People often talk about Dalton in this role, but it's easy to overlook that it is the dynamic between the two actors that makes this production so brilliant. Her quiet but steely constancy provides his platform for charisma and vulnerability.
See, too often these conversations get so whittled down for so many reasons--to save time, to keep the audience interested, to move along the plot, to make it seem more "natural" or modern... but what those adaptions forget is that this story does have a lot of enigmatic repartee between the two leads--and their relationship is absolutely crucial to the story. Their relationship IS the story. Thus, this kind of rapport establishes their connection and deepens it. They are sharing their minds with one another and in so doing, the reader/watcher sees how they fall in love with each other's characteristics. Jane loves that he wants to treat her as an equal and that despite being broken, she sees that he has a capacity for goodness which he's always on the brink of reclaiming. He sees her as a reprieve from the sensual and selfish world--a pure beam of morality which he so longs to have... Scenes like this really help me understand why they fall in love... especially later on.
For all his faults, Mr Rochester knows a priceless, albeit raw, jewel when he sees one in Jane. In 1 conversation, he lays bare the demons he has been struggling with all the years since his marriage. The conversation opens up the possibility of carthasis/redemption he badly needs. Which is why when he is exposed as a married man, he still clings desperately to Jane, the one pure soul who can heal his tormented one. You feel his desperation, his naked vulnerability . Love this JE depiction the most.
This version with Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke is by far my favorite of all the Jane Eyre adaptations I've ever viewed. Don't get me wrong, there are other good versions out there but this happens to be THE one! My second favorite was with Toby Stephens and Ruth Wilson. In this BBC miniseries of Jane Eyre, the chemistry between Timothy and Zelah was something to behold. Andrew Bicknell, who played St John Rivers, was very impressive. In the book, Mr. Rochester was not handsome and as most of us know, Timothy Dalton was very handsome. In this version, Jane Eyre refers to Mr. Rochester as being Vulcan-like, and if truth be told, Dalton did look Vulcan-like, what with his dark hair and though his eyes are really green, they looked dark. And that booming voice of his! What a voice! Jane described St. John Rivers as being a handsome, tall, blond, Greek god, and he did look like a Greek god, in my eyes. However, Dalton was so good at portraying Mr. Rochester, that all I could concentrate on was the many moods he successfully exuded with this character. Dalton nailed all of Rochester's moods as rude, arrogant, playful, angry, passionate, dispassionate, cruel, tormented, impatient, desperate, dark, and loving. Whew! Zelah reciprocated splendidly. I bought the DVD long ago and I still have it. When I'm bored with whatever's available on streaming or elsewhere, I always return to this miniseries. This is what great acting is all about and kudos must go to the entire cast as well. This is a must-see and a keeper! I just love it! Can't you tell? LOL!
For those saying Timothy Dalton is too handsome to play Mr Rochester -------> The problem might not be him being too handsome to play Rochester, but the beauty standards of that day being different from what it is today. Today, many women are attracted to men with solidly defined bodies, broad shoulders, rugged and all but in the period in which the book is set, a slim, tall man that looks like he hasn't lifted anything heavier than a tea cup in his life, fair skinned because he doesn't go out in the sun, small cherry coloured lips and blonde hair was seen as attractive (e.g. Jane's cousin Mr St John Rivers and Young Lord Ingram). If the men we find attractive today were to be transported back in time to that period, they would be considered ugly by the ladies there. So I don't believe Mr Rochester was ugly, he just didn't meet up with the beauty standards of his day.
He is supposed to be broad chested and middling height, like burly. And anyway, if they're going to keep strict with the novel, they just make him unattractive for the modern audience. But he's pretty much perfect here, good looks (but not TOO perfectly handsome like Pierce Brosnan) and all.
Dalton may seem too handsome for the part, but I've learned from paintings that the standard of beauty then was different from today's. Men often looked almost effeminate, women fat or pear shaped, pale and mostly ugly in my opinion. Dalton may very well have been considered too rough or rugged to be handsome then. It's interesting in any case. I like him in this role a lot.
