What?! What is this movie... Maybe it could have been better if it was not titled Persuasion or meant to be Austen.

I'm not sure what the goal was here but if it was to make Anne nearly dislikable, they have succeeded. Not sure what was up with Wentworth but at least there you have some type of pinning. But then also, it was like they made him nearly too sad or something. Anne & Wentworth both felt miscast with Dakota and Jarvis. Neither gave the type of miserable or toying longing needed for those characters and the story. Or maybe that could have been down to the writing or direction as well. Props for trying to add in diversity with some of the other players - especially with Golding, as Mr. Eliot.

In trying to modernize, they tell you the story or how the next scene will play out with Fleabag-esque talks to the camera or using modern language that ruins the beauty of Austen's words at times. Not that the style cannot work bc Fleabag is great but instead of giving her inner thoughts, it was as if they were telling the audience something and playing it out with commentary as if we cannot or would not gather the details, personalities, or characteristics otherwise. And it bordered on antagonizing, the piss-poor narration, instead of allowing the audience to feel with the characters and learn about things.

Persuasion is already a slow churn but this somehow made it worse. It was as if they focused on all the wrong elements at all the wrong times. The shots of the buildings were good I guess.