her features—there was more beauty in them all together than [Emma] had remembered; it was not regular, but it was very pleasing beauty. Her eyes, a deep grey, with dark eye-lashes and brows, had never been denied their praise, but the skin, which she had been used to cavil at, as wanting colour, had a clearness and delicacy which really needed no further bloom.” — Emma, Chapter 20

Number 5: 1996 (Miramax)

Portrayed by: Polly Walker

Age at time of filming: 29

2 out of 5 Pianofortes of mysterious origin

I didn’t want to do this, but I think I have to.

I know that when one is adapting a book to a movie, just about everything can be argued to be up to interpretation. But I just do not believe Polly Walker as Jane Fairfax. This is a rare occasion in which I will say, outright, I think this character was mis-cast. I don’t know if this is a me thing (I’m not a huge fan of Polly Walker), but everything about her seems just wrong for the role. Firstly, I don’t think she really suits the description of Jane. Being a woman of robust build, she certainly doesn’t tend towards what I would call thin, and at 29, she looked her age, while Jane and Emma are meant to both be about 21.

She’s a woman of commanding presence, handsome, striking, but not what I think of as having a “style of beauty of which elegance is the reigning character”. Her styling, with scraped back hairstyles (pictured), might even be called severe, and it’s not terribly flattering to her.

But enough about me picking at Polly Walker—for more of that, read my review.

The fundamental issue with this Jane (other than the casting choice taking me out of the story a bit) is pretty much the same as with this version’s Frank: she’s underdeveloped; passed over, even. I know I said Frank might suffer the most for being under-written, but now that I consider, Jane gets even less time on screen than Frank, so it may really be she who suffers most from underdevelopment. I suppose I should give points for Jane and Frank having some on-screen interaction to tie them together, where 2020’s Jane and Frank have almost none. What chemistry there is between them isn’t what I would call memorable—mostly when I think of them, all I remember is her being as tall as him.

Number 4: 1972

Portrayed by: Ania Marson

Age at time of filming: 22

2½ out of 5 Pianofortes of mysterious origin

1972’s portrayal (played by Polish-English actress Ania Marson) was my other consideration for the number five spot. She is saved by her suitable physical appearance and allowance for screen time. That said, what she’s given room to do on screen is what lands her so low.

Unlike Polly Walker, this Jane is, demure, middling height, pretty, a little thin, tending to an unhealthy pallor which is redeemed by a clear complexion, and at 22, was the perfect age; on the face of it, she’s the picture perfect portrayal of the enigmatic young woman created by Jane Austen.

But there are great deficiencies that hamper her potential, and as usual, they lie in the script and direction, and perhaps the actress’s own abilities.

To start with, 1972’s Jane is never shown to sing with any great proficiency. When she does, it is weak, written off as her having a sore throat. While that’s a pull from the source material, it’s noted in the book, that even with a sore throat, Jane sings very well. All the piano music in this version is sketchy in general, so when she plays it’s adequate, but it hardly performs its function of showing Jane’s accomplishments, which are and important aspect of her juxtaposition with Emma. As Emma is never shown to play or sing at all, we have nothing to compare her to, and the device loses its purpose.

But that is a minor complaint. This Jane’s greatest weakness comes down, I think, to inconsistency in direction. She’s very quiet, almost mousey in her demureness… until she shouts at her aunt in her first appearance. The screencap I used for her thumbnail captures the ghost of the most disconcerting aspect of this portrayal of Jane. Her stress and exhaustion manifest very oddly here, and between this inconsistency and Ania Marson’s pale, wide-eyed gaze, she comes off as almost… unstable. She seems not merely emotionally exhausted, but driven to the edge of disturbance.

Number 3: 2020

Portrayed by: Amber Anderson

Age at time of filming: 27

3 out of 5 Pianofortes of mysterious origin

At first I didn’t really have many thoughts about 2020’s Jane Fairfax, played by Amber Anderson. Even on my second watch, I didn’t really notice much about her. On my most recent re-watch however, paying particular attention to all of the characters, I have more to say.

The first thing I noticed is that while this Jane has all the requisite elegance, she comes off as intensely haughty. Her expression in her introductory scene is neither reserved nor demure but simply… bored; verging on apathetic. In truth she reminded more of how Lady Middleton is described in Sense and Sensibility than Jane Fairfax. But I was reminded of another Jane Austen lady when I looked more closely at her she bears a striking resemblance to Anna Chancellor as Caroline Bingley in 1995’s Pride and Prejudice, and like Anna Chancellor, she’s also imposingly tall (5’10’’)—a little too tall for Jane’s height, even considering Anya Taylor Joy’s 5’8”.