I'm blown away by the way Mr. Rochester express his feelings, not to mention giving Jane permission to answer with honesty. Ms Eyre plays along manipulating Mr. Rochester into plundering his decade of demons. It's too soon for her to admit that she's in love with him and he doesn't want to reveal his true desire for her before knowing if Jane feels the same for him. I tell you, that sinister smirk on her face reminds of a Cat teasing a Mouse. I love this version of the movie.
@@adaorahikwueme4472 ahhh! that would have been wonderful. Dalton is such a versatile actor, the way he played iconic fictional characters: Heathcliff in 'Wuthering Heights' (before Jane Eyre), Rhett Butler in 'Scarlett' and twice as James Bond.
Oh, my absolute favourite TV-series - and book! Tommy Dalton is a superb character actor (he used to play Shakespeare roles at the theatre in his youth), and so is Zelah Clarke in the role as Jane Eyre.
Какой красивый Мужчина Тимати Далтон. Какой мировой актёр, как можно так играть правдопадобно. Это так невероятно, так завараживает. Браво актёрам,..! Зила Кларк- Красотка душой и сердцем. Люблю английский язык. Какой он красивый в произношении этих актеров.
Я стала учить английский из-за этого фильма и наконец прочла в оригинале (в 55лет). А Тим Далтон так сыграл мистера Рочестера!!!!, что я стала смотреть все фильмы с ним, в оригинале ( у него и голос волшебный!). Он и в театре, и в комедийных ролях, и в трагических, исторических - везде Король! Превосходный актер!❤
@@МаркШейко-б5п well that's just your opinion but people are not blind . And this version probably suffers the most when it comes to the make-up, costume department and even cinematography. Yet he looks good with that horrible make-up and hairstyle which says a lot. And if you don't find him handsome, then probably you should watch him in Mistral's daughter or even Charlie's Angels.
@@МаркШейко-б5п Timothy Dalton is the most handsome man on Earth! And I’m a connoisseur of handsome men… He’s as close to perfection as is humanly possible!
"You examined me, miss Eyre. Do you find me handsome?" YES. His only sin on being Mr. Rochester is being too damn handsome. The closest with the book in appearance is 1997 version but without mustache.
Мне не понравилось ещё в 1997г,что Хидс старше намного своего героя, а рочестер должен выглядеть моложаво. На 25 как говорила Джейн особенно в сцене после пожара в спальне Рочестера он был похож на педофила
I love this scene, and this BBC adaptation of the novel is my favorite. Timothy Dalton is far too attractive to play Rochester, but I sure love looking at him, and he's brilliant in this role. Thanks for posting. :-)
И для меня тоже. Недавно прочла книгу в оригинале, а фильм смотрю всю Жизнь- в 1983 на русском, а с 2000-х на немецком и английском. Фильм просто чудо!
Looks like he's attracted to her, and enjoys talking to her, but at this point he's trying to draw her out. And note what he does after she saves his life (in another episode)--he runs off to Blanche, a woman he has NO intention of marrying! This is a hugely conflicted man (Dalton plays him very well indeed), and if he were not I would say his behavior toward Jane would make no sense.
I think he realized he loved her after she saved him from the fire. He goes after Blanche to make her jealous so she admit she loves him....that the crappy part of his charactor.
