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Mixed or average reviews - based on 34 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 28 Ratings

  • Starring: Anne Hathaway, James McAvoy, Julie Walters
  • Summary: Becoming Jane is the story of the great, untold romance that inspired a young Jane Austen. Willful and spirited, Jane is not ready to be tied down to anything but her writing. That is until she meets Tom Lefroy, a charming rogue from London who spends more time drinking and socializing than on his law studies. (Miramax Films) Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 34
  2. Negative: 0 out of 34
  1. Reviewed by: Claudia Puig
    88
    If one were to fuse the literary sensibility of Jane Austen with the fanciful imaginative license of "Shakespeare in Love," what would emerge would likely be the charming tale Becoming Jane.
  2. Reviewed by: Derek Elley
    80
    An ersatz "Pride and Prejudice" in all but name, Becoming Jane is a finely tooled Brit-lit costumer that, like Anne Hathaway's flawless accent as the young Austen, lacks only that final convincing 5%.
  3. Reviewed by: David Ansen
    60
    As the proud, independent young author, Hathaway is both subdued and alluring--it's her most mature performance. The movie goes down easy, but there's a thin line here: is this an homage or a parasite?
  4. Reviewed by: Ella Taylor
    60
    Becoming Jane turns into a presentable Harlequin romance, with hurdle after hurdle succeeded by an eleventh-hour turnaround.

See all 34 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 14
  2. Negative: 1 out of 14
  1. MarF.
    10
    love it. It's so sad to think that Jane Austen wrote in her novels the happy ending she could't have in real life.
  2. SorronaQ
    8
    A charming movie, despite it smacking you repeatedly in the face with comparisons to Pride and Prejudice.
  3. G-RadA.
    7
    A spectacular cast and dazzling picture.
  4. SarahB.
    4
    A very bland movie with no heart or soul. No real chemistry between the actors. You sort of wonder if some producer type thought, "hey, we can make 'Shakespeare in Love' with Jane Austen!" What he forgot to procure, however, was a convincing script and a competent director. Expand

See all 14 User Reviews

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