A Year of Austen: In celebration of Jane Austen’s 250th birthday, Hot Docs Cinema presents: A Year of Austen—a monthly screening series featuring beloved Austen adaptations on film that showcase the author’s enduring hold on literature, the romance genre and pop culture.
Join Hot Docs for another installment in our Year of Austen series.
Before Jane Austen began writing what would be the final novel published during her lifetime, she wrote: “I am going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like.”
Emma is clever, handsome and rich—as much as she is spoiled, headstrong and self-satisfied. The queen bee of the sleepy village of Highbury, she is restless following the marriage of her beloved governess (a match made by Emma herself), so occupies herself with meddling in the lives of others and further attempts at match-making. While her antics are often misguided and self-serving, Emma’s messiness and character development make her one of the most compelling of Austen’s protagonists, and arguably the prototype for modern queen bees from Carrie Bradshaw to Elle Woods and, of course, Cher Horowitz of Clueless, a loose adaptation of the novel.
Director Autumn de Wilde paints Austen’s signature humour, romance and critique of social class with bold candy colours set to a whimsical score. This adaptation is sure to delight fans of contemporary cinema and Austen enthusiasts alike.
Doors will open 45 minutes prior to the screening.
TICKETS (+HST)
General: $15
Members: $10, $8, FREE