@@annstillwell730 he fell in love since the first time he saw her when he fell off his horse. He tells her so in the book. I think that's why he called her "witch" on that day (it makes me think of Mr. Darcy's line, "you've bewitched me body and soul"). The reason he takes so long to draw her out and then runs to get her jealous with Blanche is because he knew that marrying Jane would be enormously wrong and a huge sin, so he HAD to make sure she was completely and madly in love with him because otherwise he didn't see the point in even confessing his feelings to her because THERE WAS NO WAY HIS CONSCIENCE WOULD LET HIM "RUIN" JANE (by marrying her) IF HE DIDN'T THINK IT WAS JUSTIFIED by her love of him. Therefore, he NEEDED her to say her feelings FIRST before he could confess his own feelings, and the ONLY way a woman like her would EVER confess to loving him was if she was full of passion at the moment. And how do you get such a passive and composed woman to confess such a thing? Easy, by making her insanely jealous. I know it seems very cruel by Mr. Rochester to get her jealous like that, but you have to understand it was even crueler to marry her in the state he was in. So in his mind, he fiercely hoped that God would forgive Jane and let them live "happily ever after" if God saw that they both truly loved each other, and again, the only way he could make sure she truly loved him was by making her jealous.
Какие были принципы,установка жизни, брака между людьми! Я так хотела бы очутиться в той жизни. Сейчас нет такой красоты. А эта гостевая комната? Эта так умилительно. Боже мой...! Рита Владикавказ Осетия
Hay algo,un no se que, que lo mantuvo siempre por encima de todos los demás. Dejó huella en todo lo que tocó, hay un trocito de el en todos los papeles que interpretó. Jamás habrá otro igual❤❤
The versions I did NOT like was Ciaran Hinds as Rochester in the 1997 version with Samantha Morton and George C. Scott with Susannah York. Morton was good but Hinds came across as a violent bully, controlling, abusive, and frothing at the mouth like a rabid dog! Awful over acting. Scott looked too old, not a great version. Best Rochesters: Timothy Dalton, William Hurt, Toby Stephens.
He was bought up in Derbyshire since the age of three so can carry an northern accent. It is quite common in those who have grown up in the north and have had vocal (drama school) training and theatre experience. Sir Ian Mckellen is also another example of an actor who speaks with this cadence.
@@albinocrow1725 that's amusing because the makeup artist made him look quite like novel's Rochester as Timothy Dalton was not at all ruggedly handsome in real. He has fair complexion, boyish charm in his features, not harshness like a middle aged man. Even his voice seems way more gruff here. Even those fake big dark circles under his eyes, and despite the pathetic makeup and hairstyle he still looks great.
The problem might not be Dalton being too handsome to play Mr Rochester, but the beauty standards of that day being different from what it is today. Today, many women are attracted to men with solid defined bodies, broad shoulders, rugged and all but in the period in which the book is set, a slim, tall man that looks like he hasn't lifted anything heavier than a tea cup in his life, fair skinned because he doesn't go out in the sun, small cherry coloured lips and blonde hair was seen as attractive (e.g. Jane's cousin Mr St John Rivers). If the men we find attractive today were to be transported back in time to that period, they would be considered ugly by the ladies there. So I don't believe Mr Rochester was ugly, he just didn't meet up with the beauty standards of his day.
I know I shouldn't, but I get irritated by Zelah Clarke's accent. I think I could stand her acting much better if it weren't for the accent. There's just something over-the-top and silly about it that takes me out of the action. I like everything else about her & her performance, it's just a personal preference.
Да, Далтон очень красивый мужчина, изумительный актёр, но в жизни эгоист, жить только с красотой невозможно; мне трудно представить, чтобы мой муж отказался от помощи моим родителям, сказав при этом, что каждый сам решает свои проблемы. Как можно жить с человеком по контракту? С женщиной, родившей ему сына? ( если журналисты не врут). Мне, русской женщине, его ровеснице, не понять. Нельзя обвинять Оксану Григорьеву: жить с человеком, который живёт в угоду своим амбициям, не возможно.
@@АннаЕвсикова-я9л You see, he didn't truly love her. If he did, he'd have married her. And he's a fine actor but doesn't seem very avaricious as he turned down the Bond role twice. So he might not be very rich. You just can't go around having kids with men who don't commit to you.
@@cellowali2865 Really, you seem super officious. You did not contradict anything I said about his turning down the Bond role. And I think you're just speculating about his personal life, but that heinous woman seems the exact type that would never refuse a chance to sue for divorce. No way she turned down a proposal from him.
