Screenplay (TV Series) Antonia and Jane (1990) User Reviews

Delightful, well acted but too short

[jangu · 8/10 · 18 May 2003]

This is a little gem of a movie. Antonia and Jane are old-time friends...or something like that. Because they are two very different women. Jane is a bit of a loner, weird, intellectual and very insecure about her appearance, at least on the surface. Antonia on the other hand, is a woman of the world, sophisticated and, as opposite to Jane, very sure about herself at first glance. However, things are not what they seem. Unaware that they share the same therapist, we quickly learn that Jane, who may look like "the loser" in this friendship, is envied by Antonia because she has a will and drive to explore new areas that Antonia lack. And Jane on the other hand thinks that Antonia has everything you could ever want (including Janes ex-boyfriend). This movie is quite insightful, but too short to explore any real depths. It has the feel of a Woody Allen movie, with smart one-liners and quirky characters. Most of the time it is a genuinely funny movie. I really like they both start to hallucinate about the way Antonia stole Jane's boyfriend (on tv and in a movie respectively). The movie-within-the-movie "La guerre de Jane Hartmann" is deliciously OTT. The only drawback I see in this movie is the fact that it is too short and the end is so hurried. But, all in all, I can watch this over and over again and I urge others to do the same! :-)

A small gem

[barbarella70 · 2 December 2002]

Wonderful British sleeper that deserves to be seen; alas no video store seems to have a copy of it.

Heartfelt tale of two women living vicariously through one another to escape their respective routines. Funny and unexpectedly touching with full performances throughout, the film also manages to make great use of a Sondheim tune. Kudos to director Beeban Kidron for helping craft a simple pleasure that never pushes its limits. One reviewer accurately described this as a thinking person's Thelma & Louise and I couldn't agree more.

If you find a copy at a video store or see it listed on the cable menu, please check it out.

One of my top five films of all time.

[LAlston · 10/10 · 21 June 2005]

One of the happiest accidents in my video shop was discovering this film. It is simple genius. Knock your socks off acting in a she said/ she said formula. This is a modern relationship comedy with a back bone. We follow two sides of a friendship. Antonia and Jane is so much more than a friendship version of a romantic comedy. It says things about women together that are rarely treated with such humour, finesse subtlety. There's also lots of sex jokes.

I put this in my top five films of all time because I always like films about characters who discover they already have the key to their hearts desire.

The grundgeyness of this film creates a lovely world on screen. Buckets of that fab British self depreciating humour.

too undemanding

[mjneu59 · 4/10 · 3 November 2010]

Two women, acquainted since childhood, grow apart over the years despite maintaining a reasonable facsimile of friendship. The joke is that neither one – a counter-culture neurotic and a disenchanted yuppie – realizes how alike they really are: each one secretly envies the qualities that make the other miserable. Director Beeban Kidron tries hard to affect an air of deadpan idiosyncrasy, but her laconic approach to some weak material makes the film sound like a tired TV sitcom without the canned laughter. Maybe it couldn't be avoided: too much of Marcy Kidron's screenplay is already self-consciously cute, with every obvious punch line overemphasized by her dependence on that most convenient of script writer's devices: voice-over narration (and from an analyst's couch, of course). It's hard to dislike a film with such agreeably modest ambitions, but it's even more difficult to recommend a movie that sets itself up as such an easy target for criticism.

A wonderful look at women's friendships

[sphinx-7 · 28 August 1999]

I love this movie, mostly because it showcases the fabulous talents of both Imelda Staunton and Saskia Reeves. Imelda is too much in the shade in most of her other movies, but here she plays with her looks and her persona, in a way I only have observed the best actors do. There is a depth here, only hinted at in her other portrayals, namely Mary in Peter's Friends. I find it a wonderful portrayal of the friendship between two heterosexual women, so often misinterpreted in movies. Friendship between women can incorporate jealousy, but also a profound understanding of what it means to be in love, to be unhappy or content, the core of what it is to be a woman. This was admirably played out by the two leads, who outshone the other characters, mostly men, by the epic quality of their friendship. I have not seen either in a film for a while, I hope they show up again soon, and in leading roles.

Antonia and Jane is the essence of what makes British films excellent.

[Julius-10 · 26 April 1999]

Antonia and Jane is a wonderful British Film that deserves praise for its depth, its originality, and its gentle humor. It is quite touching, and deserves accolades for every aspect of the film. The Soundtrack to the film is delightful also, especially the song at the end of the film. This film will evoke tears.