2020’s Jane, in Amber Anderson is as 1996’s was in Polly Walker: an impressive, handsome woman, but with a haughty air. She seems to actively look-down on Emma as a person and not just a potential rival. She actually rolls her eyes at Emma’s over-dramatic pauses in her playing and singing, and when it’s Jane’s turn to grace the company with a tune, she seems to relish the opportunity to show Emma up. Though I appreciate Jane’s function as audience proxy in seeing through Emma’s bullshit, in truth, it doesn’t really ring quite true to the character. Indeed, it seems more like something Caroline Bingley would do than Jane Fairfax.

For all those faults though, I think that when she was allowed to, Anderson did a wonderful job of showing glimpses of Jane’s underlying emotions. Her appeal to Emma at Donwell is particularly affecting, as it should be. Really I think I rank 2020’s Jane so highly out of a certain respect for the potential that wasn’t allowed to flourish here. I think Anderson might have had decent chemistry with Callum Turner’s Frank, had they been allowed to interact… at all. From what little I have to go off of in this performance, I think Anderson’s Jane might have been able to do something to redeem the sad excuse for a Frank Churchill that this version offered us.

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Number 2: 1996/97 (ITV)

I tried to decide between 1997 and 2009 for my number one Jane Fairfax. And I couldn’t—I just couldn’t. One I think is the impeccable execution of the character as described in the novel, the other, the interpretation that hits me the hardest in my gut, and is my personal favorite. So while one is ranked number one and the other number two, regard these, please, as the top spot in two parts.

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Portrayed by: Olivia Williams

Age at time of filming: 29

5 out of 5 Pianofortes of mysterious origin

Olivia Williams is perhaps the most inspired casting choice in the entire ITV version of Emma. It was her breakthrough screen role, and it’s one of those that the actress seems born to play. Though William’s eyes are green, like Elizabeth Taylor, they seem to have that delicate balance of melanin that allow them to appear a cool gray, or even blue, depending on the lighting and the color of her clothes. She’s blessed with a complexion that, with the right makeup and lighting could be considered clear and pale, or wanting color as needed. Her figure and size very well match Jane’s “most becoming medium” (though at 5’9” she might be considered a little tall, but what is that when everything else about her ticks the boxes so perfectly?), and though, at 29, she was considerably older than Jane (who is Emma’s age) she still has enough youthful bloom to carry it off next to the more accurately aged Kate Beckinsale.

The script treats her well too, which, given what Andrew Davies saw fit to do with some of the other characters (notably her worse half, Frank), is a true blessing. She holds her own against Frank’s prodding, and her internal distress is organic and full of feeling, and she never once comes off as haughty or mean to Emma beyond what one can rightly expect from her, given her perception of their connection.

Best of all though, she can really sing. All of the Janes (Ania Marson excepted) could sing, but only Olivia Williams’ Jane is noticeably better at it compared to her Emma. On top of which, this Jane sings operas in German and Italian, while Emma sings only in English—another way of showing why Emma is so envious of Janes extensive accomplishments.

Number 1: 2009

Portrayed by: Laura Pyper

Age at time of filming: 29

5 out of 5 Pianofortes of mysterious origin

If 1997’s Jane is the most textually accurate, 2009’s is the one with the greatest emotional depth. She’s also the one with the best chemistry alongside her Frank, which is perhaps the reason she stood out to me so much.

Laura Pyper’s complexion is not clear and pale as Jane’s is described, in fact, one can accuse her coloring of being completely wrong for the role. She could even be described as quite mousey, compared to Jane’s dignified, if irregular beauty. She does, however, suit Jane’s delicacy.

Looks aside, though, she’s my favorite Jane (to nobody’s surprise, I am sure.) As with all things in the 2009 version, Jane’s inner emotions are brought to the fore, to stunning effect. Pyper’s Jane is in sync with Rupert Evans’ Frank at every step, which is unique to this version. It adds so much to the viewer’s understanding of the story, so that as the pieces fall into place, it makes sense that, however badly awry their relationship has gone, you can see how Jane might have fallen for Frank in the first place.

2009 bread and butter, though, is as I’ve so often said before, the visceral manner in which you are drawn into Jane’s weariness and exhaustion. The desperation rolls off of her, but when not letting it burst to the surface, it rests quietly in Laura Pyper’s pretty and demure expressions.

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That's all for now. If you enjoyed this, check out my other reviews and rankings here

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